Jimmy Woo’s

Went to Jimmy Woo’s with some friends from out of town and had a great meal. They have really good egg drop soup and my friends really enjoyed the hot and sour soup. We also ordered some crab puffs and a couple of egg rolls. I’m not a fan of egg rolls to begin with so no comment, but our dinner was very good. The Sesame Beef and Mongollian Chicken was very tasty. The service was quick and friendly. We will definitely go back!

I received an e-​mail a breakfast place named Morning Squeeze is replacing Jimmy Woo’s in September – no word yet on whether Woo’s is relocating. Here’s my review of Woo’s anyway, just in case:
I went to Jimmy Woo’s in Old Town Scottsdale with as open a mind as I could, considering Chinese food is probably my least favorite cuisine. I am probably a horrible person to give my opinion on what good Chinese food is, so I’ll offer up my take on the service and ambiance of the place without pretending to know what I’m talking about in regards to how the food tasted.
The spot is chic and trendy, with a bold black and red theme. There was a giant abacus on the wall near us, which I thought was an interesting decoration that worked.
Jimmy Woo’s had a patio on Scottsdale Road, making it a good place to go for people-​watching, and inside, there were lots of big booths as well as tables. It took awhile for our server to get to us, but once he did, we ordered a variety of cocktails to sample. They had varieties of mai tai’s, mojitos and pina coladas, but my favorite was the cucumber-​infused Year of the Cock ($ 9.95, very naughty name, I know.)
It was a fresh take on a margarita, with a salt-​rimmed glass and tequila, but it had a fruity cucumber taste. It also wasn’t as strong as my Woo Tai ($ 9.95), which you should only drink if you really love the taste of alcohol.
For dinner, I had some vegetable lettuce wraps ($ 6.95), which were made with tofu. These were the first lettuce wraps I’ve ever had. I loved how much like meat the tofu tasted like, but it wasn’t my favorite dish ever because it tasted sort of bland overall.
I really liked the entrée, which was Kung Pao Vegetables with brown rice ($ 9.95). There was a great variety of veggies and peanuts, and the sauce reminded me of a curry. I did not like the dried chili peppers because I’m not a fan of super-​spicy foods, so unless you can handle heat, leave them off.
For dessert, we had Jimmy’s Sweet Puffs ($ 7.95), little chocolate-​filled treats that looked like crab puffs. The filling tasted like chocolate mousse, and these were my favorite part of the meal.
I think Jimmy Woo’s could be successful just based on how many people I know who love Chinese food when they’re drunk. Its location smack in the middle of Old Town Scottsdale makes it a great place for partiers to cruise to while they’re clubbing it up, since it’s open until midnight every day.

I dated a guy once who told me that Chinese food is like pizza because you can’t really mess it up. Well, the next time I run into him, I am going to send him to Jimmy Woo’s.
For the last few weeks, I have had a weird craving for Chinese food, and just in case you are wondering, I’m not pregnant. I decided to give Jimmy Woo’s a try today since I drive by the place every day, and I am not a fan of P.F. Chang’s across the street.
Wow. That was a mistake.
I ordered some noodles and pork dumplings, and I was shocked by how BLAND the food was. If I could chew and swallow air, I think it would taste like the food I got today. The pork had huge chunks of tendon within it that I couldn’t eat half of the meat, and the sauce was so tasteless that I had to put some soy sauce on it which I absolutely hate doing. Since my craving hasn’t been satisfied by this experience, I am going to drive out to Chandler or Phoenix tonight for Chinese food praying for better.

I went here first for Happy hour… with my son… yes I am guilty for having ONE after work! It is right on scottsdale road across from the Sh*t show of yucky loco patron. Bar is set up inside to be half inside and out and I am a big fan of sitting at the bar. All the the food was good but only if you like fried food. Service was ok and I went back again for Sushi. DO NOT… I repeat… DO NOT eat sushi here. It is unconventional and everything has this strange aioli sauce on everything.
Most places in scottsdale let you sit at the bar with your kid but they turned away a dad with two 16 year olds. Last time I was a bartender it was only restaurant policy, not liquor law, that kids can’t sit at the bar.

Really thought I’d like this place, as it’s a good location, nice outdoor patio, and looks like it could be a fun place to have dinner/​drinks with friends. Unfortunately, the food was disappointing. Lacked authenticity, flavor, and portions were on the smaller side. Yes, prices are good, and they have a really good happy hour– they even have happy hour on weekends! Score! But overall, the service and prices here just don’t make up for the bland food. So I suggest coming for happy hour, but not when your craving good Chinese.

