Wokon

Ommmm ridiculous noodle goodness. I was one of Rowena H’s compadres when it came to grabbing a quick bite before her spectacular event at Epernay, and there were several things that I ticked which made my Wokon experience fan-​worthy.
1) Flirty dude at counter. Seriously, he’d embarrass Joey Tribbiani. He was so… overt. And delightful.
2) Noodles served in cardboard cartons. Like in the movies! How can you argue with that?
3) Fresh outta the fryer spring rolls to die for.
4) Tofu crisper than the filling in a hangover bacon sandwich.
Yes, I’m a pescetarian wuss and I went for one of the simplest veggie noodle boxes, but lord was it good. There were so many vegetables in there, and a positively obscene amount of super crunchy tofu. And cheap too! You can happily sit outside and enjoy the Headingley sunshine or you can go cantina style at the cutesy indoor tables, but overall I’d say I’d happily return to this place. The Leeds Whistle Stop is setting the bar, and no doubt I’ll be back to traverse an hour’s rail journey West to East many a time again. Thanks Wokon!

Last Wednesday I found myself in a bit of a pickle. I’d neglected to check the the opening hours of Jino’s in Headingley and found that my friends and I were suddenly stuck for somewhere to eat. Enter Wokon. I can’t tell you the amount of times I’ve wandered by here and considered trying something, and given the fast food nature of the place this was the perfect opportunity.
Inside it’s rather pleasant as fast food eateries go, and of course it’s one of the few al fresco places in Headingley, which is always a boon in weather such as we’ve been having recently in Leeds. Choice wise it’s pretty much noodle-​ville, with a few rice options as well. Let’s say Asian Fusion. As for drinks, there was pretty much fizzy pop or fruit juice, but it’s not exactly Fuji Hiro, so green tea isn’t an option!
I opted for the beef teriyaki and some chicken and sweet corn soup. For a start, it’s ruddy cheap. They’ve a meal deal where you can grab two dishes, two snacks and two drinks for £14. Seriously good value! Secondly it tasted pretty damn good. Certainly not gourmet, for instance my beef was massively grisly and hard to eat with chopsticks (I needed an knife really to cut it into bitesized pieces) and the carrots tasted a little vinegary. (Canned, perhaps?) But even so, it’s designed for a quick cheap bite. The flavour was lovely too, and it totally hit the spot. After half I was stuffed!
Special mention has to go to the awesome guy at the counter too. For some proper random banter, friendly helpful service and a good chuckle pop in and see this chap. He was ace! And even stopped me from buying two mains, as foolishly I assumed the portions were too small. Not so! All in all, if you want some fast food beyond a greasy burger I think I’ve found your spot…

The one in town must be doing so well they decided to open one up in Headingley.
It is only small and but it’s really nicely done up and the staff where super friendly. When I went in it was quite quiet which thankfully was a relief so we had no trouble getting a table.
The food there is cooked to order which means occasionally it does come out at different times but it is worth it. It is one of the few places that use free range chicken so I had a lovely chicken broth with lemon grass and pak choi. It was super hot and I burnt my mouth in my greed. I am a big fan of this place and will be going back again and again.