Genes Restaurant

Worst meal ever! Terrible food and service. Food was not fresh, smelled bad. The health inspector needs to pay closer attention to this dump and shut it down.

THis place is at the downtown on the south side of Ontario St. a few door down from the corner of Downie St.

I like Chinese food. Unfortunately Stratford does not have chinese food. It has Chinadian food. Still it is what most of us have grown up with and we untimatyely have our favourites. GF's is chicken balls (gag)...General Tao's chicken is mine.

We were at 6's and 9's saturday evening after having had a very late lunch at Harry's in Bayfield. We didn't want anything to fancy and didn't want the typical pub fare so we parked on Ontario St. and debated between Gene's and Tango. Gene's won.

This place has been around since 1970 when Gene...(Larry is his first name but I would stand corrected if it is not)...set up some competition to the Golden Bamboo which at the time was the only Chinese food place in town. Well 38 years later and guess what...Gene won. The Bamboo is closed and rotting on its foundation and Gene is still doing a brisk business. I say brisk dispite the fact that we were 2 of 4 people sitting down when we ate....BUT the take out...another story. Take out bags lined the counter when we came in and the drivers for delivery where coming and going the entire time.

The menu is what you have come to expect in a southern ontario chinese place. We ordered a dinner for two, with egg roll, chicken guy ding, chicken balls and mushroom fried rice. The decor is about what you expect too. Formica tables, hard surfaced floor, those cheesy chinese lights with the dangly red tassels. They say they do Dim Sum Sunday afternoons and I would like to try that as that would certainly separate them from the usual chinese fare in Southern Ontario.

The food and service is what you would expect, nothing wrong with it and for $20 a good break from the norm. Gene's really had no competition for several years, then Kings buffet opened and a new chinese take-out only in the sobeys plaza. Haan's (sp) on Erie by the shell station is another asian type food place as well. I will review these others in time.

For the time being Gene's remains a Stratford favourite and after 38 years perhaps they have the formula right.

I am a true fan of Genes Restaurant. Infact myself and 3 of my friends try to make a visit once every 2 months. The food is too die for!
Although, ONE time when my boyfriend and I took a visit we entered through the back door and chose a seat at a front table. No one gave us a menu or asked us what we wanted to eat! Unfortunetly we got up and left after 45 minutes of waiting for service.
This is a ONE time event, every other visit has been EXCELLENT with terrific food!!

Best Chinese in Stratford. Atmosphere is traditional Chinese but the food is great. We have visited often and will continue to do so.