Even after a night of drinking, this place was just OKAY.
FOOD: Typical Chinese-​American food served and a pretty good variety of maki and nigiri
PRICE: Reasonable prices with half portions available
SERVICE: Annoying, since the server literally brought the food and asked if we wanted boxes within ten minutes of its arrival. We had barely even served ourselves.
Of course, we arrived here very shortly before closing, so that could be why we received such poor service.
OVERALL: I won’t make a trip out to Scottsdale to come here, but if I am around and in the mood… maybe I will stop in. Of course, I am not a big fan of Chinese food in the first place so…

If I could give no stars, I would have jumped at the idea. Unfortunately, 1 is the lowest on Unilocal.
By far… the WORST Chinese/​American restaurant one could ever venture to in Scottsdale or maybe even AZ.
My friend and I were meeting up for lunch and were going to go to Kyoto on Scottsdale but they were closed… so we had to pick another place close by. We ended up picking Jimmy Woo’s. Worst decision EVER!
I had a lunch chicken dish there and it was so bad I don’t even remember what it was even supposed to be. It was so bad I had to ask for soy sauce and a bunch of other sauces to have an edible lunch.
The chicken was overcooked and hard/dry…and there was VERY limited sauce on the plate… which didn’t help the situation.
My recommendation: Don’t go here if you want «Chinese food». Go here if you want bland, gross, Americanized mock Chinese food.

Had their lettuce wraps — only complaint was they only give u 2 leafs of lettuces. wth? Had to ask for some more and got 2 more. which actually was enough for the rest…
The sushi was good! Not all sloppy, not a huge chunky slice, not too much rice — a lot more things can go wrong with sushi than people know. Calamari was good, nice flavor in the batter, strips not rings.
I think I found my new sushi happy hour place! Its great when you’re between chinese food and sushi — you can get both at a reasonable price here!

Jimmy Woo’s has some really interesting and delicious takes on Chinese/​Pan-​Asian standards. I tried the spinach and crab, singapore noodles and a few sushi rolls. Everything was fresh and delicious. The spinach and crab might even be the best I’ve had. The singapore noodles were perfectly seasoned and plentiful. Seriously, what’s the point of ordering noodles if you don’t get enough to take home for a midnight snack?
The cocktails were pretty great too. I can’t remember what my drink was called but it was like a chocolate mint mudslide. Very refreshing way to end a meal. It’s a definite step up from most of the Asian places in the area which i’m discovering are pretty lame. I used to live in Chicago and have high standards for anything Asian so trust me when I say this place is worth checking out.

Happy Hour here is one of the best in all of old town. The food is of such high quality and the service is well above par. Your check will make you feel guilty enough to tip generously. FYI — Jimmy’s offers more than just terrific Sushi.

We planned on going to a Touch of Thai which was located next door. That restaurant went out of business so we ended up here.
I ordered the chicken curry with carrots & potatoes with an eggroll. My husband went with the combo fried fried rice. The chicken curry had very little sauce and the potatoes were crunchy. The eggroll lacked flavor. My husband liked his fried rice, I don’t know why. The entire meal lacked flavor, I could have had a tastier meal at Panda Express.

Good prices for happy hour. Cool red and black décor inside. I appreciate the entrée menu including listings f or 500cal or less. I think you just have to know what you’re ordering. My veggie delight was simple, yet tasty and healthy.
My husband and his friend ordered a bunch of tempura appetizers, which were coated in quite a heavy tempura batter. I can’t excuse him for not knowing it was fried, but it was probably the heaviest tempura I’ve ever had and could not eat much of it.
Service was lackluster. They failed the water-​glass test, and our server seemed unenthusiastic about… everything. We went on a Saturday night, although it wasn’t busy.
Meh, worth a try if you’re craving Asian food and still want something low-​cal. You know you have that option here. Otherwise nothing to write home about.

As a FB fan, I was offered free Skyy Vodka drinks — for me and a few of my friends — for an hour if we came in during happy hour. I said, «What the heck, why not?» and rounded up a few friends to try them out. BEWARE of this PROMOTION, it ended up being a fraud in my book and lost them two stars.
Woo’s happy hour starts early (3ish) and ends at 6:30pm with specialty drinks half off and a variety of small dishes for reasonable prices.
We sampled:
— fried eggrolls ($ 1.95)
— chicken dumplings ($ 2.95, ordered pan-​fried)
— seafood dumplings ($ 4.75, ordered steamed)
— crab puffs ($ 2.95)
— char sui ribs ($ 4.95)
— shrimp balls ($ 5.95)
— Woo’s fried rice ($ 4.95)
All the food was pretty good and arrived timely, although my pan-​fried dumplings were steamed. The rice was enough for a few people. The other dishes were modest in size and good for individuals versus community sharing.
A couple of my friends tried the Yellow Fever (and it fondly reminded me of Dean doing his Eye of the Tiger gag at the end of a Supernatural episode). A couple others had Skyy vodka plain with soda and another friend grabbed a beer. Sadly, with no Malibu, I was relegated to an imposter — Barcadi Coco — in the China Mist. HINT: Malibu would’ve made it WAY better!
Thanks to Sheila, our server, plates were cleared and glasses refilled without us having to ask, always a plus in my book. However, when we got our $ 75.00 bill after an hour of eating and drinking, the Skyy drinks were INCLUDED. I asked our server about it and she removed two, but we were still charged for the other two.
I would’ve given our experience 3.5−4 stars but when you charge for something you CLEARLY state are comped, then take a couple off and STILL include a couple, that’s just crappy. $ 15 bucks off of $ 75 wouldn’t have broken the bank and we tipped $ 20 on top of it. So, beware of their FB promo.

