Culinary Explorations - I was not in Kansas but in Providence

I came out East last week to watch my son play a recital for his senior year at Juliard Music School in New York City. Before that happened , I flew back into Providence, to visit family and sampled several of its great restaurants in and around Providence. There were new places to try and one from last year that I only found out last year Apsara Palace.

I love Apsara Palace.There are several reasons for me to come back to a restaurant: reasonable prices, food that is a level above your ordinary fare, varied menu, good service and ambiance. This place meets all of those criteria points and we love it.

For the second time, my good friends from Newton, Mass met us for another memorable feast. The food is so good and the menu so expansive, its just a lovely place to tantalize your taste buds. So why not because they love it too.
We had crispy vegetarian spring rolls, vegetarian There is a little art to making your food for these little duck sandwiches so I photographed each step with information at this link. (I will post a link soon)

There are quite a few eateries on Hope Street from Wickeden Street (near my brother's store Atomic Appliances and Flescher Furniture) and goes North towards the
On Hope Street restaurant row, I ducked into this gourmet food shop and bought a spicy condiment that I had never heard of make primary from spicy plum and other spices. It is a national condiment and called Tkemal. It comes in yellow, bright green and a darker hue. All give a real plum sour taste. Well spoken for, I had to buy it and try it. It is great on chicken, vegetarian burgers and more . It's great.




I had tried Cambodian recipes and I wanted to discover what it had for lunch.


I was looking for a more authentic Cambodian dish.A rather small but personable place, very intimate looking with nice tones inside. I decided to do take out. I spied the menu to decide which dish to take. The lemon grass- basil chicken seemed a good bet as I did not want to try a curry dish at this time. I love basil and this might have a different twist on its theme with the red pepper and lemongrass. I love the delicate flavor of lemongrass.
The green jalapeno gave the dish a little heat which stayed on my lips. The lemon grass flavored the chicken well. The big basil leaves did not add much to the dish but there was a subtle flavor.

When I came to Providence my brother mentioned this place.I knew of the restaurant India a few blocks away but I did not see dishes that I thought were unusual.
I wanted someplace to lunch on Sunday.

I had passed Chef Pascal. It is rated very highly. I might try it someday but not now. The fare is not my usual style and its more fine dining with a high price tag to match . Still maybe someday. But I headed for the Indian restaurant just over the line in Pawtucket.



I had never seen as Rasoi as it is tucked a little ways from the street, clustered in the middle of a vegetarian restaurant and a BBQ place and a pizza place. I am glad my brother mentioned this place because it has some fine dishes on the buffet. What better way to try a number of dishes? I really like to find and eat new and different ethnic cuisine and this place handled that assignment eloquently.

The inside has this azure blue coloration on the floors with more muted tones on the walls.

The buffet rims the side window near the front door and has quite a few tasty dishes. Going clockwise, I passed on the regular salad greens and went for the mushroom soup and then the entrees.

There were quite a few so I actually had to make another pass to get the others I missed going clockwise. I quickly found that the entrees had all types of flavors and textures, colors and were from different regions of Indian as it seemed. I have sought out and sampled Indian food at restaurants New England, Washington DC, the West Coast and many other places, besides making my own dishes at home, but this creative restaurant offered several entrees I had never heard about.

I spooned some mushroom soup into my cup. It was very interesting because it was actually mushroom - chicken soup. The chicken soup added a more velvety and smooth flavor to the soup. My young nephew loved it too. I will have to find some recipes for this mushroom soup refinement. Onward to the entrees.
There was the regular Naan bread which we loved (left). At another table we spied another more cracker like bread that does not come with this buffet (maybe we will try this in the future).

That big white object (on the right bottom) is a big hard boiled egg that sits in the middle of the egg curry.
A winner was also the potato vegetarian dish with its intricate flavors.The curry was also excellent. There was also a shrimp dish too.

