Oriental Wok 317 Buttermilk Pike, Lakeside Park; 2444 Madison Road, Hyde Park For incredible Chinese food and friendly service, Oriental Wok is where you want to go. The restaurant is more upscale, but not in a fussy or inaccessible way. They have two locations, but my favorite is the one in Northern Kentucky. There’s a sense of grandeur when you walk in: the tall ceilings with their red Chinese lanterns, black tablecloths, a koi pond and plenty of greenery, plus there’s usually someone playing piano. And the food — I’ve never had a bad meal or experience at Oriental Wok. I typically go here on special occasions with my parents and we’ll split the popo appetizer — a platter featuring bali maki steak sticks (my personal fave), crab rangoon, fried shrimp and egg rolls. This is usually followed by us splitting two entrées: the Hong Kong Chicken and the Hong Kong Steak, the latter of which can only be found at the Northern Kentucky location. The chicken comes deep-fried with a thin, crispy outer layer of breading, drenched in a savory gravy and swimming with Chinese vegetables. Despite the similar name, the Hong Kong steak is not deep-fried, making it a good complement to the chicken. Instead, this 14-oz. NY sirloin comes with a sweet and peppery peppercorn sauce and more vegetables. Also, the waitstaff is always attentive and helpful, and the owner and his family will often come around to your table to check in, making it feel like a classic family restaurant. Photo: Facebook.com/OrientalWok

Exterior of the Fort Mitchell Oriental Wok Photo: Facebook.com/OrientalWok

Employees at a Greater Cincinnati restaurant that’s been in business for more than four decades have been receiving anti-Asian threats.

In a Facebook post, the Fort Mitchell Police Department says that officers investigated threats against employees at Oriental Wok Thursday. “Restaurant staff reported several harassing calls, which then turned into threats,” the March 18 post reads.

Oriental Wok, a Chinese restaurant with locations in both Fort Mitchell and Cincinnati, also posted Thursday on Facebook, noting that harassment has escalated in the last year.

Posted by Oriental Wok Restaurant on Thursday, March 18, 2021

“In light of the nationwide brutality against the Asian community, we are genuinely devastated. While our restaurant and family have been targets of aggressions this past year, we are so fortunate to be in a city that embraces us as their own,” the Oriental Wok team writes. “We feel the weight of this recent violence and stand in solidarity with our Asian community condemning this behavior.”

The team behind the restaurant, which was established in 1977, goes on to detail how they’ve been harassed.

“Our homes and cars have been egged, we are pummelled with daily calls telling us to ‘Go back to China’ along with other crude & violent threats,” they write. “We walk our staff to their cars to ensure safety every night. The police were on the premises even today, due to numerous threats.”

People of Asian descent in the United States increasingly have been targets for harassment and violence during the pandemic, which many attribute to racist rhetoric like that which former U.S. President Donald Trump used during his tenure. Trump frequently referred to the coronavirus as “the China virus,” “the Chinese virus” and even the “Kung Flu” because it had originated in Wuhan, China. Trump has continued to use the racist slur on FOX News.

The most recent high-profile local Asian-American discrimination incident reported in Cincinnati occurred online last September when a University of Cincinnati student shared a screenshot of an email from his engineering professor that said, “For students testing positive for the Chinese virus, I will give no grade.” The professor was placed on administrative leave without pay pending a review.

In 2018, Cincinnati had the highest rate per capita of reported hate crimes in Ohio. However, the U.S. Department of Justice says a majority of hate crimes go unreported, so Cincinnatians can certainly assume more are occurring.

Oriental Wok employees end their Facebook post with a note of hope and a plea within a hashtag.

“Luckily we have you, our Friends, whose outpouring of love and respect is appreciated more than you know. #stopasianhate”

Last year, CityBeat readers selected Oriental Wok as the best Chinese restaurant in Cincinnati. DoorDash gave the restaurant a $5,000 grant earlier this month, and staff were elated to discover a $1,000 tip on a $64.74 tab in 2020.

Read tips from the Greater Cincinnati Chinese Cultural Exchange Association about how Cincinnatians can address the violence against people of Asian descent.

This article appears in Best Of Cincinnati 2021.