Jimmy Woo’s started off strong! The hostess allowed us party of 3 to sit at a patio 6-​top, as there were no other seats. We were visited for drink orders right as we sat, and our waitress checked in a few times before we were prepared to order. Note: who could say no to those amazing lunch specials with soup, egg roll, rice and dish?! Seriously excited to revisit and try a few more for cheap!
Unfortunately, it was after we ordered when things started to SLOW down. And that’s the only way to put it… it took 20 minutes for our soup to arrive. Our meals arrived 5 minutes later, and when we were done, we waited an additional 20 minutes to gain the attention of our waitress for the bill. 15 minutes later, we were finally walking out the door. It was difficult to see if our waitress was overwhelmed with other tables, but by the time we were leaving, the number of patrons had declined significantly. so I have to imagine service slowed after the rush and we were left hanging for a bit…
The food was great though! Well portioned, classic tastes, and felt like a healthier Chinese option. We tried the Woojitos, and I enjoyed them… bit weak, but I had to return to work, so I didn’t mind! I also like the booth seating inside — such a diner feel.

I hate giving bad reviews because I hate spending money at places to not enjoy my meal.
So I ate at Jimmy Woo’s and had the shrimp in lobster sauce. The food just really didn’t taste that great and I totally was not impressed. After tossing half of my meal I called it a night. Well Jimmy didn’t think so I barely made it home and I was seriously sick from what I ate. I won’t get into details but totally not a fun experience.
I see many people have went there and been fine but I for sure will never go back unless just to drink. I can’t eat somewhere I got sick at again ever. Too bad it’s got a great location and nice bar.

I thought the food was great!
Salty… but soooooo good! Mmmm, sodium.
Ended up ordering a few different entrees, along with some appetizers.
I’ll totally come back to this place during happy hour to try alllllllllll the different appetizers!
I loved the crab puffs! Delicious!!!

I’ve often used the word Chinamerican to help describe food being made at some Chinese restaurants. This type Americanized Chinese cookery usually includes the same suspects like sweet and sour chicken, fried rice, lo mein and can be found pretty much anywhere except Old Town Scottsdale.
Now the owners of Geisha A Go Go and Stingray Sushi have opened another Asian concept capturing the essence of Chinamerican, Jimmy Woo’s. While cool and modern inside, they somehow managed to pay homage to the type of Chinese restaurants I knew when I was a kid. There are no white and pink table cloths here but the half moon shaped black leather booths, dim lighting and old school Chinese menu evokes a 70’s mod vibe. Be sure to check out the enormous abacus, it’ll be the largest you’ll ever see. Outdoors, Woo’s has a fantastic patio that faces Scottsdale Road which is great for people watching.
Woo’s offers a daily happy hour that starts at 3pm, which gets you drink discounts and a well priced small plates menu. Offerings such as plump and juicy Pan Fried Pork Dumplings ($ 4) and a plate full of fork tender, lightly fried Salt and Pepper Calamari ($ 5.25) are stand outs. If you pair these with a carafe of hot Sake ($ 4), happy hour could be a meal in of itself.
Looking over you’ll notice that it’s all about the classics and these classics are done pretty well, starting with Hot and Sour Soup ($ 5.95). Yes this is on every single Chinese menu around town but Woo’s version adds tofu, mushrooms, egg, bamboo and chicken making for a hearty robust soup. Be sure to ask for some chili paste, the nose clearing effect is like tasty medicine.
After one bite of the Chinese Chicken Salad ($ 8.95), you couldn’t help but notice that while well dressed in a peanut ginger dressing, it lacked any sort of flavor punch. Made with napa cabbage, carrot, bell pepper, snap peas and scallions then topped with fried noodles and almonds, the ingredients were vibrant and fresh. Hopefully they reconfigure their dressing since the added brightness from citrus juice or vinegar can be key to taking ho-​hum to wow.
Slightly crispy, tender, sweet and sour tossed with bits of chili and citrus peel, the Orange Beef ($ 13.95) was decent. For me this is what Asian style cooking is all about, appealing to many of my senses without any one being overwhelmed. However on another visit this dish was so overly sweetened and gloopy that it was pretty much inedible. Different chef?
I thought it was funny the veggie only, Eggplant with Tofu and Mushroom ($ 15) dish was one of the most expensive on the menu. Don’t get me wrong, this dish was tasty with its slightly sweet sauce and well cooked vegetables it’s just priced oddly high. I found it funny that many of the shrimp and scallop dishes are priced less than this one. Go figure.
Jimmy Woo’s may woo you with its sophisticated yet fun atmosphere, but for me it was the friendly service and their ability to make Chinese hip and cool. I only wish the food was as hip and cool.

