Teaneck, NJ: Green Garden Chinese Kitchen

Green Garden Chinese Kitchen
949 Teaneck Road
Teaneck

Tips: Having multiple Chinese Take Out restaurants in every city in Bergen County is not specific to this area, however I have noticed that differences like in delivery radius, MSG free, and re-useable plastic containers versus the traditional take out box with wire handle are reflections of the growing competition. 

While Green Garden didn't serve all their food in plastic containers (ie. the fried scallion pancakes, though without holes punched into the strofoam to let out the steam), they still offered their entrees in them, which is also cleaner with less possible incident of dripping.  Green Garden is also MSG free, though not food coma free.  They also include the fried "chips" that remind me of my childhood when my parents ordered Chinese take out from their local spot; I'm sure they are horrible for your health, but taste oh so good dropped in soup. 

Similar to other take out restaurants, Green Garden offers coupons with free items based on the total amount you spend.  A total of $15 will get you a free eggroll, while $30 will get you a free order or sweet and sour chicken.  Be sure to take advantage of these offers, though don't let it convince you to order more just for the freebies; afterall, it's still relatively unhealthy food.

And like any establishment that deliver, be aware of peak times.  We ordered at 5:30 PM on a Sunday, and the food arrive close to an expected 1 hour later.



Chicken Corn Soup

Food: Although these take out places are more Chinese-American, than Chinese, I felt the desire to order 

Scallion Pancake with dipping sauce



soup, like one would start with in a traditional Chinese meal.  Chicken Corn Soup is always my soup of choice!  A combination of egg drop soup and chicken soup with added pieces of sweet corn, it's sweet and salty, and the soup from Green Garden was no exception.  It was in fact extra special because they included the fried "chips" that I could throw in it.  The Scallion Pancakes (a new item) on the other were a total disappointment.  Perhaps this an item that I can only find in Boston, where they are a staple at any Chinese restaurant, but for some reason I've had trouble finding them here in New Jersey.  Excited to see that they were being offered, I was really grossed out at how soggy and extremely oily they were.  They did however get an A+ for their dipping sauce; something I've had a hard time finding in Boston. 



Chicken with Garlic Sauce (in white sauce)



For our entrees, we ordered Chicken with Garlic Sauce, where I specified for it to be made with white sauce.  Not sure if it's true, but the white sauce may likely have less sodium than the traditional dark sauce.  Not nearly "garlicky" enough or possibly at all, I was disappointed with the lack in flavor, but really impressed with the amount and assortment of veggies they included: broccoli, snap peas, carrots, green peppers, celery, mushroom, baby corn, and bamboo.  The quality efinitely did not go unnoticed!  We had a choice of white or brown rice with it, which I always appreciate that there is a brown rice option. 



Shrimp ChowFoon



We also ordered the Shrimp ChowFoon.  If you've ever tried to work with these sticky rice noodles, you'll understand the challenge.  The longer and less choppy and mushy the noodles are, the better they did a good job in handling it.  In the case of Green Garden, they did a good job with working with these sticky noodles, however the amount of oil they used to facilitate handling the noodles was over powered.  Similar to the chicken entree, the noodles also lacked a certain flavor (perhaps because it doesn't have MSG), but it also had a good amount and assortment of vegetables, like snow peas, mushrooms, cabbage, celery, carrots, and bamboo.  There was a decent amount of shrimp, but fairly small compared to other Chinese Restaurants I've eaten at. 

Final Thoughts: All in all, I thought Green Garden Chinese Kitchen did a decent job in giving me my Chinese Take Out food fix.  I absolutely appreciated the amount of vegetables they used in their dishes, which is always a plus in my book, but hope by trying another entree, I'll get more of the flavor of the dish.  I'll absolutely be planning to order from here again, and this time I'll request that they add in chopsticks!

Happy Eating Bergen County!