Wild Ginger: A New Cool Springs Restaurant That I'm Wild About!
I had the pleasure of dining at the new Wild Ginger a few nights ago.
Wild Ginger
101 Market Exchange Court
Franklin, TN 37067
(615) 778-0081
It’s been open just a few weeks now. The restaurant is located on Market Exchange Court (facing Bakers Bridge) in Cool Springs -- just across from Miles Auto Spa.
The building is a really cool modern structure made of a combination of brick and flat stone.
First Impressions
The atmosphere inside is both romantic, yet sophisticated -- say, for a business dinner.
A very nice bar area is convenient to the entry and offers a nice selection of wines and mixed drinks.
The dining area has two walls of floor-to-ceiling windows overlooking a beautiful patio area with pergolas, and a gorgeous water feature with two waterfalls and a third infinity fall which faces the main road.
The décor is ultra modern-sophisticated, with beautiful stained concrete floors, granite top tables and plush cushioned chairs. The open ceiling with exposed ductwork and steel beams continues the theme.
There are large round tables for parties of 6 or 8, square 4-tops and semi-booth arrangements. The place settings are very sleek, from the curved water glasses to the polished silverware. And white linen napkins finish off the look.
When we entered, we were greeted by two hostesses dressed in very classic black slacks and white button-down blouses, but the blouses were even unique and sleek.
The Cuisine & Prices
The menu is Fusion cuisine, with a great selection of sushi in addition to a wide array of other choices such as lobster, steak, duck, chicken and pork. You can even find sandwiches and wraps, along with salads, on the menu.
Our server claims they have the best steak in town (which I told him was quite a bold statement). I wasn’t in the mood for steak that night, so I’ll have to test his claim another time.
As far as pricing, entrees range from $14 to $40, Nigiri sushi runs $5-8 for 2 pieces, and Maki sushi is served by the roll for $6-10.
Some of the choices on the dessert menu include tiramisu, a sorbet trio and a cheesecake dish. They also serve a selection of dessert coffees.
What We Ordered
I was with a colleague who doesn’t care for sushi, and since neither of us was super hungry we opted to split an entrée of the pecan shrimp. We also ordered a side of their sweet potato fries.
When our food arrived, the presentation was absolutely beautiful! The pecan shrimp was served on a white square concave dish next to jasmine rice, which was crowned with some sort of decorative, yet edible item.
We could not have prepared for what came next. We served our share and took the first bite…OH MY WORD!!!!! It was unbelievably delicious! All conversation ceased, except for the moans of delight with every bite we took. We’d look at each other, shake our heads, do the m-m-mmm sound and savor. There was a lot of sighing and wowing going on.
The cream-based sauce which was drizzled over our shrimp contained mushrooms, leeks, asparagus and pecans. The sauce itself had an amazing flavor, made with ginger (of course), cumin, white pepper, lemongrass, garlic and a few other ingredients the server couldn’t remember. But, MY oh MY…was it ever good. I believe this entrée may be one of the best I’ve ever had... and that is a bold statement!
The side of sweet potato fries had their own goodness... fried in a very light oil, but not at all greasy. And they were great dipped in the sauce.
Worth A Second Visit
Visiting Wild Ginger, in my opinion, is an absolute must! If you’re planning an anniversary or special date, then this is your place.
Dress up or not... there were guests in jeans and others in suits. I was in business attire, and I think most people tend to dress similarly.
Be sure to walk out on the patio and gaze at the water feature. It really is nice and they feature live music from time to time.
We didn't make reservations, but it might not be a bad idea to do so, especially as word gets out.
If I were to rate Wild Ginger on a scale of 1-5, I’d give it a 4.5. The service was a bit lacking (our food took awhile and our fries came out with our meal instead of as an appetizer, as we requested). Otherwise, I couldn’t find anything wrong with my experience. I’ll be finding my way back very soon to sample some of their sushi!
Johnny - I think you missed the point. It's not that P.F. Changs is really Asian or not, its that Wild Ginger is over priced, over rated and an overall poor experience.
If you are really asian and say that p.f. changs is better you must have been born in the U.S.A. because changs is in no way shape or form real asian food.
Nice atmosphere but low quality of food and VERY EXPENSIVE, P.F Chang is way better for the same price. Maybe I'm too picky but I am Asian; therefore, I should know what good Asian food tastes like. To the person who said that the Pecan Shrimp was "WOW!" I would have to disagree 100%. This was my first and last time going there. I didn't know what to order and thought I'd try the Pecan Shrimp since I thought it was similar to the Honey Walnut Shrimp that I'm use to having. It was very creamy and bland vs deep fried with honey topping. My wife ordered the Chilean Salmon and that was salty and under cooked. The sushi was OK. We had the spider roll and Peter's Sushi was way better.
Perhaps white folks don't know how certain dish should taste like that why there are a lot of 4-5 STARS. However, when you're out in California or New York you should try the Asian cuisines there and you'll know what I mean.
