Happy Garden Restaurant

This place must have gone downhill since the announcement of their eviction.
Our meal was more than disappointing, and we ended up throwing out the leftovers three days later… in a house where Chinese leftovers rarely make it past 24 hours, that’s saying a lot.
The meal was overpriced (a similar order would have been about 10−20% less at any number of other establishments), and the food of VERY low quality.
We did takeout, which is good… the décor looked like it hadn’t been updated in 20+ years, and based on how my shoes stuck to the floor when I walked in, I don’t think it had been properly cleaned since at least 2013.
All I can say here: good riddance.

Happy Garden had come highly recommended from some friends of ours who were sad they were closing and so I suggested maybe we give it a try. Bad idea!
Unless you know the owners personally and want to pay your respects as they’re soon closing the doors, there is no good reason to dine here! Our order came to just over $ 50 and I’d have to say in response to JP’s review that it’s the worst «western» Chinese food I’ve ever had. The green onion cakes were chewy — the Shanghai noodles were dry — and the flavours were lacking… majorly! Believe the low Unilocal reviews on this one, folks!
The only thing to write home about was that fact that my husband brought me take-​out and I didn’t have to cook. Then again, cooking would’ve been a better option.

Last Chance!!! This Edmonton iconic restaurant is soon closing due to eviction by landlord. Basically the best «western» Chinese food you’ll find anywhere hands down. Do not miss the green onion cakes!

Best Chinese food in Edmonton. They work so hard and the food is amazing. Best green onion cakes.

Growing up in California my family and I were regulars at a family owned Chinese restaurant… Sadly they shut down and disappeared on the face of the earth. I haven’t been able to find a restaurant quite like that until now!
My in laws introduced me to this place and they’ve been customers since the 80s! I’ve been many times and my go to dish is the szechuan beef! I never go without getting that. Mmmmmm

We ordered lemon chicken, shanghai noodles and spring rolls. I have to say it was pretty disappointing. In the menu there was a little ‘hot pepper’ icon beside the shanghai noodles but it was borderline tasteless. The lemon chicken was lightly battered and not greasy but aside from a verrrrry mild lemon taste from the accompanying sauce it was also lacklustre. As my dining partner said «this is blander than McDonald’s». And it was! Everything looked fine but it was beyond bland. The one exception was the spring rolls. They were crispy and flavourful. Would not eat here again.

Unfortunately, after tonight’s rude take-​out experience and several years of poor service just for decent Chinese food, we’re not returning. Dine-​in service is always incredibly slow but recent visits it has been downright rude. So, tonight we tried take-​out.
When my order was ready I was told to «pay here» — no thank you, no smile. Then when I asked if I could please have fortune cookies, the young woman shoved them at me with no bag, and one fell on the floor. I asked if I could please have a bag for the cookies and one extra since one had cracked, I got the bag and the cookie along with an eyeroll. This was after I’d already paid and tipped on my takeout order, which went with no thanks.
I feel bad for this young woman, who is clearly miserable in this job, and hope she finds a more satisfying job elsewhere. In the meantime, I don’t love the food enough to accept the service.

Consistently good. Try the Szechuan beef, lemon chicken and dumplings. Only thing I haven’t liked is the Szechuan chicken.

Happy Garden is a pretty good little Chinese food restaurant.
I was surprised to find the Happy Garden in the location it was. It’s kind of out of the way and hidden but its rating made me decide to check it out. I went with a couple of friends and we really enjoyed the meal we had there. We received great service from the friendly staff and had quite a few delicious dishes.
One tip about this restaurant if you live in the area, if you order take out exceeding $ 40 (before taxes) then you will receive 10% off your order.
If you live in this area, check this place out.

I was a little leary when I first walked in. Outdated décor with green plastic table cloths, but the sweetest woman welcomed us in and was our server for the evening. I assume she was the owner/​manager. It sort of seems hidden, but so worth the find.
Great food, portioned for sharing.
The most amazing ginger beef that I have ever had!

