Elija Bandersnatch
It’s getting late and after a flurry of visiting old friends and fancy restaurants, I am finally kicked loose with no clear itinerary, hungry, but tired, too early to go to bed, but too late to call old friends, so I stumble into Charlie Hong Kong’s which looks like a love child of Blade Runner and The Beach Boys. If you've traveled in Thailand on the hippy trail, you’ve seen places like this. Here, it where the locals go.
I’ll have to say their Thai Curry soup seems a little watered down and other than mushrooms, there isn’t a pea, a pod, a tiny bit of vegetable of any kind, but it’s not bad, just not great.
Then come the Teriyaki Chicken which has ample perfect rice-house rice with a good chewy grain that reminds me of shops all across Asia and a savory chicken that has simmered to tenderness and is saturated with flavor. The teriyaki soy appears to be home made and the ginger announced itself like a rooster announcing the morning.
Not too sweet, not too complicated, not too fancy, but if I lived here, I’d eat there twice week for the rest of my life. They’d get so sick of my ugly old mug that they’d run and hide when I showed up, except I tip well.
It's one of those places that drip character like an old roof drips water.
Can’t wait to go there again.
Max Pietsch (Max)
I had the Gado Gado w/ Hoison Pork. It had lots of peanut sauce and was very filling. The pork was very soft and tasty. Lots of green onions and peanuts too which added to the meal.
My friend had the curry chicken and I had a piece and the sauce was fresh and the chicken was soft. Less sauce on the curry chicken than the gado gado which is good if you’re watching your waistline.
The atmosphere is fun and casual. I liked the lighting and how it’s outdoors but covered.
I came back and had the Green Curry Noodles with Green Curry Chicken. It was tasty. Same level of tastiness as the Gado Gado in my opinion, but different in large part because the sauce wasn’t peanut based.
The Green Curry Noodles were similar to the Gado Gado in being very filling and having a lot of sauce. I think if you want something cheaper with fewer calories then go with a rice bowl like the Green Curry Chicken rice bowl. That’s just my guess. I threw out part of the Green Curry Noodles and Gado Gado because I was full and didn’t want the calories, but if you’ve been surfing all day the extra calories and sauce could be exactly what you want.
Brian Caulfield
Confession: I love junk food. Now this food is anything but junk - fresh, local, high-quality ingredients. At the same time, however, it satisfies my craving for something fast and flavorful. It's plant-based, hyper-local, healthy fare that's satisfying and uniquely Santa Cruz. If you spend any time in Santa Cruz you owe it to yourself to give it a try.
Jonathan Vargas
My go to spot in Santa Cruz for takeout. A friend showed me this place years ago and I make sure to stop by every time I visit the area. Best rice bowls and Spicy Dan ever! They also carry Boylan's root beer
Dave Riegert
Sorry, no photos this time, but this place is awesome. Do not come here if you do not like strong 💪🏼 flavors... the food here reminds me of street food (hawker center) in Singapore, with the proper amounts of flavor and heat (FINALLY!). Nothing is held back, which is EXACTLY the way it should be. ❤️ I had the Pad Thai Bowl with the chicken teriyaki add on. Everything is about the bowl, whether it's rice or veggies or noodles, then you add your protein. There are vegetarian protein options and the basic bowl is vegetarian to begin with. Portions are generous, so come hungry. 😋
UPDATE 3/26/22
Showed up again, had the same thing and I'm still fighting my food coma... the default spice level is a bit warm, I'm not crying, you're crying!
Alejandro Jacobo
Might be good for it's vegan options, but it's meat rice bowls were very bland. Nothing asian about this. The amount of sauces offered for free were the only source of flavor. Good price and quantity but the taste was no where
Mark M.
Got spicy dan with chicken so good love getting it everytime we go. Can't wait to go back again
B
It had tanked for awhile, but seems to have been turned around. Not many vegan places here in SC, so its nice to have it back. My only gripe, this time, is that I would have liked a better ratio of noodles to mushrooms. Welcome back from the dark side Charlie.
Christi McBride
Yummy! Fresh and fast. I love this place. � I am forced to type more?!?!?? Ok. This is a great place to get a quick bite to eat. It’s healthy and the staff is professional. Definitely one of my favorite places in Santa Cruz!!!
Cristy Parisi-Tuchtenhagen
My favorite place to eat any chance I get. Always an excellent, safe meal. I have many allergies and eat mostly vegetarian and love all the different options.
Linda Gillam Rabe
First time eating here and it was wonderful! I had the green curry chicken it was great-next time I’m trying the teriyaki salmon
Phillip Jaquez
Love the food the small space wife loves it ������
Kim Rademaker Moritz
We love this place! Super tasty and fresh! I just had a veggie stir fry bowl with spicy ginger beef, a bowl full of YUM! We keep coming back!
Crystal Brown-Rudnick
I absolutely love this place!!! Spicy Dan's Peanut Delight w Ginger Beef is my favorite!!!! It's fresh and you don't leave feeling like crap. It's fresh and delicious. Don't forget a ginger lemonade.
Rick Diaz Jr.
A must visit Every time I’m in town. Weather its to-go to there. Always a must. Been vegetarian for 16 years and this place is so flavorful and tastes so fresh and clean. Love it there. And dont forget about their reward program, buy 10 get one free !!!!!
Victor A. Carrasco
One of the best places to get a quick, satisfying meal! I highly recommend it!
Christine Delgado
Had the most delicious box of veggies! Never knew they could absolutely taste and smell so wonderful! One of my new favs' Charlie Hong Kong!
Mark Richards
Good organic food, great service at a fair price. I had the Hoison Pork bowl, and it was excellent.
Dominick Foley
Always great every time,green curry chicken is what I usually will get,everything else I tried was delicious, and the mushroom soup hits the spot on cold rainy days
Daniel N Winter Morgan
Yummy food. We came for the first time tonight. Will come by again.
Tapan Lockwood
There's one awful thing about CHK that nobody seems to realize. Let me clue you in. Imagine if you will: its tuesday night. Dinnertime. You call in a Gado Gado for pickup. When you get there, you spend way too much time talking to the cute server. You slather your feast in Hoisen and Sriracha sauce and prepare to head home. As you unlock your car, it dawns on you: this is the fourth time in 5 days that you've done this. Your head begins to swim, "have I really become such a slave to the CHK that I've excluded most other eateries in the Seabright area?"
I swear, it got so addictive that my friends and I needed to sit down and have a talk about our CHK problem. Folks in my social group were using Spicy Dan's for bribes, and very nearly came to using CHK punchcards as currency...
Ruth Saro
Love the Pai Thai noodles.. always great place and price
Maria Ochoa
Yummy!! The red curry bowl was delish and the pad this was very good too. The peanut butter cookies are a must! Thank you and see you soon. :)
Katelyn Taubman
Love the food
Love the environment
Love the people
Love the music
Total love experience
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