When Jose Lopez and Meili Wu, owners of Oriental Kitchen Restaurant in Pflugerville, relocated their restaurant in 2017, they left most of their menu behind, too.

The couple’s former restaurant in Rockdale, a small town approximately halfway between Austin and College Station, featured more than 200 menu items. Now, Oriental Kitchen Restaurant’s menu features approximately 35 items, all freshly made from scratch.

“We only use fresh chicken; we don’t leave anything overnight. That’s why our customers think we taste different, or fresh,” Wu said.

Lopez hand-selects the ingredients for his dishes from the wholesale dealers, all the way down to the garnishes. Wu said that Lopez went through five different varieties of bean sprout before he finally found one that he thought was good enough to serve at the restaurant.

The restaurant features several of its own unique recipes, such as basil fish or sauteed green beans. According to Wu, the smaller menu allows Lopez to cook to the individual customer’s order, and the couple encourages their patrons to modify menu items to their liking.

“Customers can make their own dish. They like it because we’re cooking it just for them,” Wu said. “We treat customers like they’re friends or family. This is not a restaurant; this is everybody dining well.”

Oriental Kitchen Restaurant just celebrated its one-year anniversary in Pflugerville in January. In that time, the Asian cuisine restaurant has become known for several unique menu items that combine traditional Chinese food with Texas fare.

On Sundays the restaurant serves Wu’s mother’s fried chicken recipe—called Salaco’s chicken—and the couple said they typically go through 80 pounds of their hand-breaded chicken in just two hours.

The restaurant has also linked up with local barbecue pitmaster John Brotherton to create a brisket fried rice dish, available only on Tuesdays and Wednesdays. Wu says that partnership is just one example of the relationships the couple has forged in their short time in Pflugerville.

“The community is very, very nice. It doesn’t matter where you come from; we’re like a big family,” Wu said.

Oriental Kitchen Restaurant
1100 Grand Avenue Parkway, Ste. 116, Pflugerville
512-670-9555
www.orientalkitchenrestaurant.com
Hours: Tue.-Thu. 11 a.m.-3 p.m., 4:30-9 p.m.; Fri.-Sat. 11 a.m.-9 p.m.; Sun. noon-9 p.m.; closed Mon.