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WE Little Wok Offers Popular Asian Dishes in Grand Marais

Anew food truck, WE Little Wok, opened on May 29 in Grand Marais. It offers a nice menu of fresh Asian cuisine, including fried rice, wontons, egg rolls, and entrees such as General Tso’s, Sweet and Sour, and Orange chicken. Lo­cated at 910 East Fifth Street in Grand Marais, the food truck is open Thursday to Sunday from 11 a.m. to 7 p.m.

Grand Marais has been an Asian food desert since the 1990s, when the bowling alley bar, the only place for Asian food, closed—no more.

WE Little Wok Co-owner Karli Wiinanen is ready to serve up your favorite Asian cuisine. (Submitted photo)

Sisters, Marja Erickson and Karli Wiinanen, born and raised in Cook County, saw a busi­ness opportunity to bring quality Asian cuisine to friends and visitors in Grand Marais.

The business was a hit on opening weekend. “The second weekend was just as busy,” Marja said, “which is a good sign to have people re­turning.” She reported that the biggest surprise of the opening was how fast they ran out of food.

Before opening, Marja and Karli researched the menu, and it shows with the three main entrees they’re serving. Bill Copeland provided the new business with the fried rice recipe that was a hit in the bowling alley days.

Marja expressed her gratitude for the local support that WE Little Wok has received. Notably, food experts Jim and Christy Marshall of Double D’s Catering provided invaluable sup­port, information, and motivation. Johnson’s Foods in Grand Marais also played a significant role in helping the new business get off the ground.

Marja also acknowl­edged the sisters’ sup­port from their father, Jim Wiinanen, in help­ing with the business’s logistics and location. A few others chipped in as well.

Marja is often asked about the location on the city’s east end, and not in downtown Grand Marais. The site offers space for picnic tables donated by Sam Baines, owner of the Blue Water Cafe and Marathon station in Grand Marais.

“I wanted the place to be easy for local people and visitors to access and hang out,” Marja said.

The name WE Lit­tle Wok holds a spe­cial significance. The ‘WE’ represents the first initials of each woman’s last name, Wiinanen and Erickson. The ‘Little Wok’ was a cherished possession of their late mother, and it is proud­ly displayed on the business’s sign, which was crafted by local sign guy Dave Steckelberg.

General Tso’s Chicken is a sweet, spicy, deep-fried dish featuring crispy, bite-sized pieces of boneless chicken tossed in a thick, sticky sauce that combines sweet and spicy flavors. It is one of the most iconic and beloved dishes in Amer­ican Chinese cuisine and is a staple on Chi­nese-American restaurant menus.

General Tso, or Zuo Zongtang (1812–1885), was a highly respected and formidable Chinese statesman and military leader during the late Qing Dynasty. He was born in Hunan prov­ince, which is significant as Hunanese cuisine is known for its bold, spicy, and often sour flavors.

There is no evidence that General Tso ever ate, let alone invented, the chicken dish that bears his name. The dish, as we know it, is largely un­known in mainland China.

The dish was actually in­vented by Chef Peng Chang-kuei from Hunan province, who fled to Taiwan with the Chinese Nationalists after their defeat by the Commu­nists in 1949. He claims to have created the original ver­sion of General Tso’s Chicken in Taipei in 1952 and brought it to New York in the 1970s. He named it in honor of the revered General Zuo Zong­tang, who was from the same home province as him.

Steve Fernlund
Steve Fernlund
Typically these “about me” pages include a list of academic achievements (I have none) and positions held (I have had many, but who really cares about those?) So, in the words of the late Admiral James Stockwell, “Who am I? Why am I here?” I’m well into my seventh decade on this blue planet we call home. I’m a pretty successful husband, father, and grandfather, at least in my humble opinion. My progeny may disagree. We have four children and five grandchildren. I spent most of my professional life in the freight business. At the tender age of 40, early retirement beckoned and we moved to Grand Marais. A year after we got here, we bought and operated the Cook County News Herald, a weekly newspaper in Grand Marais. A sharp learning curve for a dumb freight broker to become a newspaper editor and publisher. By 1999 the News Herald was an acquisition target for a rapidly consolidating media market. We sold our businesses and “retired” again, buying a winter retreat in Nevada. In the fall of 2016, we returned to Grand Marais and bought a house from old friends of ours on the ridge overlooking Lake Superior. They were able to move closer to family and their Mexico winter home. And we came home to what we say is our last house. I’m a strong believer in the value of local newspapers--both online and those you can wrap a fish in. I write a weekly column and a couple of feature stories for the Northshore Journal. I’m most interested in writing about the everyday lives of local people and reporting on issues of importance to them.
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