Ginger Cafe

8657 San Ysidro Ave
Gilroy, CA 95020
(408) 847-2625

The Ginger Cafe is located in the Gilroy shopping outlets. For a while it was the only asian eatery in the area. Now there are other choices such as King Egg Roll and Tung Ke. However this is still probably my go to place when I'm down there looking for bargains. I must warn you ahead of time that the prices are high for asian food, however, I can not fault them for their portions or their flavor.

My wife and I came pretty close to dinner time. The decor is modern asian, and I wish some of my other favorite Chinese restaurants were as clean as them. We were seated promptly, since the place was pretty empty. After skimming over the menu, we selected some favorites and something new. We always order the Fongsa Soft Shell Crab, and XO fried rice. We also decided to try their Twice Cooked Pork Tenderloin.

The first to come out is the XO fried rice. This is a mildly spicy fried rice dish that has a mix of seafood. I like this dish since it has more of a robust flavor compared to other fried rice dishes I tried. It can be best described as a salt spicy seafood fried rice. Though spicy is really only a hint of heat. My wife who hates heat can eat it with no problem. The portion is big and you'll be filled just eating this rice dish. I advise anyone not to order white rice, since this is more than enough.

Next came the Twice Cooked Tenderloin. This was not a bad dish. It was fried with cabbage with a spicy wine sauce. The sauce is strong and provides a nice contrast to the soft pork tenderloin. Once again the portion is big but so was the price. The cabbage was cooked nicely and provided a nice canvas for the pork and sauce to play with.

Lastly was the Fongsa Soft Shell Crab. This is probably one of their signature dishes. My wife likes this dish since she loves crab. She also like the fact that the soft shell provides a no mess and no fuss eating. The dish is make with panco bread crumbs with curry powder. The dish is a dry but the peppers and curry really accent the crab well. The curry is not over powering but provides a good foundation flavor. The panco bread crumbs accents this dish well and provides a bit of sophistication.

The service was adequate. There were plenty of wait staff and the restaurant was not busy at the time. All our needs were met and our waters were never empty.

Final Thoughts: If you can stomach the prices, then you'll enjoy the food.

Food: 3 1/2 Stars

Service: 3 1/2 Stars

Price: High

Overall: 3 1/2 Stars.