A Wild Ginger Experience...

Enter 02.06.07...my wife's celebration of earth's entry. The kids are together with one of her girlfriends, she and I. Where to go for something special, fun and not Mexican??? Don't get me wrong, I love Mexican and so does my family. That is the problemo. We ALWAYS do Mexican. So, being my better half's night to choose(isn't it always?) we venture off to visit Wild Ginger on 2nd & Union street in Seattle. We arrive on time. Courteous, professional and cordial. We are sat at a great table by the kitchen bar. Watching the female chefs wrestle pans and utensils and move the plates to the window faster than some of the true veterans I've watched in my career, I was certain we were in for a good time. I was not steered wrong! We ordered many different bites so we could nosh on everything. Most entrees are served family style anyhow. Right on! Starting off with a couple of Crab Cakes, nestled with a spicy aioli type drizzle and some Pot Stickers that my kids seemed to inhale before I could get a bite. I did however. Tasty. Our drinks had arrived just as the food was entering the atmosphere...cosmos for the gals, mango smoothies for the "runts" as our server eloquently and politely put it and a cool Black Iced tea done up in elegant style for moi. We ate. We laughed. We wanted more. Bring on the satay's! First Chicken, then Beef, then Lamb...each with a small dainty rice cake, sweet pickled fresh cucumbers and a spicy chili, horseradish and mustard dipping sauce, respectfully. They were tasty. My 9-year old even liked the lamb and beef. But then whispered to me "but it's not as good as our cow steak at home"...I gave him that one. The runts enjoyed their chicken nuggets, or "Nu-jheh" as she put it. We then gathered around the 7-Flavor Beef, complete with spice and heat, then Kung Pao Chicken with lot's of spice and flavor as well as sweetness. More for the less-adventuresome, but tasty. We were delivered a dish of Sambal Prawns...freakin tasty as all hell. Lemongrass, Ginger, Garlic, Chili and Cilantro, amongst a plethora of other ingredients. Making room for their take on Peking Duck, with Bau Buns*(think Hombao), Cilantro, and a Plum Sauce, I was fortunate that nobody really wanted to try it(blame it on a past pet duck; Leroy!)...again, with the exception of my 9 year old. He liked it, as did I. Simple, deep flavored and luscious! They also had tempted us with tasty and flavorful sides of Chili Oil Sizzled Bok Choy and Brown Rice. We accepted gladly! They finished off the meal with a Chocolate Torte with a swirled Vanilla Ice Cream with Blackberry Sherbet inside. With the exception of the moist and awesome Carrot Cake with Mascarpone Icing and Caramelized Pineapple that Rudy labored over in our own kitchen, it would have stolen the show. Maybe next time. Service was nothing short of superb. Sharp, attentive, crisp and clean. On every detail, in spite of the fact that they were quite slammed. It was not rushed or hurried or even made to feel that they had to turn a table, like we tend to observe in some places. I highly recommend this eatery to everyone. Enjoy!