Ciao! Feb/Mar 2016 Digital Issue | Page 14

inthekitchen The commitment to Asian f lavours and ingredients drew strong support from Winnipeg’s immigrant community, including many international students at the university who found themselves missing home. The space expanded twice in 2001 and 2002 to keep up with demand. Tony travelled back and forth from China, eating and researching dishes. Keeping up on the pulse of contemporary cooking put North Garden on the forefront of Chinese cuisine in Winnipeg, the first in the city to serve now-ubiquitous ginger beef. These days, Chow travels less, and has cut down the size of his menu. “At the time, I would add one or two dishes from every city I visited,” he recalls. “The menu was too big.” Menus that stretch on for pages are staples of Chinese restaurants, but North Garden’s current 100-plus item thr