China Garden Restaurant

This place was recommended by a friend.
He said he really liked it and used to go quite a bit, but, since he had to quit eating spicy food, he hasn’t been back in awhile.
It’s basically located in a tiny strip mall, and can be described as a typical hole in the wall. It had just enough décor to soften the harshness in order to make it somewhat charming. I am not rating them regarding the atmosphere whatsoever. It is what it is, and that’s alright. It seemed clean, orderly and well run, and that is more important and impressive to me.
I will give the service 5 stars, and the food an acceptable 3 stars — Averaging 4 stars total.
The service was highly friendly and attentive. It was almost over the top, but all is good, as I don’t mind chatting. It interrupted the meal a bit, and our personal/​private conversation, but it was still OK. I would rather someone be overly friendly and attentive, than be irritable and ignore us altogether. I know that unsavory scene seems to be more of the rule than the exception when I have dined out lately.
I believe the woman who came over to chat was the owner as well.
She was very interested and concerned that our inquiries/​questions were answered, the food was good, and our overall dining experience was pleasant.
We basically ordered the dinner specials which were comprised of the choice of an entrée, rice, soup, and egg roll — per person.
The food was plentiful and reasonably priced. The dinner special (s) were around $ 10.00 — per person.
We ordered the General Tso’s chicken, Szechuan chicken and fried and steamed rice, hot and sour soup, egg drop soup and a few egg rolls.
All of the food came out steaming hot, which is always a plus.
10 scale rating :
Hot and sour soup — 7 — good flavor overall with lots of ingredients in it.
Egg drop soup — 7 — good flavor overall with lots of egg swimming in it.
Egg roll (s) — 6 — they were mostly packed with cabbage, but I didn’t mind it, because I like cabbage and they were flavorful enough.
*** OK,… I will also slip in an extra bonus point for serving it with the real deal hot wasabi type mustard dip/​sauce. I just love that stuff. It really hurts so good. It’s a hella ride and deal indeed. ;o) !
Alternately, the artificial looking bright red sweet and sour sauce on the table could have been of a better quality though.
General Tso’s — 6 — it was not hot /​spicy enough and could have been just a tad bit sweeter in flavor. It had nice healthy sized pieces of chicken in the dish. It was a bit too salty though.
Szechuan chicken — 7 — the heat/​spicy factor was good, and it was tasty, but also a bit too salty. It had a nice mix of veggies along with the chicken.
Fried rice — 3 — I am not sure why they called it fried rice. It was not fried, and had no other ingredients mixed in with it besides it just being yellow in color. I am not sure what they colored it with. Saffron? Turmeric? It was definitely not curry. It was bland tasting, much like steamed white rice.
Steamed rice — 9 — steamed and cooked to perfection. It came to the table steaming hot.
I am not sure if we will be back, as my search for damn near perfection continues. I might have to try them one more time so I can try the steamed/​fried dumplings/​potstickers.
They are one of my faves.
Overall, I can say that it was a pleasing enough experience.

Delicious food and excellent service! This is the way Chinese food is supposed to taste. Love going here and they love our daughter! They always make us feel right at home.

This is the Chinese food we come back for consistently and have for years. Alex and
Lyndie make you feel like special family. He uses all the freshest best meats and vegetables he can find. The Mongolian beef is our families standard
here. The shrimp and vegetables is perfect. Triple delight is scrumptuous! Service is always prompt and pleasant. Our favorite Chinese in all of Indy. Thank you Alex and Lyndie for your hard work at presenting the very best.

This is my favorite Chinese restaurant in Indy, if there is better out there I haven’t found it. Service is always attentive and friendly. The food is not the typical strip mall, syrupy Chinese food that permeates Indy, but good flavors and they seem to put some effort into presentation.

First time trying China Garden. Still in search of a restaurant on south side of Indy to replace my beloved Little Szechwan in Highland Park. This may not be a replacement, but it was definitely good!
Lots of food, really enjoyed the Crab Rangoon, and my husband said the Potstickers were great as well. Entrees were good sized.
The service was fantastic! Everyone was very friendly and anticipated our needs. Drink refills, extra napkins, etc, all brought without prompting. Great place and we WILL be back!

