Wing Wah Restaurant: An Ogden favorite expands in South Ogden
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- Orange Chicken is flavored with pieces of dried orange peel at Wing Wah Restaurant.
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- General Tso’s Chicken carries a bit of spicy heat at Wing Wah Restaurant.
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- Dessert wontons are filled with bites of strawberry cheesecake, blueberry cheesecake, banana Nutella and salted caramel.
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- Chicken Chow Mein at Wing Wah Restaurant.
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- The Chinese sailboat on the wall mural at the Wing Wah Restaurant in South Ogden represents smooth sailing in life.
As a child, Nancy Keys used to play in the rice bins at her parents’ Wing Wah Restaurant, and annoyed her mother by dumping soy sauce and sugar together in mounds on the dining tables.
Today, Keys runs Wing Wah on 12th Street and recently added an elegant dining room to its South Ogden takeout location. The recipes haven’t changed, she said. A new dessert line has been added, but longtime favorites such as Honey Walnut Shrimp, Chicken Egg Foo Yung, Sweet and Sour Chicken and Crab Cheese Wontons are still served at both locations.
“The whole point was to keep Mom and Dad’s legacy alive,” she said of her parents, Joe and Sue Lee.
Joe Lee emigrated from Hong Kong, and perfected his cooking skills in his brother’s California restaurants.
“Then he made his move to Utah with Mom, when his brother’s father-in-law needed some help,” Keyes said. “He came out here and loved it.”
In 1985, the Lees opened a small place of their own on 24th and Monroe in Ogden, called Ho Wah.
“They saved up and in 1991 opened the Wing Wah on Seventh and Washington,” Keys said. “It was an old pizza drive-thru converted to a small sit-down and takeout spot.”
The name, she said, means “Wealth and Prosperity.”
The business grew and in September 2000 they fulfilled their dream of opening a large, sit-down restaurant at 465 12th St.
“It was a gamble, and there were some hard times,” said Keys, noting that her mother broke her leg and gave birth to Nancy’s younger brother that same year. “But the new restaurant did really well.”
Keys grew up working in the restaurant, then moved to California and worked in the software industry. When she became pregnant with her first child, her parents convinced her and her husband, Lawrence Keys, to move back to Utah.
“My parents wanted to retire and wanted us to take over the business or they would sell it,” she said, “I didn’t want my parents’ legacy to go away. The restaurant was always a part of me.”
Lawrence spent two years training with Joe Lee every night after work, from 10 to midnight, five nights a week, and mastered the art of the wok.
“He learned the ingredients, the sauces, the processes,” Nancy Keys said.
After taking over about four years ago, “We kept all the same recipes and cooking methods,” she said.
Her brother Raymond Lee also works at Wing Wah. Her sister, Jenni Lee Tran, has Nikkos Sushi & Ramen in Kaysville. And although Lawrence still helps out, he recently took over a barbershop, his former profession.
Longtime customers will still find the signature chicken or pork chow mein, with stir-fried veggies over crunchy noodles.
Orange Chicken is a newer dish. The deep-fried chicken is laced in a sweet, citrusy-sauce. “We dry our own orange peel and add it to the sauce, to give it more flavor,” Nancy Keys said.
A popular favorite is General Tso’s Chicken, deep-fried chicken pieces coated in a spicy, sweet sauce.
The desserts use wonton wrappers.
“Crab cheese wontons are a signature dish, so we decided to use the wonton pastry and fill it with cheesecake filling and fresh fruit. It’s lightly deep-fried so it’s crisp on the outside and tender inside,” Keys said.
The wonton bites contain flavors such as strawberry cheesecake, s’mores, banana Nutella, salted caramel and blueberry cheesecake. For fall, pumpkin cheesecake will be one of the filling choices.
The South Ogden location was opened mainly for takeout during the COVID pandemic, at 1481 E. 5600 South.
“Originally, a tanning salon was supposed to open next door,” Keys said. When that didn’t happen, Wing Wah expanded into a spacious dining room, with hand-painted murals of Chinese scenes on the walls. The new addition opened Aug. 8.
The murals include Chinese junks, or sailboats, to depict “smooth sailing to whatever you do in life,” Keys said.
She feels the two restaurants offer the best of both worlds for longtime and new patrons.
“Because I’ve been in it for so long, we have the ability to keep the traditional dishes that people remember, so there’s a nostalgic feel,” she said. “And today, everyone is into desserts and the arts. So we have a ton of artwork, and new desserts for the younger generation.”
Meanwhile, her parents are enjoying what Keys calls “Asian retirement — they don’t have to be here, but they’re always here.”
IF YOU GO
Wing Wah
Locations: 1481 E. 5600 South, South Ogden; 465 E. 12th St., Ogden
Contact: https://wingwahogden.com; 385-309-1698 (South Ogden) or 801-394-8788 (Ogden)
Hours: 11 a.m. to 9 p.m. Monday through Saturday and 3-9 p.m. Sunday (South Ogden); 11 a.m. to 9 p.m. Sunday-Saturday (Ogden)
Prices: Entrees, $10-18; express lunch, $9.99-$10.99