I could not pass on the yellowish bread pudding (I loved bread pudding- top right hand corner). What made it unusual was the yellowish hue on the top that made it a butter bread pudding. Smooth it caped off a memorable buffet and Sunday brunch.
The service was efficient and they constantly filled our glasses so I could clean my thirst and palate.

I can see that quite a few people have already frequented this place. The price ($12) was very reasonable for the amount and excellent quality. Plus the dishes some like the potato dish and egg curry were different then I had ever seen and. When a place offers offers food "a level above ordinary (Indian) fare well I am impressed. I rate this places very high and will come back. I believe the dishes rotate so next time I will sample more and write about them again.



Going down Hope Street again , I ducked into Blaze to see what it was all about . Quite an eclectic menu with items from different parts of the world. My mother has eaten Salmon here and liked the meal. This place is a combination bar and cafe restaurant. I talked with the waitress, looked over the menu and decided on a small snack to go. I love jerk spiced items and there was a fried jerk chicken with a coconut sauce that seemed unusual The chicken were mildly crisped and not too overally fried, which was good. I was surprised that instead of a whitish sauce it was muddy brown. I dunked the chicken into it and tasted it. It was more like a tamarind type sauce with a slightly tangy lemony flavor.

I then headed down to Wayland Square to check out some of the other restaurants for future reference. La Laiterie at Farmstead had good reviews (but it would have to wait for the future for sampling). People like the authentic Asian fare at Hakura East. I can see why. It has sushi, Japanese and other Asian items. I would like to try this pricey bistro or at least one item sometime in the future too.
Also there was>, a breakfast shop with mostly American breakfast menu. I see that is has won several awards and my mother she has been here. Its quaint and maybe someday for breakfast. But my target was a Vietnamese restaurant I heard about.




I heard a lot about Pho Horn'. Last but not least, Vietnamese was on the menu before I left for Kansas. I had found that this Vietnamese restaurant was near where many years ago, I did weekend bowling. Now there is a little strip mall just West. Instead of defunct Chinese Buffet nearby there is a thriving and well spoken for Vietnamese restaurant which for all indications should be around for for along time. Here's why!

Upon entering this small area, one can't but notice the nice tropical aquarium with a huge carp or is it a goldfish? A constant stream of people constantly shuttled in to sample the Asian food, Vietnamese flavors transform chicken, beef and more into flavor nevertheless and packs good flavor, many different then regular Chinese fare. I was particularly interested in finding different Vietnamese entrees, soups etc that might be a little different from the great restaurant in Kansas City near Westport, MO and downtown. My main intent was to not to Kansas City restaurants or food but find different entrees in this case Vietnamese/ Asian fare. I am always looking for different flavors. I am also always searching for different recipes to try at home too and find other resources. In quest of tastes that cause me to say "aha" called "satori (japanese).

From the reviews this place seemed to tell me that my mother and I would like this restaurant as the Phoenix RI magazine has reviewed it favorably. The menu has plenty to choose from for myself and my mother.

I tried the marinated chicken wings with the pink colored duck sauce. The 8 wings were lightly fried has a pink duck sweet sauce with it . I finished the wings while I waited for the soup and entrees.

The unusual sweet and sour soup has to be something that I had to try. I chose the salmon.Huge chunks of the salmon swam in the pineapple sweetened and red pepper spicy soup broth. There was also bean sprouts, basil and more .

The salmon was succulent with many small bits intermingled with beansprouts, vegetables and more. I added rice to the little bowls. The broth was sweet but had a hint of heat which lingered on my lips. It was a little sweeter then I thought (maybe due to the pineapple) but it was good and very different.

My mother decided on the fried whole flounder. The one thing we should have done was ask how much it was going to be ($24).

Nevertheless, it was delicious and we feasted on almost all of it! The slightly sweet brown sauce melded well with the fish. We had to pick through the bones which was a chore but it was worth it.

