My friend Beep Beep visited me from Vancouver. Now that she has a baby, where and how we eat out has changed. Bigly! I have to think about parking, baby-friendly washrooms, and avoiding restaurants with stairs. My buddy Office Dad recommended that we try a new dim sum joint in Huntington Hills called Great Taste.
This place is a winner! Great Taste is my new favourite dim sum joint in Calgary. There was ample free parking. Servers spoke limited English but were for the most part friendly. Most importantly, the dim sum was delicious and reasonably priced.
We ordered a small bowl of Special Congee. If this is a small, I can’t wait to see the large bowl! The congee was served bubbling hot, filled with bits of savoury char sui, shrimp, chicken, dry crunchy peanuts and some other unidentifiable ingredient. I’m guessing it was cow stomach? I could taste the fragrant ginger and a touch of cilantro. Unlike some places, the congee wasn’t over salted. I added white pepper to my congee because that’s what real Chinese people do. I learned that from Office Dad. Though honestly, it didn’t make much of a difference to me.
One of the best dishes was the Pan-Fried XO Sauce Turnip. Oh my. The portion was generous. The thin exterior shell was crispy and the inside was silky and soft. There were tiny cubed green and red peppers, crunchy slices of fried garlic chips and dried shrimp. I loved the flavours and textures.
The Soup Dumplings were good. I know a lot of foodies that go crazy over this dish but I’m always indifferent. It was a good dumpling and the soup inside was hot and tasty. Beep Beep bite halfway into it and the juices squirted across the table.
I loved the Shrimp and Pea Tip dumplings. The shrimp was crunchy and the pea tips added a freshness to it. The wrapper wasn’t too dry or wet, just perfect. Three dumplings per order, but each was twice the size I’m use to in Calgary.
I can’t wait to return to try more dishes. This is the closest I can get to quality I’m use to in Vancouver and Richmond. For all that food, our bill was around $30.00. Secret’s out. Great Taste is the place for dim sum in Calgary. Hitting the Sauce gives Great Taste two fat thumbs up and a hearty “hou sik” (very good).
Hitting the Sauce 