Gingerine Fresh Asian is bright and cheerful with cohesive colors and finishes that make sense.
Everything here is contemporary, including faux travertine tabletops and chairs with stainless steel legs. A main focal point is its collection of antique Asian teapots, which catch your eye as you enter.
We started our lunch with traditional Thai iced teas, which are super sweet, creamy and spicy, more like dessert than tea. We sipped them slowly while looking over the appetizers, which at Gingerine are billed as "Attitude Adjusters." There are typical peanut-laden options like chicken satays and lettuce wraps, but also dumplings, fried tofu and an interesting tower of fish cakes to explore.
We went with one of the rolls, the Avocado Crab Rolls ($7.99). These four deep-fried spring rolls were cut on the diagonal and full of flavors you would find in a California roll. They were good, served with a dipping sauce called "Viva Avocado Peanut," which was sweet and thick.
When ordering from the lunch menu, your lunch comes with a complimentary cup of soup. On this day it was a delicious Rice and Coconut Soup with fresh ginger strips and bamboo shoots. It had a delicate flavor and was a nice palate cleanser.
I asked our waiter's opinion on my lunch order, having narrowed it down to three. He suggested the Brownie Spy ($7.99) and went on to explain, "It's really the reason I work here."
It seems he had been in so often to order this dish that he decided to take a job just to be closer to it. That was enough encouragement for me! It came with a choice of meat, and I chose beef and tofu. It was simple with large flat noodles and fresh broccoli stirred into a tasty brown sauce. The tofu chunks were generous, the beef tender and the meal was tasty. I'm sure the name has some intriguing history to it. Perhaps if I were fluent in Thai and understood the meaning of Pad See Ew, the translation would explain itself. I get the Brownie part due to the brown sauce but would love to know more about the Spy involved in my dish.
My companion ordered the Sweet n" Sound (also $7.99) with chicken. A large mound of white rice was floating in a sweet and sour sauce, which was not fluorescent orange or gelatinous like so many. It was more like a broth. The chicken was stir-fried and not battered, and they were large pieces, too. Strips of bell peppers were tossed with zucchini and fresh pineapple chunks. The veggies were still crispy and not overdone. She enjoyed it and had plenty to pack in a take-home box.
Alisa and Pote Pruettiangkura, the owners of Gingerine, also have another child in Las Colinas by the name of Blu Ginger Thai Cafe. The menus are similar at both locations. While they specialize in pan-fried noodle dishes, known as "Twirlers," you will also find noodle soup selections or "Slurpers," as well as one-of-a-kind duck and fish recipes on the menu under the heading called "Special & Fins." Southlake is beginning to welcome Alisa and Pote in a location that used to house Red Hot and Blue. They have happy hour specials nightly and now offer a free delivery service within a three-mile radius.
Most of the desserts are rice based, which is true to form for Thai food. We tried a unique variation called Black Rice Pudding ($3.99). The lovely presentation was layered in a clear glass bowl, so you could see what you were getting into. The Black Rice was tender and creamy with a velvety texture. It was hot and only slightly sweet. The kicker was the white Coconut Cream Sauce floating on top, so every spoonful received a dose of sweetness and a distinct coconut flavoring. We could have just had another Thai Iced Tea and a shot of insulin and been very happy as well.
Gingerine is well staffed and well situated, (by that, I mean out of the Town Square traffic congestion). The ingredients are fresh, and the menu is fairly priced. It is gaining a loyal following; and, along with our waiter Brian, people are finding their favorites and coming back for more.
FYI
Located at: 2750 E. Southlake Blvd., Ste. 100
For reservations call: 817.749.0998 $-$$
Open: Mon.-Fri. 11 a.m.-10 p.m.; Sat. Noon-10 p.m.;
Sun. 11 a.m.-10 p.m.