I liked chewing on the fried bones and much of the rest of the fish, besides the flesh which was rather crunchy. There were tomatoes and more to go with it. Pancakes would be been good to stuff with the fish and would have made it even better.
We were stuffed so no dessert for us. Another memorable meal.

Now where can I find the recipes?
I passed by the Blue Cottage which I might try in the future for breakfast. Then it was time to head to New York City.

Fire Wok buffet has some superb enterees

I've been here several times with friends. Have not been here for awhile but it is one of the better chinese buffets. It is only certain times and days (when I was here last. The buffet has some really superb entree and very different ones . The rest are very good to good. I think you, like others, will like this buffet.

2nd time is the (Thai) charm for Thai- Siam.

Several Chinese buffets in Lawrence are quite good (particularly my favorite Jin-Shan). But before heading back to Olathe, my thoughts instead turned towards Thai, my favorite. With the buffets, there are usually one type of noodle dish, rice, curry orr special Asian dish. I wanted to savor something different so I thought about giving Thai-Siam another chance.
The first time, I was at this place, my take out "was not so hot" . When I got home with it, I was shocked. it was mostly a curry like soup with a few vegetables and one piece of beef. I was not happy. I usually don’t go back if a restaurant is not good, even for one trip, but that menu and Thai beckoned my tastebuds. For a small place , they have a big menu with many curry, rice and specials. I thought about the duck (I love duck) noodle soup and some of the other dishes but I zoned in on the specials. The ingredients for the specials were on a little list behind the counter. I had to ask several times which was okay . I had to look several times at the little list and decided that the Princess Beef, with thai bird chili, cashews, pea pods, carrots would be the one to try for this second chance. This time, I watched carefully to see how this dish was made. The motherly chef, began scooping out ingredients with her wok, from a little ingredients cart. In they went into the wok with the clanking wok utensal. It was nice that most of the entree was in the Styrofoam box taking up a good amount of space while the rice, was in a smaller chinese meal box.
The beef was tender. What I liked was a nice little heat flavor which lingered from the thai chilies. . And I could taste come of the chilies in the brown soy like gravy that I mixed over the rice and vegetables. The bright green snow peas, a good number of crunchy cashews and carrots integrated well with the soy like spicy sauce and the beef. So I have to give it thumbs up. The prices are pretty reasonable. Like I said the menu is pretty big so there is lots of other entrees to choose from the Thai/Asian section looking for the spicy flavor and different dishes from Asia.

This Thai fare is just average for this Providence place

I have eaten Thai all over the US and Thai is my favorite food. This place is just OK and is not spectacular. It did not really stand out for me. Definitely did not take Asian fare to a different level for me at all which is what I need to taste for me to rate it as good or great. It has to be a little different and this place did not do it for me. For example compared to Aspara on Hope Street, this place pales in comparison. (Maybe someday I will see if there is sometime on the Sawaddees menu that is better ).

Latin American entrees with good portions and varied menu

The Salvadorean dishes are good and so are the different other extrees from different countries China, Thailand and more. It is more upscale then La Parilla but this one like Parilla have different ethnic entrees which you can try as a trip around the world.

Good Mongolian but use the cheat sheets

I've been to several Mongolian BBQ's : Ann Arbor MI, Lawrence KS, Olathe KS , Spokane WA and maybe a few others. The best one was in Spokane where there was fresh salmon on the Mongolian. It was magnificent Mongolian BBQ.. The taste, flavor , freshness superb. What I found in that one and this one, there are cards and recipes that give you instruction and guidance concerning what ingredients, sauces and condiments go better with certain foods (chicken, beef, seafood etc) and what go best according to your tests. Like in Spokane and here, there are guides which I find help you taste the food and make for better Mongolian fare. Without that you have a mishmash of flavors that don't meld. If they don't integrate well it means your meal does not taste as good as it would be. In both this KC place and Spokane everything was fresh and had the guidance of what condiments to add. While I love to cook and make my own recipes, I found these Mongolian's the best I have visited. It might be why this place is packed quite often. It does have a good location but it is possibly the extra touch that brings out the best in the food. If you see a Chinese restaurants without the "cheat sheets" you might be a little disappointed. But at this place (and Spokane) they were mighty tasty. Try it but use the cheat sheets!

