Tuesday, July 29, 2008

The Ginger Pad: Revisited

The Ginger Pad recently increased the size of their restaurant, adding more of a sit-down area with an expanded menu of offerings. I previously dined there on their opening day with somewhat of a mixed review. I returned again for lunch to see how things are progressing.

First, I should note that initially the sit-down restaurant had a completely different menu from the stir-fry area. But, due to customer requests, they have begun offering a few items from the stir-fry menu in the sit-down dining room. In time, they may combine both menus into a single menu. This is good as it shows they are listening to their customers and are willing to make changes.

I began with the Ebi Shumai ($7), six steamed shrimp dumplings with a dipping sauce. They were very good shumai, cooked well but not overly done. The price is reasonable considering many places give you four shumai for around $5.

For my entree, I chose the Asian Short Ribs ($16) off the dinner menu. This comes with a choice of salad or soup, and your choice of white or brown rice. I chose the miso soup and enjoyed it as much as much previous visit. The Short Ribs are cooked with a ginger and honey glaze. When they arrived, there were six good-sized ribs in the plate, slathered in sauce. I will warn you that this is a messy meal so ask for extra napkins. They will also bring you a warm, wet towel and lemon slices for after the meal so you can clean your hands. The ribs were very meaty and tender, easily coming off the bone. And I very much enjoyed the sauce, a bit sweet but not overly so with some interesting spice flavors. This dish impressed me and I would definitely order it again.

My server was very good, attentive and personable. Overall, this was a good experience and it appears the restaurant is trying to improve. You should check them out.

Ginger Pad on Urbanspoon

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