Edmonton New Years, Good Buddy

I am at a point in my life where I mostly crave independence. Having lived away from parents for the better part of a decade, I sometimes forget the ease and fun of being a son. This was the feeling of me returning to Edmonton. Not having to worry about supper plans on New Years Eve, my parents packed me into the car and off to our neighborhood family Chinese restaurant.

Good Buddy was a staple for me growing up. Living just 10 minutes away, we have seen it grow from a fledgling start-up to being one of the Top 100 rated Chinese restaurants in Canada (or so they claim). Whatever the rating, we have always counted on them delivering quality and delicious Chinese food on the most important of occasions.

We started off this massive meal with one of our family favourites: Garlic Soya Sauce Crispy Chicken. Half a chicken fried golden crisp served with a garlic soy sauce, Good Buddy always did a great job of contrasting the wonderfully crispy skin with moist succulent meat. Today was no different as the large portion of chicken was quickly lapped up into our hungry stomachs.

We tried something new this time: Chinese Style Beef Tenderloin. Large tender pieces of beef were cooked in a sherry wine sauce and mixed with fried onions. This was the standout of the day. Tender, moist and with the right amount of fat, the beef was perfectly cooked. The onions added a sharpness but it was the gravy, with its hints of sweet, sour, and salty, that brought this dish together. Highly recommended.
 

Another regular for our Good Buddy dinners is the Pork Chop w/ Eggplant in XO Sauce Hot Pot. I am a sucker for XO sauce and have always loved the mixture of fatty crispy, smooth eggplant and tender vegetables in a delectable XO based broth. Perhaps I have been more health conscious of late or my taste buds are expanding, but this was simply average. The pieces of pork had a large amount of inedible fat, and while the eggplant and vegetables were well cooked, this lacked the punch of XO flavour I had grown fond of.

Perhaps a little difficult to see, but this was the Braised Belt Fish in Soya Sauce. Large pieces of belt fish were fried and then braised in a soy based broth. The fish itself was nicely cooked and went well with the broth. The overall flavour was one-dimensional and while the green onions gave a nice punch of freshness, I found this dish devoid of the usual balance of flavours found in Chinese cuisine.

Over the past few years we have moved away from white rice to ordering a noodle dish. Today's pick was a Shrimp Chow Mein. What seemed like a mountain (literally) of chow mein came mixed in with shrimp and onions. I was slightly disappointed by the size of the shrimp but overall the dish had a nice wok-ky (TM pending) flavour.

Overall Good Buddy was good as usual. The restaurant has a special place for me where I spent a good majority of my major meals and while some dishes could definitely used some refinement, I still put it up there as one of my go to Chinese places in Edmonton. Now off to exercise all this Christmas weight off!