Korean noodles+ veggies + turkey+ sesame sauce=yummy

I had Korean noodles, veggies, a sauce and some turkey pieces. It was time for me to make an Asian bowl type food for dinner. I found my trusty Bowl Food cookbook by Lynne Aronson & Elizabeth Simon and the sesame sauce recipe. Only thing I did not have "sesame" for the sesame seed sauce. No worry maannn!
The Lan Chi brand was recommended in this recipe but no matter I did not have it. This recipe said if you do have it, you need to make sure it not out of date. And Middle Eastern tahini sesame paste does not count. But this recipe said smooth peanut butter was an excellent substitute, so I was in luck.
I boiled the noodles for 10 minutes, no more no less and then sprayed water over them to take off some starch and then added some sesame oil. I got the turkey shredded and ready while I worked on the sauce and let is heat up. (peanut butter, soy sauce, sugar, rice wine, red curry paste, Chinese 5 spice (instead of just star anise) and a juice of a lime. I wokked some pieces of mushroom, yellow squash with thyme and also added peas and broiled red peppers. So lots of color, protein, noodles and the sauce. The extra bit of lime, which is added after cooling down really added an extra little kick to the paste/ sauce.
The sauce came out pretty well as my wife was telling me not to take so much on my noodles. It came out well and tasted good. The sauce was a little different then ones I have made before. This was one of the better ones. I would have to rate this sauce and the whole 9.7/10 .

Choga Korean- it doesn't have to be super spicy

I like Asian food and Korean is another ethnic food that I have tried in Boston and other cities. My son,wife and I wanted to try this place out. They had very Korean BBQ which made on a burning Korean stove at our table, The bulgogi (tender beef strips seared in sauce) was excellent and there was enough to take home. The order included many condiments (kimchi - pickled cabbage and many more for dipping etc). Using these and Korean side dishes made it for a fun time. They have a good selection on the menu (beef, seafood, vegetable etc) Reasonable priced compared to some other (Korean) places with many of the entrees between $10-$15). I would like to come again to sample more of the entrees, noodle dishes etc.

I love Lemon grass so the chicken wings caught my eye

Originally from Providence but now living in Kansas, I come back home to visit family but also to hunt for different types of food and restaurants to sample. When I was back here, I was around the Zoo area on my way back to the East side. I spied this restaurant and decided to give a try as I had never seen it before. I found the menu had quite a few Thai, Vietnamese and other Asian fare. Noodles, Pad Thai, soups . noodle soups, luncheon specials, mooshi (their spelling) pancake dishes (with chicken , veg, shrimp) , appetizers and more so there is lots to choose from. The Bahn Hoi looked interesting ( Bun is standard rice noodle vermicelli while I found that Bahn Hoi is a thinner rice noodle, but it is cooked in small, thin, flat panels. The bahn hoi takes more time and effort to prepare so its a little more time intensive to prepare). But I just wanted a snack so since I like Lemon Grass, I thought I would try the Lemon Grass chicken wings which are a Thai specialty ( I thought they would be Vietnamese but no matter the menu said Thai). Lemongrass has a nice fragrant lemony taste subtle then strong lemon juice but distinct. With the peanut sauce it was a good combination and I was happy to try something different and taking flavors to a different level). Sometime when I go back and in the area, I will have to try the soup and other Asian entrees as see if the rest of the food is as good as chicken wings and Lemongrass ( P.S.Since I like to try out later, while cooking, what I find in restaurants try lemongrass. It comes in thin stalks, make sure you crush or hit the stalks to make the fragrance come out and then cut them into little tiny strips . You can also try the paste.)