The service at Happy Garden Restaurant is effortlessly charming and the spring rolls are pretty good, but the rest of the whitewashed menu is just a notch or two above average. Overrated, I’m afraid.

Probably the best chinese in Edmonton. My family and I go there regularly. Yes… some of their food isn’t exactly «authentic» chinese, but it is all delicious. Everything comes out tasting fresh, without being excessively greasy or dripping in gross sauces. All dishes come with lots of meat and a good variety of vegetable (not just a tonne of cheap celery like some places). Moo shu pork, szechuan beef, fish flavoured pork are definitely some of their hits, but never really had anything bad there.
You do get more food for your buck at other Edmonton Chinese places, but Happy Garden is probably the best quality for your buck. The décor (even after their recent «reno») is a bit sad looking, and the service can be overwhelmed on a busy night. But if you can get over this (or get takeout), probably the best chinese in the city.

I have a real soft spot for Happy Garden, even though I’ve been told it’s not «real» Chinese food. To be honest, I’m not really sure what that means.
Happy Garden is a simple, family-​owned restaurant located in Parkallen. What they lack in interior décor, they more than make up for in delicious food. Whether or dining in, or grabbing something for take-​away, you’re in for something delicious.
Faves at this place include the moo shu pork and the szechuan beef. If you want cheap, quick Chinese that makes you happy, you should try Happy Garden.

I’m not entirely sure where the tradition of eating Chinese food on New Year’s Eve came from, but I’m certainly not complaining! While Lingnan is probably Edmonton’s most famous and beloved Chinese restaurant (and rightly so — the food there is delicious), we wanted to try a new place. A few friends have recommended Happy Garden, and I’m really glad we tried it.
Even on New Year’s Eve, they opened at 4. I called right at 4 to place my takeout order for pick up around 6 and there were no problems, even on the busiest night of the year for a Chinese restaurant.
This being our first time ordering, we haven’t sampled much of the menu. But I can definitely review what we did get. We ordered spring rolls, lemon chicken, deep-​fried shrimp, house special fried rice, and schezuan beef. The spring rolls were perfectly crunchy without being mushy inside, the deep-​fried shrimp was good but seemed to be missing some kind of sauce, the fried rice was tasty as well, but the best two were the lemon chicken and the schezuan beef. When you think of lemon chicken, you usually think of glowing electric yellow sauce, but at Happy Garden it’s a natural lemon colour as well as flavour. The schezuan beef was perfection. The pieces were a good size, a great balance of crunch on the outside and tenderness on the inside, and the flavour was scrumptious.
The prices were very reasonable, as we got all that for just over $ 40. When your takeout orders are over $ 30, you get 10% off which is nice as well. They’re located in an old strip mall in Parkallen, so you can’t beat the location.
With the taste being comparable to Lingnan, and the prices lower, I think I’ve found my new go-​to Chinese restaurant!

This has got to be my favorite chinese restaurant in the city. It is very low key being in a residential neighborhood but the food is delicious. Everything is made fresh and by far the best schezaun beef I’ve had. I have been ordering food from here for years since I haphazardly came across it and I would love to say I have tried many items but I really only ever order the same thing. I’m sure everything is delicious but since I rarely do eat chinese food when I do order it I really only want my faves — which btw are:
Schezaun beef (as mentioned so good even cold the next day!)
Lemon Chicken (real lemon sauce no yellow food colouring)
Double Wong Shrimp (my fave noodle dish)
Spring rolls (so crispy and yummy)
The décor is nothing fancy, it really reminds me of the family restaurants you find in small towns but that kind of is part of the appeal as well. Being from a small city and having to stop at the local chinese restaurants in small towns with my family growing up it really brings me back to those memories :)

All prices went up about a buck. Save 10% on over 30 $ pick up. Still a classic old school gem. Open 4p.m. Closed monday.

Don’t let the décor fool you, the food is fantastic. Best Alberta Style Schezuan Beef in the city!