More Egg Drop Soup - Chow's Express ($1+)

Chow's Express  815 S. York St.   Muskogee, OK

 On another particularly cold day this month I decided to drop in to Chow's Express for a bowl of their Egg Drop Soup. I arrived around 8pm. The parking lot was clean and I easily found a parking space. I did not see any other customers inside, but several went through the drive thru while I was there.

As I entered and approached the counter I was immediately greeted with a friendly smile and a cheerful offer to take my order. I ordered a bowl of egg drop soup, nothing more. She asked if that was it. I said yes. She counted back my change and politely said, with a note of disappointment to her voice, that it would be ready in a moment. My total order was only $1.08!

I sat down at a table to wait for my order. While I waited, my eyes surveyed the room. The front counter was very clean and free of all clutter. A large goldfish aquarium is embedded into the front counter. It is very clean and beautifully kept. As you wait for your order, watching the large goldfish gracefully glide through the water is wonderfully relaxing and mesmerizing. 

The floor was very dingy. It did not appear to have been swept during the day as there was much loose debris on the floor. It also did not appear to have been mopped in quite some time. Under the side tables, against the wall, the base boards were thickly caked with old dirt. The self-serve plastic ware holders contained dry food crumbs in the bottom. One must wonder if the visible areas of a restaurant are this dirty, what the kitchen must look like.

Although the employees clothes appeared clean, they were old and ragged, far from a professional look.

I received my order very quickly. It was brought to me at my table with a warm, sincere smile and a, "Thank you. Have a good evening."  She made the customer feel welcome and appreciated.

When I received my soup, there was much on the outside of the container. It was messy. It was; however, very hot. The flavor was okay, but it had an odd, unpleasant aroma. The soup base was very thin. It was difficult to hold any of it on the small spoon that was available with the soup. There was only a small amount of egg floating on top of the thin broth. The egg was not dispensed throughout the bowl of soup. I didn't feel that there was enough egg in the soup to honestly call it Egg Drop Soup.

The Egg Drop Soup from Chow's Express came with a package of what appeared to be fried won ton wraps. These chips were over-cooked, tough and tasted of old grease. The serving of these chips was also very skimpy. There was maybe a quarter to a third of a cup in the bottom of the baggie.

The meal ended with a fortune cookie. The cookie was surprisingly fresh, light, delicate and easy to eat. But the paper inside disappointingly did not contain a fortune. It simply contained a fact that could have pertained to anyone. Leaving the restaurant can be a bit of a challenge. The drive-thru and the exit are side-by-side and very narrow.

Overall the Egg Drop Soup was okay. For only $1.08 (tax included) it makes a nice snack, but don't count on it for a light meal. I was once again hungry in no time. On a scale of 1 to 5 (5 being the best) I would give this "Dollar and Change"  choice a rating of a 3.