Lower Deardengate, Haslingden

IF there are times in life when only a Cantonese takeaway will do I, for one, would vote for the five minutes between leaving the pub and arriving home on a Saturday night.

And it is just these times when your average punter -- like me -- will look not to the best, the cheapest, nor the most renowned but to the nearest, the quickest and the one situated exactly between where you are and where you need to go.

It was this precise formula which led me to the Golden Wok.

To say it is dangerously close to my local is an underestimation. The strange thing is I haven't been before, but it could well be a journey I take again before too long.

For the Golden Wok managed to hit all the right spots with a combination of a varied menu boasting a range of reasonably priced dishes and some free prawn crackers to help us decide. In fact, it is fair to say that after stumping up for a number of rounds of traditionally over-priced alcopops, I was pleasantly surprised to bag king prawn sesame toast (£3), chicken foo yong (£3.20), a portion of curry (£1) and king prawn curry with fried rice (£3.70) all for under £12.

Haslingden is not short of takeaways, Oriental or otherwise, but why walk further when the one of the doorstep is perfectly good?SW

RATING:

TASTE: 7

TEMPERATURE: 9

SPEED: 8

CHOICE: 8

VALUE FOR MONEY: 9