If you're visiting House Garden or any Americanized Chinese restaurant expecting anything other…read morethan your regular Americanized Chinese food, then you have to lower your expectations ... pronto.
House Garden pretty much fits into the mold of your everyday, local, mom and pop, Americanized Chinese restaurant and, if that's what you're looking for, then you've come to the right place. It's a bit dingier than other comparable takeout restaurants, which is hard to believe, considering most are pretty dilapidated. However, the food here is right on par with others when I'm seeking out one of my guilty pleasure meals.
Honestly, as a Chinese person, I'm a bit ashamed to walk into such an establishment, especially when Avenue U's Chinatown is just a few blocks away, but when the food hits the spot, the regrets are GONE.
The menu here is like any other, with a few differences here and there, but your typical fried rices, noodles and inexpensive options are on the menu - including Lunch Specials, which is the reason why I usually visit these establishments.
The last time I visited, I ordered a Shrimp with Garlic Sauce with Pork Fried Rice and a Hot and Sour Soup. My wife ordered the fried dumplings. And you know what, it wasn't bad at all. In fact, we were quite impressed by their fried dumplings. It was probably frozen at one point, but the skin wasn't too thick and the meat was tasty.
Everything pretty much met our expectations here ... and that's what you have to do, set your expectations before setting foot in here.
P.S. There is plenty of metered parking outside of this restaurant. My recommendation is to place your order, go back to your car and chill a bit and, when enough time has passed where you think your order is ready, head in, pick it up and be on your merry way.