Alex Chen started working in his parents’ restaurant at age 16. So inspired by the kitchen, he decided to open his own Chinese restaurant, Golden Bao, in the same complex as iPlay America 13 years ago. Along with Vicky Liu, they offer a variety of Asian foods and top-quality ingredients for Chinese takeout.
“I decided to open a restaurant because my parents are in the restaurant business and owned a restaurant as well,” Chen said.
While his parents still have their restaurant business, Golden Bao, he says, is a family business of a different kind.
“My wife and I work there, as well as my brother-in-law and his wife,” Chen said. “My brother-in-law and I work in the kitchen. The ladies work in the front and in the kitchen.”
The recipes come from Chen’s parents, dating back 25 years or more. Some of their customers’ favorite dishes are General Tso’s chicken, chicken with broccoli, cheese wonton, BBQ boneless ribs, and lo mein.
Other menu items include traditional soups; roast pork, chicken, shrimp or beef yat gaw mein; fried coconut shrimp; teriyaki beef; shrimp toast; noodles with sesame sauce; various selections of fried rice, chow fun, chow mein, chop suey, moo shu dishes; and egg foo young.
Meat dishes can be made with bean sprouts, snow peas, broccoli or Chinese vegetables, or oyster or black bean sauce; while seafood ranges from shrimp to lobster to scallops, with unique dishes being curry shrimp with onions, baby shrimp with bean sprouts and shrimp and scallops with mixed vegetables.
There are also Szechuan and Hunan specialties including hot and spicy flavors, Kung Pao and Mongolian beef. Fried specials include regular, buffalo or BBQ chicken wings; fried scallops; or chicken nuggets and fries.
Chef’s Specialties feature Happy Family: lobster, crab, shrimp, beef, chicken, roast pork and mixed vegetables in a brown sauce; Four Season: jumbo shrimp, chicken breast, sliced beef, roast pork and sauteed fresh vegetables; shrimp and pork Hunan-style; subgum wonton with fresh chicken, beef, shrimp and pork with broccoli, peppers, baby corn and straw mushrooms; and Five “O” spicy shrimps, scallops, chicken, beef, roast pork, broccoli, baby corn, green peppers and mushrooms.
Golden Bao can accommodate special dietary needs, such as gluten-free, upon request. There is a Special Diet Menu that features items that are steamed, such as vegetables, chicken or shrimp, with the sauce in a separate container.
Vegetarian dishes include Buddha’s Delight, Ma Po Tofu, eggplant with garlic sauce, or fried bean curd with General Tso’s sauce.
There’s a waiting area with two tables, so the business is predominantly takeout. Hours are 11 a.m. to 10 p.m. most days (open until 10:30 p.m. on Fridays and Saturdays) (and closed on Mondays), and you can order a Lunch Special from 11 a.m. to 3 p.m. daily.
Golden Bao is owned by Freehold residents Alex Chen and Vicky Liu. The address is 132 Schanck Rd. To place an order, call (732) 414-6135 or (732) 414-6136, or order online at www.GoldenBao.Net
