Memories of the Golden Bridge

As I was sitting in a restaurant in Nanton yesterday having Chinese food, I was thinking about the best Chinese food I’ve ever had. It also happened to be the first Chinese food I ever had.

But what I will remember the most about the Golden Bridge down on Mayor Magrath Drive in Lethbridge was not so much the food as the memories of birthdays and family gatherings.

The Golden Bridge is gone now, replaced by something else, but in the 1980s, it was one of the best Chinese restaurants in Lethbridge.

First birthday party
I was in Grade 1 when my parents took me to the Golden Bridge for Chinese food. I recall the building being long and fairly narrow. I thought I heard somewhere it had previously been a car wash, which would kind of explain that, if it was true. The counter you waited at was part of a glass case that sold gum.

It was my first ever experience with Chinese food, and even the idea they would bring you different plates of food to serve yourself, just like home, was new to me. Years later, in university, I discovered this was called family style.

What I remember most was the pineapple chicken balls. They were awesome.

We had eaten our fill, but there was still a lot of food left. My Mom said we would get a doggie bag. I wondered what that was. I had heard the term on television, but really didn’t know what it meant.

Then a Chinese man brought a pile of silver foil containers with cardboard, circular lids. He proceeded to put all of the leftovers in these containers. Then he ran his finger around the edge of one, sealing everything inside the container. He did it so fast, it seemed like magic to me.

It turned out that man was the owner. All I could think was how nice he was. Maybe it was because it was my birthday.

We ate the leftovers the next day, and that was kind of typical of the time. This was before microwave or toaster ovens, so Mom put all the leftovers in the actual oven to heat them up. I recall the chow mein being browned up, and the other food being hot but also a bit dried out, including my beloved pineapple chicken balls. Our first microwave solved those problems.

The menu
We often ordered their combination dinners. Our rule was if there were three of us, we would order a dinner for four. Everyone liked the leftovers.

The Golden Bridge provided my first experience to so many things. Beyond the aforementioned pineapple chicken balls and chicken chow mein, there was chicken fried rice. I had never seen anything other than the lily white rice Mom made at home. There was egg foo yung, which looked like a stack of pancakes, only made of eggs, and I really did not like it.

Then there was the dish that became one of my favourites – sweet and sour ribs. They were in a brown sauce, and cooked so well. One time I started chewing the bone without at first realizing it, because it was softer than the meat.

When I got older, and ventured to other Chinese food restaurants, I was taken aback by the red sweet and sour ribs. I was told that was the actual colour of sweet and sour. It’s funny how your first exposure to something becomes what you measure everything that comes after it to.

Along the way, my love for ribs turned to dried spare ribs. In fact, they became a favourite of mine and all my cousins. Maybe it was because they were less messy to eat.

Rarely, did we branch out to anything beyond the usual dishes. However, this one dish kept catching my eye, over several meals spanning many months. It was called Cantonese duck. One time, I asked my parents and, much to my surprise, we ordered it.

It was no at all what I expected. I recall it being in this watery, black sauce, and tasting kind of like chicken, but not as flavourful as pineapple chicken. It was worth a try, which was good, because we didn’t really try a lot of new things back then.

Best service
Another time we went, I remember the service more than the food. We had a man for the first time. Back then, virtually every server was female, so that was striking. He was very kind, outlined what was on the menu, asking us if we had any questions. When Mom ordered, he read her order back to her to make sure it was right. When he brought our food, he said, “Enjoy your meal.”

These all seem standard now, but back then it just stood out.

To this day, I think of that man, whoever he is, as providing the best service I ever had. In fact, I measure all service to that day more than 45 years ago.

Farewell party
One year, my Mom’s Aunt Emma and Uncle Otto came to visit from West Germany. Aunt Emma was my Oma Jetz’s sister, and it was striking how much they looked alike.

Unlike families in the community I live in now, my family came to Canada and left the rest of theirs behind. So, as a 10 year old, it was fascinating to meet a person, I had never met before, who looked just like my grandmother. That happened again when another one of her sisters came to visit. They all looked the same.

Anyway, my family, my Uncle Ed and Aunt Joanne, and my Uncle Witold and Aunt Lotta, all showed Aunt Emma and Uncle Otto around. We went to several places around Southern Alberta, including Wateron.

Just before they left to go back to West Germany, they wanted to show their gratitude and take everyone out for supper.

We all went to the Golden Bridge.

I will never forget that night. They seated us at the back of the restaurant. When they seated us, I walked all the way to the back of the table and could not help but thinking this all looked like a scene from “The Waltons”.

We had as much food as we wanted, and I remember the oddest thing. My cousin Gary, who is like 15 years older than me, was sitting at our end. He too loved the dried spare ribs, as did his sister, my cousin Doris, and my cousin Carl. The three of us all kind of hung out together. Anyway, there was this small shallow bowl on the table. Gary started piling his rib bones on it. So the rest of us followed suit. That pile grew and grew, because there was a lot of food. It ended up being, I would say, three or four inches high. The waitress didn’t have any trouble taking it away though.

At the end of the night, I remember Uncle Otto standing up, giving a little speech of thanks in German – because he spoke no English – and toasting everyone.

Mom told me, he picked up the bill for the whole meal. It was hundreds of dollars, which was a huge amount of money then.

But a very kind gesture.

Parting thoughts
Like anything else, we went to the Golden Bridge less and less, as I got older and older. I honestly cannot remember the last time I was in there.

Sadly, it stopped being one of the best Chinese restaurants in Lethbridge too.

When I returned to Southern Alberta in November of 1998, I had some friends coming to town. They suggested we grab a bite to eat. I suggested the Golden Bridge, but it ended up we went somewhere else because they were not up for Chinese food.

I was working at the University of Lethbridge then. When I got to work the next day, and told them about the friends I had over and wanting to take them to the Golden Bridge, my co-workers both winced.

The Golden Bridge was a dive now. They both said it had gone down hill quite badly.

That saddened me, because I had so many great memories of that place, and I wanted to share just a bit of its charm with my friends.

I will always have those great memories, and I still compare every new Chinese food place that I go to with the Golden Bridge.