I was surprised to learn that a Monona restaurant called La Choza del Viejo is actually a Chinese restaurant.
If you look past the standard Chinese menu items, then you’ll find a few unique dishes like the Mongolian Triple Wonder ($14.99). The chicken, beef and onions were tender, and you get plenty of all three. The shrimp also was outstanding, but I only received three pieces. I liked the Mongolian sauce, which was strong on the hoisin flavoring and a bit salty but still good.
Another item from the Chef’s Specialty section was the curry tofu ($12.99). It featured giant pieces of tofu that were a bit more firm than I would have preferred. I didn’t love that the dish came with water chestnuts and celery, as I felt they were out of place. The sauce was strong in curry flavor and had a little bit of heat.
Over in the Special Combination section, all the selections come with rice (fried or white) and an egg roll or two crab rangoons. I had a hit in selecting the Szechuan shrimp ($12.55), which was packed with Szechuan flavor, a little bit of heat and plenty of tender shrimp.
On the other hand, the pork chow mein ($12) was a disappointment. While I liked the tasty brown sauce, there were no noodles in this dish. Instead, I received a massive heap of vegetables and some pork, plus a side of rice.
Other entrees include the chicken with hot garlic sauce ($12.55), the Phoenix & Dragon ($16.75, with shrimp and General Tso’s chicken) and the orange beef ($15.99).
La Choza del Viejo is open for lunch and dinner Sunday through Monday and Wednesday through Saturday.
