Commentary: Are robot woks the future of dining in Los Angeles?

Are you ready for a robot restaurant revolution?

In Los Angeles, two robot wok restaurants with nearly identical menus, packaging and promises of fresh, affordable food fast, are vying for our hearts, minds and stomachs. Shrinking wallets, skyrocketing operating costs and an increasing need for variety and convenience have laid the groundwork for an epic robot restaurant battle.

On one side, a homegrown brand from two entrepreneurs in the San Gabriel Valley. On the other, a mysterious new local contender fueled by an army of hungry Trojans. Let the battle begin.

Tomas Su and Kelvin Wang opened Tigawok on Sawtelle Boulevard in the summer of 2024, calling it the “first-ever robot-powered” Chinese restaurant in Los Angeles. Su co-founded the Sunright Tea Studio chain of boba shops and Wang owns Beijing Tasty House in San Gabriel.

They recently opened a Tigawok in both Burbank and Irvine, and there are locations planned for Chino Hills and Lake Forest.

Robowok is a restaurant that opened inside the Campus Plaza across from the University of Southern California in September, and its origins are somewhat of a mystery. The website lists five stores, though I couldn’t find any others in Los Angeles. I called the number on the Robowok website. The person who answered said I had the right number, but they weren’t interested in speaking. Before I could ask any questions, they hung up.

An online search revealed a restaurant with a similar name, Robo Wok, in Melbourne, Australia. And a RoboWok “rice and noodle studio” in Ontario, Canada.

Both Tigawok and Robowok use automatic woks to stir-fry, boil, simmer and stew. Ingredients are hand-loaded into cylindrical drums that spin like washing machines. Finished dishes are removed and placed into metal trays for serving.

The counter-service Chinese restaurants boast a variety of “mini bowls” you pile onto plastic trays. A Panda Express combo plate, only deconstructed. Prices range from $1.99 to $6.98 and the menus include an array of familiar dishes. Fried rice, chow mein, kung pao chicken, mapo tofu and orange peel chicken are among a list of rotating items.

Tigawok’s color scheme is pale blue and white. Robowok’s is white and teal. Both restaurants serve your food in the bottom half of takeout containers. There are stations stocked with the corresponding tops, as well as bags and plastic cutlery readily available to grab and go.

In service of Chinese fast-food stans across the galaxy, I set out for a taste test of both Tigawok and Robowok, to determine whose cuisine reigns supreme.

Tigawok Burbank

A selection of dishes made with the restaurant’s automatic wok at Tigawok in Burbank.

(Jenn Harris / Los Angeles Times )

The Tigawok in Burbank is spotless. Sterile like an operating room. The blond wood, minimal design and TV menu display feel like you’re dining inside your local IKEA. There’s a steady stream of delivery drivers picking up orders, and most of the tables are occupied by solo diners in polo shirts, glued to their phones on a lunch break.

At the counter, a smiling employee gives a brief explanation of the restaurant and instructs you to grab a tray. You can build a combination plate of sorts, though everything is served in individual bowls. Steamed rice starts at $2.28, and a bowl of chow mein is $3.28.

A bowl of fried rice at Tigawok restaurant in Burbank.

(Jenn Harris / Los Angeles Times )

The robot woks at Tigawok cook at a maximum heat of 600 degrees Fahrenheit. None of the dishes I tried achieved wok hei, the particular charred, smoky flavor produced by a seasoned wok, but they were nearly there.

My Chinese grandmother is adamant that you can judge any restaurant by its kung pao chicken. Does the sauce achieve glaze consistency? Is the chicken juicy and caramelized? She would approve of the mini bowl of kung pao chicken, studded with dried chiles, bell pepper and onion. The glaze on the chicken provided a slow, pleasant burn.

The Wagyu beef curry was served in a velvety, brown sauce with trembling chunks of beef and boulders of soft carrot and potato. A bowl of fried rice was crowded with caramelized rounds of lap cheong and ribbons of scrambled egg. Pork buns were puffy and soft, filled with juicy pork meatballs.

I was most impressed with the orange peel chicken, with fried nuggets that were crisp and lacquered in a citrus glaze.

And if we’re assigning points for freebies, the condiment bar is stocked with free radish pickles, chile sauce, soy sauce and vinegar.

Robowok

Dishes are transferred from an automatic wok to steam trays for service at Robowok restaurant in Los Angeles.

(Jenn Harris / Los Angeles Times )

The next day I was in line at Robowok, behind 10 students in USC sweatshirts. During my 30 minutes at the restaurant, the line was perpetually out the door.

The narrow space felt cramped, with seating along one wall and a couple of tables outside.

I attempted to replicate my Tigawok order from the day before, with a bowl of rice (this time it was plain), chow mein, kung pao chicken, orange peel chicken, broccoli and cabbage.

The orange peel chicken was suspended in a thick, goopy sauce that drowned any hopes for crunch. The beef curry was watery and the broccoli and cabbage both tasted steamed rather than stir-fried. There was more zucchini in the kung pao chicken than chicken. And like the other dishes on my table, the overall texture was mushy.

A selection of dishes from Robowok restaurant in Los Angeles.

(Jenn Harris / Los Angeles Times )

Maybe the woks just needed to be programmed at a higher temperature.

Are these robot woks the future of dining in Los Angeles? The world?

To reduce a dependency on human labor, 62% of quick-service restaurants are adopting some form of robotic kitchen equipment and smart cooking systems.

The automatic wok stir-fries a dish at Robowok restaurant in Los Angeles.

(Jenn Harris / Los Angeles Times )

The prospect of a completely robot-run restaurant industry makes me nervous. I crave the specific community and social interaction that only restaurants provide, and I value actual humans in both the kitchen and the dining room.

Both Robowok and Tigawok require people to program, load and unload the machines, to greet people and serve the food.

We haven’t reached total robot domination yet, and that’s a very good thing. And if asked to choose a winner of the robot wok restaurant battle, it’s Tigawok by a landslide.