The only positive outcome of our experience was that the manager did not charge us for the two dishes (after I complained) and only for the sushi. I would not recommend this restaurant at all if you want good Asian cuisine. Try some other place.
Well the word on the street is that they have new chefs and that they are planning on revitalizing the menu. They are young and ambitious so be looking for some items that really wow the people in the Nashville area.
We have dined at Wild Ginger Cool Springs before and had a great experience, but tonight was HORRIBLE. The restaurant had freezing cold air blowing when it was 40 degrees outside. Our server made a mistake and sent our meal out before our sushi. She gladly took it back and we waited for our sushi. A food runner later tried to deliver our meal AGAIN before our sushi had yet to arrive. We at our sushi and it was fabulous. However, our meals arrived and after a few bites we determined that they had, in fact, taken our meals back and they had sat under the heat lamp that 20-30 minutes we waited for and then ate our sushi. It was clear they had taken my Duck Quesadillas and simply poured more sauce over the top as a cover up. We could see the crusted up sauce (that had been under the heat lamp) peeking out from some of the edges. The excess sauce ruined the taste in my mouth of the entire meal. Our server informed us that the charge for those 2 items was taken off, but the manager was off talking on a cell phone instead of coming to address the situation with us. We asked her to come talk to us. Big mistake! She was condescending and argumentative with us about our experience. She told us the owner was there and informed about our experience, but he was simply too busy in the kitchen to come speak with us. Our whole dinner experience was ruined by what happened, yet we still had to shell out $65. A local fine steakhouse comped our entire dinner and return trip dinner just because they messed up our reservation. This place could learn something from them.
Hey Jennifer...yes, this is the Wild Ginger in Cool Springs. I've not been there in a month or so, but the items I ate were on the menu that night I was there! Since they were so new, they may have revised the menu since.
I was just going to comment that I believe that the above review is not from Wild Ginger in CoolSprings seeming that the items listed are not even on the menu.
I agree Kathy! It's one of my new favorite places.
Marlena
My wife and I tried Wild Ginger last Saturday for lunch. As many folks have all ready stated, we were anxiously anticipating an excellent meal - especially when paying the extraordinaily high prices they charge.
On the positive side, their food presentation met expectations. Unfortunately, that's where the positive comments end. We found the service to be unacceptably slow - 20+-minutes to get a starting salad and the restrauant was only 30% full. We split a chicken salad (Chicken Chieu - $9.75) and we had to hunt for the chicken. My wife hated the dressing but I only found it unimpressive. Neither of us would order again.
For our entrees, my wife ordered the Wok Fried Barbeque Prawns ($15.95) and I ordered the Cambodian Grilled Pork Steak ($10.95). Once again, my wife found the sauce to be unpleasent and the shrimp (prawns?) small and over cooked. She ate only the shrimp and left the remainder of her dish. My pork chop was a double thick cut, but was very poorly prepared and quite tough. The meat wasn't cooked through and was raw at the bone. The sauce was as best OK but not outstanding. We also ordered a side order of french fries which were served luke warm and oily; these were also left mostly uneaten.
We paid close to $70 for lunch (tip, drinks and tax included) and walked away hungry. Not good.
If you want to try this restrauant, I suggest that you do so soon. I doubt that they will be there much longer.
Last night was the third time I have eaten at Wild Ginger. The first two were absolutely wonderful for service, food, and atmosphere. Last night I had out of town business guests, so I was happy to pick Wild Ginger. Our reservation was for 6:30. We did not leave the restaurant until after 9:00pm, partly because we did not rush, but mostly because our service was not good. Our drinks took almost 10 minutes to arrive. The waitress did not offer any info about "soup of the day" or suggest any appetizers while we looked at the menu. We had to ask the questions. One person ordered Sushi, which he shared with me. We had to eat off the same plate, because no one brought another one. Our food took quite some time to arrive, and when it did 3 meals came and then 3 minutes later the other 2 came. I have no complaints about the food. Everything tasted very good. I was just so disappointed in the service. 2nd cocktails were not offered; we had to ask. In general our waitress was less than attentive. She seemed to have too many tables.
On my previous 2 visits a manager walked around inquiring about our food and service, and there appeared to be an abundance of wait staff. That was not the case last night, so I hope that was not the picture during the "grand opening" time only. I will go back again, and I hope that last nights experience was just a one time occurance.
