Liquid Ginger Asian Grille and Teahouse offers the ultimate blend of Asian cuisines in the heart of downtown Gainesville. With its relaxing, romantic atmosphere and exotic menu, it’s a perfect date night or family dinner location that offers a high-class experience without breaking the bank.

By Danielle Hipps;  Photos by Jason Henry

The restaurant, a Gainesville establishment since 2003, boasts inspiration from all over the world. Key items come from traditional Chinese, Japanese, Vietnamese, Thai and Malaysian cuisine, but the menu also offers some Indian flavors and French preparation methods, Larry says. It has an entire vegetarian section and many vegan options, too.

Palate-pleasing Starters

We started with mussels with coconut cream appetizer ($9), eight mussels served in a sweet, creamy coconut sauce with garlic and the occasional kick of jalapeno. This appetizer is large enough to share and savory enough to have as a meal.

Next, we moved on to the first course that is included with all entrees: soup. Attendees may choose between both miso and spinach and tofu soup. Our miso soup, mushrooms and chives in a salty broth warmed us up even more and got us salivating for the next course, salad. We sampled both the ginger and sesame dressings, which complement the rich, flavorful green leaves well. Unlike most orange and pulpy ginger dressings, this ginger dressing is white and a bit thinner, but it packs a punch of tangy, delicious ginger.

Your Dinner is Served

Our hands-down favorite entree is the Liquid Ginger Strip Loin Steak ($18), an 8-ounce cut basted in the house signature sauce (it’s spicy!) and served with three dipping sauces: sweet chili, spicy mayonnaise and sweet soy. Our waiter, Will, suggested we maximize flavors by combining the sweet chili and sweet soy sauces—and boy, was he right. On its own, the sweet chili is almost unbearably hot, and the sweet soy seems too mild; but with their powers combined, the result is a sweet and spicy flavor fest that pleases the entire palate. We definitely found the depth of field that Larry aims for.

To cool our tongues, we nibbled on the restaurant’s signature cold sides: house pickled cucumbers and chilled sesame noodles. If you’re a texture eater and you like things crunchy, we guarantee you’ll love the cucumbers. They’re a perfect break from the spicy sauces and they’re so crisp and fresh that it’s like having a second salad. Entrees are also served with two warm sides that change according to what’s in season. We had garlic sautéed broccoli and crunchy green beans.

For more crunch, we indulged in the crispy lime chicken ($15), a tempura-fried, crunchy plate with citrus flavors. The flavors in this dish are cleaner and less complex, but it’s definitely texture-driven. We also sampled grilled salmon with a ginger glaze over jasmine rice with coconut sauce. This delicate dish has complex, yet light, flavors and also appeals to texture. The silky, sweet jasmine rich offers an interesting balance to the tangy salmon.

A Sweet Ending

We ended dinner with one of our favorite items, the house’s ice cream, which comes standard with every entrée. Each night there are three flavors to choose from, and we loved the strawberry cheesecake and espresso chocolate chip flavors. While the menu prices may seem a bit intimidating, when you consider the fact that your meal comes with four courses, it’s a bargain.