Gourmet House: this is not gourmet no way

I grew up in Providence, went to URI and now live near Kansas City. I have been all over the US and Canada searching for good Asian food. When I come back to visit, I hunt for Asian fare. I have seen this place for years and have eaten twice. I was not impressed at all. I was so unimpressed I can't even tell you what food I did eat. I like Asian that takes eating to the next "level". This place doesn't have it. The food is quite "boring" I am sorry to say. I won't ever come back here again and will go a few doors south which I discovered. Now that place has great Asian food.


Aspara Palace : Best Asian food I have found in Providence

I grew up in Providence, went to URI and now live near Kansas City. When I return to visit, I hunt for Thai or Asian fare. Some places were okay or mediocore/poor (including Gourmet House). Then walking by I finally noticed this place just south. I have been coming back and forth to Providence and did not know about this great place which was just around the corner from us! I found it rivals any Asian restaurant that I have eaten in different parts of the US. This restaurant is not to be missed. I checked out this place before inviting my friends from Mass. The chicken dish (forgot which one was excellent). I liked the look of the place. Their menu is extensive. I was glad I picked this place . The food is awesome. My cousin who comes here all the time walked in as we were there and she never told me about this place ( they come here all the time). The service is great. The menu is extensive and there are specials. They even let you bring your own wine. The salmon green curry soup was superb and had the right amount of spiciness and had lots of salmon chunks. My friends suggested Peking Duck (which I never had before and I love duck). They responded that it was as good they said as is made in Beijing where they have been several times. The rest of the meals and appetizers all were great and we had a great time. Even my mother who is not a Chinese/ Asian eater, raved about it. You can bet I will be back here when I come to Providence. If you like Thai or Asian or etc you need to try this place. You will be hooked as I am . It is that good!

The scenary is spectacular but the Asian food is average

I was in the Yellowstone Area BK (before kids more then 24 years ago). In 2003, I flew into Salt Lake City, went to Idaho and then traveled by auto to the Grand Tetons / Yellowstone area . It had been a long beautiful day already with a lot of spectacular country and achieving a lot of good shooting for my project of videotaping and photographing the grandeur and sights of those National Parks / Monuments. I still had to eat. So after I checked into my hotel room for 3 days, I went walking. I was in the mood for something different not burger or beef this time but Asian and I did not want to drive farther or spend a lot of time figuring out researching the restaurants here . I did not think I would find "Nirvana" here but would I fine some decent Asian fare? The menu and the place were small.Still it had seafood, chicken, beef and other dishes. Many were of the "boring" Chinese/ Asian variety that are not my style. I went with the House Special Sesame Chicken as it was labeled "hot". It was fine, nothing spectacular, at least I had something to eat. I can say I had some Asian fare in Yellowstone. Not at spectacular as the scenery but okay.

I found this top rated restaurant while walking

I was in San Fran for a conference. When in any town I always try to look for Asian cuisine particularly Thai. I saw that this one was supposedly one of the best Thai places around so I walked around and found it so I could check it. The menu had a lot of entrees. I fin it interesting when there are not "spiciness rating or stars". Does that mean they are bland. Not necessarily. I find it odd that sometime Asian restaurants try to "spice " things up by just thrown in some whole small chili peppers and leave it at that. I don't go for very spicy. I usually am looking for some different flavors, a different level of spiciness or flavor or items, something I can remember a restaurant in the future either for the setting, the food or really both if possible. Well this place worked out both ways. Quite a sizable set of vegetarian dishes as well curries, beef, appetizers and more. Sometimes I order curries but I wanted something different. There was only one duck dish, a "take " on possibly Peking duck but with honey . This one was Honey Roast Duck dish (Ped Yang Name Peung) as it sounded interesting. Sweet honey basted duck was succulent and had a lot of flavor besides the slight sweetness with spices. I love walking around the hills of SF and am glad I found this jewel of place.