Very good sit down Chinese restouant. One of the last sit down Chinese places we have found where they serve you. The Egg Drop soup was top notch. The eggroll was pretty good. Steamed dumplings very tasty. Finishing off the meal with sweet and sour chicken. Very delicious!!! I would have given 5 stars had the fried rice had some veggies in it, but this would be my go to for great Chinese!

Some of the best I’ve ever had, and we travel a lot! Service is excellent. Good people! Great food.

Neighbourhood Chinese resto in the southern suburbs of Indianapolis serves good beef with snow peas and chicken with broccoli. Hot and sour soup could use work, a little too sweet. Friendly service, quick delivery out of kitchen.

Had shrimp and scallop, also ma Po tofu. We asked for less spicy and oily, they turned out well. The daikon pickles were delicious. The boss was really nice and kind, kept checking on us. Great experience dining there.

I normally love Chinese food, but I tried to eat chicken with broccoli and a side of crab raggoons. I’m sorry to say bad things about the place but the chicken was without flavor and I didn’t taste like there was any crab in the raggoons.

Very attentive service, and good food. For sure return.

I usually enjoy this place and maybe it is because I always eat the same dish every time I visit, this time I decided to try something different. Wrong decision! I tried the garlic beef and it was bad. It was bland and the meat seemed somewhat undercooked. Avoid this dish stick with the Mongolian beef, orange chicken, or the general Tsao’s.

The best Chinese food on the south side of Indianapolis! The manager/​owner is so friendly, personable, and organized that he’ll keep you wanting to come back for more. He is always in the restaurant interacting with customers and makes it a point to speak with everyone who comes through the doors, making you feel as if you are family. The egg drop soup is the best I’ve ever had. It contains diced tomatoes cooked in the soup, which I think is ingenious and really gives the soup a great flavor. I’ve never had any food I didn’t like at China Garden. I appreciate their dinner specials, as it is nice to get a little more with your dinner (such as soup and an egg roll) than just the entrée. I think the atmosphere is very cozy and nice for a date or a quiet evening with one or two friends. Definitely worth a visit (or ideally, many visits!).

I learned about this place from other reviews and they were absolutely correct. The Chinese food here is way better than other places on the south side. No more tough meat, greasy sauces, or missing veggies. Everything I’ve tried has been good (and usually great). I only took one star off because it would be nice if it was a little cheaper. $ 8 – 10 seems like a little much for Chinese.

Very friendly place!

My woman suggested this place for dinner tonight as an alternative to P.F. Changs. She remembered liking it, but hadn’t been for about 5 years. I was pleasantly surprised by this place. She had the Moo Shu Pork and I had the Princess Chicken and the Pu Pu platter to start. Yes, I know. It was spicy and not General Tso’s. All of it was very good. The Mo Shu was very good, the hoisin sauce was quite good. I was especially surprised by the Crab Angles and the hot mustard sauce. The angles were piping hot when we got them and the mustard sauce blew out my sinuses. My chicken was quite good, just enough kick to it. I also noticed that this place has quite a few regulars. There were three groups that came in while we were there that the owner knew. I take that as a good sign at any place. While the décor etc is not great, the food is. We will be back.

I’m from California and therefore no stranger to delicious, authentic Chinese food made by Chinese moms and restaurants in California Chinatown (s). I haven’t had an authentic Chinese meal in Indy yet and this is no exception, but the quality/​taste of the food here far exceeded other options. I went in with low expectations and came out reasonably impressed.
The sizzling rice soup is awesome… flavorful and not overly greasy. The garlic chicken was ok (I wish it had more veggies, less chicken, and less garlic sauce), but by Indy standards, it was definitely tasty. +1 for the lack of tacky, greasy «Chinese» buffet food that seems to pervade this city.
The service was quick and friendly– I’m sure I will be back again!

Very good Chinese food. The place is a hole in the wall but the service is good and food is very tasty. Most of the lunch specials are under $ 5 and will fill you up. My favorite is the simple chicken with broccoli. If you want a good quick meal, this is the place. The décor hasn’t changed in 15 years but it’s well kept and the owner is friendly.
The owner and the waitresses have been there forever. I’ve had the same waitress for almost 15 years.
While the chicken & broccoli is my favorite, the sesame chicken and the pupu platter are both worth a try. The soups are pretty good and I enjoy the Hot & Sour soup myself.