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!
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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.
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 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!!