First of all I would like to say Thank you to Wild Ginger! Thank you for bringing such an amazing concept to Franklin. My husband and I had our second dining experience at Wild Ginger the other night. Everything was absolutely Amazing! We eat out several times a week and can now say Wild Ginger is our home away from home. On our first visit my husband ordered the Miso Cod. It was so wonderful we both have been craving it since the moment we left the building. The atmoshpere is something that you would see in L.A. with "movie-like" lighting on the outdoor pool and waterfalls. We sat inside this visit because the patio was packed. The gas torches lining the perimeter and the live jazz band make it "The Spot" to be. I found out they have live jazz every Thursday through Sunday. Carla was our server and she took the definition of service to the next level with her attention to every detail. Oh, and you MUST try the "Wild Passion Martini" It's an exclusive Wild Ginger martini that we found out was created by one of the managers, Jason. Ladies, I promise this martini is a must!! This martini will go down in history with the Cosmo. The meal was absolutely perfect. My husband ordered the Cod again and I ordered the Vermicelli. The manager, Jason, stopped by to make sure everything was perfect. I briefly mentioned how much I loved the asparagus that was in my dish. Apparently Jason noticed that I had already eaten all of the asparagus and I had plenty more noodles and shrimp left. Before I could take another bite he brought over extra asparagus for me to add to my dish. The focus on the details is what customer service is all about. It seems as if Jason has taught his staff the meaning of pampering. Great Job!
So take an evening the try Wild Ginger. Ask to sit with Carla if she is working and make sure you ask for the manager, Jason. They made our night unforgettable. Thank you!
I am a well traveled local Chef. I am taking two other sesoned veterans of our elite society to the Wild Ginger tonight hope they are ready. I will give the readers a real profesionals write up tomorrow!!
A friend and I went to Wild Ginger last night in hopes that it would be the same as the Wild Ginger located in Seattle and were throughly disappointed that it was not. After reviewing the menu we discovered that there were absolutely no Vegan options on the menu, so we attempted to politely leave. The waiter ended up bringing over the Head Chef over to us and he was completely rude. He offered to make a frozen veggy burger as the only truly vegan option available which would have been way over priced - no one wants to buy one frozen entree for the same price that you can buy an entire box of them. The staff seemed to be made up of local high school and college students which just simply clashed with the "posh" atmosphere that Wild Ginger was trying desperately to ooze. Also, even though the drinks were ok they were way over priced; one small mixed drink cost $10 or more. I would/do NOT suggest Wild Ginger as a place to visit while in the Cool Springs area.
Absolutely one of the most dissapointing dining experiences I have had to date.
My guests and I ordered a significant number of items off of the menu and were extremely dissapointed with all of them. The food is anything but unique, it doesn't take any risks and the chef failed to impress even with the classic dishes you would expect on any menu.
The food was un-inspired, pre-prepared, and uninteresting. This is another example of a cookie cutter place trying to pass themselves off as "fine-dining", to who they think is an uneducated public.
Not to mention the table wobbled terribly my glass was dirty and when I asked for a new one I was brought ANOTHER DIRTY GLASS
Save yourself the dissapointment and the money
I visited Wild Ginger recently and was greeted by a few hostessess, who mannered to open both doors for me. There was no wait and we were led to our tables. The ambiance is amazing!!! They have many lights peeking through the water fixtures that aid in the elegant feel. I order a Macadamia Crusted Halibut with my friend getting the Ginger Crusted Tuna and it was all amazzzzzzing! Obviously, service can differ waiter by waiter, but it is an absolute must to visit WG!
We loved it & cannot wait to try their amazing sushi menu! Their lead chef used to head Verago's sushi bar downtown so it has got to be great!!!!
Sunday June 8, 2008. Took the family for an early Father's Day Dinner at 4:30. What a HUGE dissapointment. I don't think that we will ever go back. Were told when we were seated, that the only thing they did not have was pork chops. So, we ordered the Halibut -- they were out. So, then we ordered the Tuna - they were out. I think the waiter said over 100 times - that we are new, haven't been opened by a few days. But, it sounded like they were still not ready to be open. And no kids menu -- you know they were new and it wasn't finished yet.
Went here last weekend and absolutely loved the food and the atmosphere. The prices are a little steep. One thing I would recommend is that the wait staff fine tune their table manners...I observed one water ask a patron "what's up with that" when the gentleman motioned at his wine glass -only because he had food in his mouth. The waiter had to be asked to refill wine and was a little relaxed in how he spoke. I am not a snob and enjoy a relaxed atmosphere, but there are times when "what's up..." is appropriate and when it is not...for those prices, need a little more polished etiquitte from the waiters...would go back again regardless.
On your recommendation we went last night for my birthday and enjoyed it immensely. I had a couple of different rolls and some nigri and my wife had lobster (hey, it was a birthday!). Couple of martini's for her and beers for me and our bill was a ben + tip... and worth it. Try the Wild Ginger martini.
Thanks Brenda!
My fiancee and I have eaten Fusion cuisine all over the country, and make it a point to try new restaurants. We're based here in the Cool Springs area and were looking forward to the grand opening of Wild Ginger. After eating there, I have to say that this is absolutely the worst quality Fusion-style food we've eaten in the last 12 months. P.F. Chang's is head and shoulders above this place, and Wild Ginger's prices are absolutely ridiculous. We will not be returning.
Thanks for the info. I was waiting for someone else to visit and get their opinion before I checked it out.