The interior shows touches of Asian flares looming from the yellow lanterns that blended in the minimalism touch of Charles O’Neil’s metal art to Vietnamese waterscapes. As I sat myself down in the private dining area close to the open kitchen bar, I was brought to a submergence of pleasant suburban tranquility as the restaurant begins to wake up with the clacking of kitchenwares. I kicked start my palate with a cranberry mocktail. The drink, though unmemorable, siding with nonchalant conversations provides a smooth transition onto my first course of the meal. (woah, no amuse bouche?)
And it was one of the best things I’ve ever tasted. The Hawaiian Bigeye Tuna Poke w/ Crispy Sushi Rice Cake and Peppercress-Tosaka Salad (USD 15) worked wonders with the palate. And to this day, it remains to be the dish that anchored Blue Ginger onto my culinary map. The tuna sashimi is so pristinely cut into tartare perfection, marinated in perfect balance of tangy and tart. But the hook, I must say, is the crispy rice. Pure genius! Who would’ve known how wondrous the taste of bouncy tuna mingling with the delicate crunch locked inside every bite.
Unfortunately, such wonderful start has proven close to impossible to live up to, the quality night begins to oscillate between spectrums. My dining companion had the Colossal Shrimp & Vegetable Tempura w/ Yuzu-Dashi Aioli (USD 15). The shrimp, being a top quality of its kind, has no flaw to detect when it comes to the sea-crisp texture. But the sauce is uninspiring at best. I don’t know whether it is because of my heritage but the dipping sauce is straight out of Vietnamese Cooking 101.
It was suggested by the wait staff that the butterfish and lobster are 2 of Ming Tsai’s signature dishes. So we decided to go with those. First off, the close winner of the night (I’m still hooked on the Poke) is the Sake-Miso Marinated Alaskan Butterfish Wasabi Oil, Soy-Lime Syrup w/ Vegetarian Soba Noodle Sushi (USD 36). I fail to think of a better way to cook a delicate piece of butterfish than the classic – Misoyaki. The fish is usually wrapped in marinate of miso and sake mixture for up to 1 day before executed. Ming Tsai’s butterfish literally melted into the taste buds as it reaches the palate. The sauce goes well together with this fish which, nevertheless, single-handedly immortalized this dish The Soba Maki is cute, very innovative, nothing else to say other than that.
But the biggest disappointment of the night which abruptly drops the bar of this restaurant is the Garlic-Black Pepper Lobster with Lemongrass Fried Rice w/ Pea Tendril Salad with Soy-Ginger Vinaigrette (USD 41). To be honest, I’ve had better lobster boiled in an over-sized pot in a grad dorm at MIT. The lemongrass fried rice, stuffed inside the lobster skull, was irrelevant and over-spiced (I believe there is a fine line between flavorful and over-flavored). The sauce tasted like pure melted salt while the lobter, in the midst of spice chaos, the lobster flesh tasted like lobster – unaccompanied, unmarinated. There is no greater sin than marring the perfection of a lobster.
Towards the end of the night, I attempted to rescue my demising fondness for the restaurant by ordering desserts. My pre-dessert was some vanilla float that was too mainstream and ‘american’ for me to have any substantial recollection.
My choice of dessert is the Tahitian Vanilla Crème Brulée and Cookies w/ Lime Leaf-Coconut Macaroon & Almond Shortbread (USD 12). At this point, I felt the urge to give Michele Fadden - the pastry chef - a hug for reviving my (then) dead passion for crème brulee. The smooth creaminess wrapping gentle sweet caramel streams through my tongue as my whole body shook in utter ecstasy. It was the dessert that I described afterward as so good I could cry.
By then, I believe inconsistency is indeed the consistent theme throughout the 3 courses. There are dishes that range from heart-melting to heart-wrenching. But overall, Ming Tsai is still a gifted chef and restaurateur that at least manages to create original east-west fusion.
Rating: (as 4 being sheer perfection, 1 being good)
Food: 2
Service: 2.5. Wait staff knows the food well and can handle a DSLR.
Location: 3. This is biased since the place is 10 minutes walk from my school.
Value: 1. USD 150 for 2 is fairly high for restaurant at that level.
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