Heavy sauce, mediocre shrimp, good and friendly service. Do not think I will go back after two other friends said that they felt as bad as I did after eating there.
The only reason it has two stars is due to the excellent service.

Chinese is one of my very favorite cuisines and with few exceptions, seems to be missing in the Greater Phoenix area. Naturally, when someone suggested that I check Jimmy Woo’s out on their grand opening night, I couldn’t resist.
With two friends (Hipster Chris Galli and Vegetarian Kirti Dwivedi), I stand waiting to be seated in Woo’s hip bustling dining room which in my opinion is the antithesis of the typical quiet, somber Chinese restaurant that seems to be the norm.
The décor is bright and stylish, the inside out bar serves as both focal point and gathering place for those enjoying a happy hour drink or waiting to dine. There are design elements to draw the eye (a giant, functional abacus occupies one full wall), attractive, attentive staff and the occasional fireball from the kitchen, I’m getting hungry!
In short order my party was seated in what for Foodies was the absolute best table in the house, a booth centered on the open kitchen where we could see the important stuff, the food being prepared!
First up, a cup of wonton soup. I found the wonton to be well made, properly tender, tasty and the broth, once soy sauce and Chinese hot mustard were added, was quite good (the addition of crunchy deep fried noodles or wonton skins would have made this soup great.
Next up came an order of pork dumplings which are served either steamed or fried (steamed in our case), these were simply beautiful and quite tasty as well alongside a small dish of traditional soy based dipping sauce. (our resident vegetarian enjoyed her 5 spice tofu lettuce wraps while the Hipster and I demolished the dumplings).
A large, steaming bowl of fat egg noodles covered in a dark sauce with lots of ground chicken dubbed ‘Woo’s noodles’ arrived next to my delight, the Hipster and I dug in (after the appropriate photographs had been taken of course). The brown sauce was rich and flavorful though a bit sweeter than I expected. (I would have preferred a little more heat as well).
Arriving next were Kung Pao vegetables and General Woo’s chicken. The veggies were a mix of al dente broccoli, peppers and bamboo shoots stir fried with a spicy brown sauce and chopped peanuts. This dish was quite tasty with the right balance of crunch and softness, spice and sweetness.
General Woo’s chicken is the house version of General Tso’s chicken and my favorite dish of the night. Large chunks of crispy white meat chicken bathed in a sweet and spicy sauce seemingly evaporated before our eyes!
Our final entrée was Kung Pao shrimp and I’m sad to say that though it was good, this was my least favorite dish so far. Those who know me well know of my affinity for bold, spicy food and I really expected this shrimp dish to fit the bill but it was just lacking in the spice department. A quick conversation with Chef Andrew Nam revealed that the peppers used in the dish were not as hot as he would have liked and that a new purveyor was being sought.
Dessert followed and consisted of Fried wonton skins filled with raspberry or warm chocolate cream and dusted with powdered sugar, these were just the right note to end the evening on. I slowly savored each bite of the one chocolate wonton that I allowed myself (after all, there’s my waistline to consider…) The lite, crunchy treat was just what I was looking for and well worth ordering.
In all I had a good meal, my dining companions and I were treated to great service and good, solid Chinese cuisine. Once Woo’s gets through it’s opening pains and adjusts a few minor things, it’ll be a solid choice for the Old Town lunch crowd, a dinner destination and a definite social hot spot.
Side note, on my way out of the restaurant I walked past the kitchen and there before me in all their glory were beautifully prepared spare ribs. Stacked lovingly on their plate, an order or Char Siu Short ribs awaited delivery to a lucky diner. I will certainly not leave Woo’s again without eating an order of these, (more on that later).

I was here earlier in the week with friends for dinner.
I love the contemporary décor. The fact that the west side of the space facing Scottsdale Rd opens up is great when the weather is nice.
The food was just OK. We ordered the egg drop soup, house fried rice, beef with broccoli and a shrimp dish.
I’d definitely come back again for the atmosphere. I’ll probably order different items to see if I can find something that I like better on the menu.