Vietname Cafe: there are better Vietnamese places

 You can't miss this place as it is right on the corner of the street and Rainbow Blvd. It is right next to the Medical Center. We have been here several times but we no longer go here because there are better places for Vietnamese and Asian food. (The one close by, Saigon 39, used to be good years ago but now is pretty bad - see my review).
The menu is decent and the prices are okay. We have tried several Asian dishes and they have not been that great. Their fried tempura like potato and shrimp fries are supposedly the best in the area but frankly I don't think they are anything special at all. My wife does not like the place and I did not think it was that good when we came with some friends a couple of years ago. So it is "not on radar anymore". It might be on your "radar" so try it but there are better ones now cropping up in all parts of the city including Westpor(Sung Son is fabulous), Overland Park and places in the Kansas City area including Lawrence.

Jin Shan: this is a great buffet- you will not be disappointed here for many reasons

Once of our favorite buffets for several reasons. Of course you can order off the menu but we prefer, always, to try the buffet which features well prepared and tasty Chinese, Japanese and Sushi and more. The price is right to dive into the buffet and start with the hot and sour (great tasting with sourness to it) or egg drop soup (not bad either with a little extra flavor). The buffet selection is enormous and my kids in particular, like going here when I come to Lawrence to meet them (they are living in New York City). . My kids love sushi and they introduced me to sushi. I know of no other place to get sushi reasonably priced, well made and fresh. (You can watch as they make it). Different kinds, set out but I particularly like the fried sushi which I think is the best as it very unusual and crunchy plus I life the flavor. But I like all of them. Little soy sauce and some green "wasabi" condiment and you are good to go Here is where I come if I am in Lawrence and want sushi. I mean for the price why would I go anyplace and then after your sushi "fix" there is so much more. else. They have unusual dishes like good roasted chicken or duck, nice and moist Asian salmon, several types of crab dishes and mussels. The crunchy and meaty chicken wings are great. The fried noodles and Chinese rice are good too. The tried and true broccoli and beef, is always good as well as many other Chinese dishes (chicken, beef, pork, seafood, vegetable). I really like the flavor and the "spin" that their chefs here put on even the common dishes. There are also frog legs, mussels, shrimp of different kinds (boiled, in shell, steamed, in combination dishes) and much more. You have to come here to believe the kinds it offers and all consistently excellent and piping hot. There is also ice cream dessert, puddings and more to finish off your meals. The staff is courteous and polite. It might be a little out of your way ( couple miles from the main drags in Lawrence but its on the way coming in or going out to Kansas City on Highway 10) but it is worth it at a very reasonable price for lunch or dinner. When I am stormchasing and come back through Lawrence from Topeka, I usually stop here too. So wether you are chasing, riding around Lawrence and have never tried this place, you are really missing out! For sushi, the Asian fare, the price, the tastes and different types of dishes from the unusual too, you can't beat it.

Mongolian food: some I like - this one in Lawrence well the regular buffet is better

I have been to Mongolian buffets in Washington state, Kansas City, Olathe, KS and now here . That's how they rate their performance in order so here goes.
The one in Washington state had fresh salmon on the buffet so it was the best Mongolian. Kansas City one is not bad. I like the fact that they display different types of sauces that go with their name, the ingredients and what best it goes with. If you don't have the right combination of sauce with the whole " hodge-podge" you put together, the meal is not going to taste all that good. And so it is here. The Mongolian part is not that great. What they had for sushi in the back did not look that great and there was little variety. The rest of the entrees are plentiful and tasty but none of them really stood out in my mind. So that is why when I am in Lawrence and want to go for Asian food, I usually go down the road East near the outskirts to the Japanese - Asian fare restaurant.

