My craving for Hakka food surfaced halfway between work and home. My usual favourites were back near my office...what to do now? Upon firing up my trusty Yelp app and searching for the nearest Hakka Chinese take-out nearby I came across Asian Garden. The reviews were positive and the restaurant was only about 10-15 minutes off my normal route home. Let's go!
Asian Garden is located in a small strip-mall type plaza on the South side of 16th just east of Bayview in Richmond Hill. I have driven past several times previously and had no idea this place was here. Upon arriving, the restaurant was empty (to be fair, it was only about 4:30pm) however the lady at the counter quickly offered me a take-out menu to peruse. The menu included the standard Hakka fair (Manchurian dishes, Chili dishes, pakoras, and hot and sour soup) in addition to regular Chinese favourites. As with every Hakka restaurant I've seen, Asian Garden is 100% Halal therefore no pork dishes or alcohol are available. Most of the reviews suggested the Chili Chicken (a staple test for any Hakka place I visit). I personally prefer the dry version (which has a stickier, thick sauce that clings to the meat). Unaware that they provide a small steamed rice, I ordered a vegetable fried rice as well. When I arrived home I was amazed at the quantity of fried rice they gave me for $7. It was easily enough for 3-4 people. The rice was lightly seasoned and not too dark/salty. Just the way I prefer it. The chili chicken portion was adequate for 2 people if accompanied by the rice. At around $10 I don't feel like it was undersized in the slightest (chicken isn't cheap). Taste-wise I enjoyed it however it had more soya sauce flavour than I prefer. Spice level was medium. They include a small container of chili vinegar and red chili sauce if you wish to add more heat to the dish. As usual, I ordered my dishes with no MSG and found the flavour of both the chili chicken and vegetable fried rice to still be very good.
I'm happy to have finally found a decent Hakka Chinese restaurant relatively close to home and hope to frequent Asian Garden again soon!