ottawa foodies

General Blackie's Chicken is famous for a reason. It's really good!

A good friend recommended the GT's Chicken here as it is his favourite. After trying it I have to agree.. this is awesome stuff! My son and I both loved its balance of sweet-sour-spicy-salty and it's excellent crunch. My wife liked it too but she gives the more subtly flavoured and lightly battered version at Mandarin Ogilvie the edge over this one. Either way, this is an excellent (and large) plate of delicious chicken.

The General Tso chicken is a fusion dish here. It is not very spicy but it was a pleasant dish with steamed rice and a fried rice chip. I shared it with my family and everyone enjoyed it.

The GT's chicken was pretty good here. We like it a little spicier but it was certainly better than average. Worth ordering if you're a fan of it.

This version is less breaded than most and actually spicy, a refreshing change. Most General Tao chicken are too sweet. This was served on a bed of broccoli which is similar to the "original" version of General Tso that originated from California, according to the documentary "In Search of General Tso".

That "egg roll" would be the work of Mali - ie Mali's Egg Rolls, of carp farmers market fame. Her son is one running Pong's.

The lunch special today was General Tso's Chicken with Fried Rice, Egg Roll, and Drink for $8.50. With a slightly spicy and not too sweet sauce, this was one of the nicer General Tso's chickens I've encountered. The mama told me proudly that she uses taro and carrot instead of cabbage and bean sprouts in her egg rolls. This makes for a more satisfying and less greasy roll.

When I asked her why she calls it an egg roll instead of a spring roll, she replied, "Well it is a spring roll, but I can call it whatever I want because I make it. If you don't like the name then you can cook your own food." :D

This is quickly becoming my favourite lunch spot.

Beautifully presented inside a ring of tender-crisp broccoli, the flavour of this chicken fell short. The chicken itself was varied -- some pieces were tender while others were dry and chewy. The batter was soggy without crunch, and the sauce was sweeter than we like and had no heat at all. I commented to my wife that it tasted a bit like those microwaveable boxes of frozen General Tao's you can get at the grocery store.

Brother Wu's version of General Tsao Chicken is quite different than those in most of the Chinese restaurants in Ottawa. I can taste the chicken meat and it is not battered. (Note: The ones on the left are two battered shrimps that we put to the plate to save some space for our table.)

I just popped by tonight and had some drinks and the General Tao's Chicken. Not bad, but Chinese restaurants do it best. Their website has it listed as $6, but it was $9 - poor value for the portion size (in my opinion) but a good snack nonetheless.

I was however pleasantly surprised to see they have some Beau's on tap, as well as a few beers from the Mill Street Brewery in TO...

Never tried it but I see it's on their 'Bar Bites' menu which is reasonable priced with most apps between $6-$9. I'll have to drop by for a drink sometime soon...

I really like the General Tsao's at Eighteen. You can get it at the bar or the lounge. Have any of you guys had it there?

One of the better variations of General Tso's I've tried in the city. The chicken had little to no batter (a nice change!) with a light crispy outside layer and juicy morsels of chicken. The sauce was a deep red, if I recall correctly, and had just the right mixture of sweetness with a spicy kick.

I make a point of trying General Tso's Chicken at any restaurant that serves it. This was a bit pricier than usual ($13.99) but the Market location makes that understandable.

Overall, I enjoyed the flavour, although eventually the sweetness of the sauce got to me. Yes, the batter was too thick, the chicken was too thin, and the chopped up peppers were very... North American. But I was hungry and I liked it.

Wifey said it reminded her of Manchu Wok (mall food court "Chinese" food). I didn't disagree.

The picture looks unimpressive, but this is one of the better General Tso's I've had: slightly crispy outside, very moist interior, good salt level, a hint of sweet, a hint of sour, and a good hit of spice. Menu item #43.

I like to try General Tso's because every restaurant does it a bit differently (and it tastes good!). However, it is generally claimed to have originated in North America (along with chicken balls, chop suey, etc).

We had this a few years ago, and maybe they gave us the "white man' version or something but it tasted like chicken balls with plum sauce!! No spice and sweet like dessert! Bleccch.

Haha.. true, but it didn't taste awful! It is one of the least "Chinese" G.Tsos I've had (no vinegar but at least it wasn't sickly sweet). I agree with your advice though. I've tried this dish at Fortune Express and it's very similar to the one at the Yangtze -- very good! (We ended up at Great Wall because the Yangtze had a 45 minute lineup -- otherwise I would have had pictures of their G.Tsos instead!)

Mark, the dish looks very awful! I think you may want to try out Fortune Express or Rideau in Kanata and you will see the difference. The shrimp also does not look good. We tried Great Wall once and didn't go back for long time. Your pictures just tell me I should not return. Thanks.

It was very tasty but the batter wasn't uniformly applied and the thick chunks of onion and green pepper were unusual. Still.. not bad at all.

The general Tso chicken is always on the menu and is fairly popular. It is on the sweeter side.