New face lift but the food inside Peking Taste is still very good

 We have gone here many times before the places new "face lift". It was an affordable place to get good Chinese/ Asian food. The buffet is not the biggest in the world but what they have is very tasty and there are quite few dishes to try anyway. The hot and sour soup is quite good with that little extra sour " note" to it. The tiny shrimp in mild tomato sauce is addictive. The rest of the buffet from beef, chicken, noodles and more is always good and well prepared. The price has risen since the place's "newface liftt". For the price it is still affordable. But if you want more entrees on the the buffet, there are a few more in town to try that might be better suited but it all is a matter of taste.

Panda is a cute animal and this restaurant is quite nice too

Panda is one of my favorite restaurants in Lawrence. It does not have the ordinary Chinese / Asian fare so it is "right up my alley". It does not have the biggest buffets but for me it has one of the tastiest buffets and Asian type fare. It has more authentic dishes on the buffet compared to its sister restaurant on 23rd street to the south. (They are both good). We have been here many times with my wife and children mostly on Sundays for brunch. The food has always been excellent. Their menu is impressively long and the items for the buffet come from entrees that are usually given during regular meals. You won't see Kung Pao chicken usually on the buffet which is great because that means there is more room for less fried stuff. They sometimes change things around but their are always exquisite noodles, dumplings, steamed buns, and other entrees.You can change the regular meals for spiciness so they can be modified to your taste. For the buffet the only thing I might do however is a little soy sauce. The hot and sour soup, I think my favorite hot and sour soup I have ever tasted , is very unusual as it has a little yellow white color instead of the ordinary brownish color and has a very nice too sour like taste with nice aroma finish.The chicken, beef and fish dishes are all excellent. There is sometimes duck on the buffet which is not greasy and succulent. Also one option we have not tried is the Super Seafood buffet on Friday and Saturday nights. I think this a great find. The buffet is one you should check it out.

Elephant Bar:barring unforseen circumstances, its regular Asian

I've been to South Africa and run into real elephants at a preserve. The big thing then was getting ready for unexpected sights, sounds and smells. And that is the real reason to visit anywhere. In my case, I am looking for something different, a level above in taste and originality for the price.
I can see why people keep on coming here for lunch and dinner .We have been here once to sample their dinner. We liked the layout of the place which is very appealing. Almost full activity abounded. The menu is very affordable and has Pacific Rim ( Japanese, Chinese, Asian, Regional type) dishes with fish, seafood, chicken and more . However for the most part, these entrees are ones that are mostly seen in other Chinese and Asian restaurants and don't really have their own spin on the food (even the names are the for the most part the same). So what I like in the quality of menu, I am not really crazy about their originality of the dishes. But maybe the taste would set them apart. They did not.
The are quite a few appetizers, entrees, sandwiches, desserts and specials. However if you are like us, we don't eat seafood, pork or crab. So when we look for some of the specials, those are not possible. Even the specials usually include these so this limits the possibilities.
My wife had the MisoYaki Fire Grilled Salmon and it was good but not great. My chicken marsala was good but not great. It's like the tastes were subdued. There was just something about both dishes. They were okay but not really special. They tasted fine but there was not special "zing" to them. Something in the ingredients and how they are made, I just could not "put my finger " on the "lack of zest".
It's not that we dislike this place and the dishes. We don't. I think there is a lot for people to like here. That is why I see a lot of people out in the parking lot always. Many options at reasonable prices. For me its a close call, but there is not enough "originality" for me to come back here . Maybe if there is an unusual special offered in their ads. For the most part I don't see that happening. The people who usually come here come mostly for the "regular" Asian - Pacific Rim fare. And for me that's not enough.

Asian in Seattle: Wild Ginger

I had known about Wild Ginger as one place we wanted to find and try when we were in Seattle. We found the restaurant while exploring downtown. However since it was around 3, lunch was not served. The Lunch menu as we had seen is pretty pricey anyway, just as the Dinner. We thought we would go light. We liked the decor. We however could try some of the appetizers. We tried the asian inspired skewers beef which were reasonable prized and tasted quite good. We did not have time to come back but someday when we are back in Seattle. we will come back.