Blue Willow Restaurant Ltd — Restaurant in Edmonton

While watching Edmonton Global Weekend Morning News on Sunday, July 13, we saw a segment featuring the Blue Willow Restaurant that is located, near Grant MacEwan University, in Edmonton. Living in Camrose, we had never heard of this restaurant. Blue Willow has been in business for 67 years and specializes in Cantonese, Szechuan and Mandarin cuisine. No MSG is added to the food. Because we enjoy culinary adventures, we thought that it would be worth the trip to allow us to explore what the restaurant has to offer. Don't let the current road construction, in the area, deter you. There is ample free parking at the restaurant.

The interior of the restaurant is tastefully decorated with the calming color of blue which is emphasized throughout. The decor lends itself to a relaxing atmosphere where memories can be made. The tables are strategically placed so that it doesn't feel crowded and, in turn, enhances your dinner conversation.

Upon entering Blue Willow, we were greeted by Jacob. When he discovered that we had never been to the restaurant before, he was happy to help us navigate the extensive menu. He readily answered our questions and provided us with guidance in our selections. He advised us that the restaurant could accommodate dietary restrictions and allergies. He was very attentive, throughout our meal, and frequently asked us how our food was and if we needed anything. Our water glasses were never empty. His enthusiasm for the restaurant is contagious.

We had the Wonton Soup to start, which was delicious; followed by the Blue Willow Chow Mein, Pineapple Chicken and Ginger Beef. Everything was amazing. The fresh ginger, accompanying the Ginger Beef, added a welcome pop of flavour to the dish. The food was served in "heaters" (mini chafing dishes with lids) which we had never seen before in a Chinese restaurant. These "heaters" not only kept our food warm during the entire meal, but they certainly were a conversation piece that elevated our dining experience to the next level.

Even though we were full, we succumbed to the temptation of the dessert menu. I had the Chocolate Banana Wontons, while my wife opted for the Coconut Ice Cream. Both were great choices. We had no regrets.

The finale to the meal was the awesome and unexpected cloth twirl. Truly it was a work of art in motion. To say that we were "tickled pink" is an absolute understatement. Oddly enough, to be honest, it was the highlight of the evening. Life would be meaningless if not for these simple pleasures.

We enjoyed our food so much that we decided to place a take-out order of Shanghai Noodles to have for dinner the next day. Upon opening the take-out bag, we discovered that our leftovers, from the meal, were nicely packaged as were the Shanghai Noodles. Much to our surprise, even though our drive home took over an hour, the noodles were still warm when we got back to Camrose.

Dining at the Blue Willow isn't just about the food. It is about the overall experience. We are already looking forward to...

----- UPDATE their chicken fried rice is bland and tasteless. It is not mixed well. Plus, there is no eggs, green onions, onions and no veggies at all. It looks dark as if cooked in soya sauce, but you can't taste anything and it's very greasy. 👎

• I asked for pineapple chicken balls 2x and I was charged and given lemon chicken instead and told it's the same thing. The battered chicken was delicious and nicely coated. But, the sauce SMELLS! 🤢 It also doesn't look appealing. It looks like there's clumps of fat or gel all thru out the sauce. 🤢 Later the next day, I put the lemon chicken in my air fryer to crisp and heat it up. Then, I microwaved the sauce. That stinky smell from the sauce was now even stronger! How weird to cover my lemon chicken with it, then smell that dirty dish rag smell and then taste ok as it's in your mouth. 🤢
• Sweet & sour spareribs. The meat is delicious, tender and beautiful. 👍 But, that familiar smell is also in this sauce. 🤢 It robs the enjoyment of this or any dish. I've found any sauce they have, has this putrid smell to it. 🤢
• The chicken chop suey. It looks like it's amazing and has a nice mix of other ingredients. But, it was soggy and tasteless!!!! The pieces of chicken looked off and were all dark meat. There were clumps of chicken. Not the nicely shredded white meat you'd expect. Very disappointing. 👎
• Deep fried shrimp. This was the best thing they made and because it's impossible to mess up. The accompanying sauce was perfect with the shrimp. 😎 👍

This place should clean and fix up the waiting area. Also the staff needs to watch their language. 2X as I was waiting I could hear 2 guys arguing and swearing loudly with no care about customers listening to their heated drama. The staff also needs to have a nice clean, polished appearance. Not messy and bushy hair. Hygiene should be paramount!

"This place could do so much better."

STAY AWAY FROM THIS PLACE AND...

Ordered years ago and wasn't impressed. Worst chicken fried rice ever i thought. Moved next door recently, started ordering more. At first ok, not great but not bad. Noticed the fried rice was much better so figured it was a one off. Still thiught theres better out there, but average quality for a bit higher price but convenient. Ordered the other night for 4th or 5th time and the crap quality is back. Soggy noodles, worst beef and mixed greens ever. Looked disgusting and grey and tasted worse, very unapitizing. There was a piece of chicken in the chow mein that was i think preserved from the fossil age or something. It's a shame as they are nice people and for me it's convenient because I save a good 10$ on delivery by walking over, but not blowing 50 to 70$ for inedible food. Put it this way, offered my partner half the leftovers when they went home and they pulled a face and said no. That's pretty bad when someone says no to free chinese food. This place is generally average at a price and not cheap but then can sink to barely edible. As I said nice people but for what they charge...I'm done. Just felt ripped off and honestly stomach did not feel good after (no drinking involved) Have passed by the dining room (looks nice but never ate there). I'd give the food yesterday a 2 but overall id give an extra 1 point for sometimes tasting good, but then take a .5 away for lack of consistency. So they get a 2.5 and because they are so nice and fast and because when the foods good it's tasty so they get another point. 3.5 from me. I'm sure if I ate there they'd get a four because they seem so nice. If you want quality chinese ordered to home id rather pay the delivery fee from now on and order elsewhere. Honestly to sum up I'd say it's a hit and miss place that's generally ok quality at an expensive price but without warning quality can drop to barely edible. For me I just am not willing to risk my hard earned money to...