The Ginger Pig

Too Pig to FailBrainchild of Chef Natascha Hess, who's family heritage couldn't be further from China, but after spending three summer's living abroad with a Chinese family, quickly fell in love with the food, culture, and flavors of the region. And thus, the Ginger Pig was born. Chef Hess has managed to parlay her fantastic cooking into multiple TV appearances (Chopped S54E5 & Beat Bobby Flay S31:E2), as well as recently earning multiple Michelin Bib Gourmand awards, which is given to "...restaurants that our inspectors consider to be the best value for money within our selection."The Good:*Friendly service*Order at the counter and they bring out your meal to you, but no worries they actually pace out the food beautifully. *Beijing Dumplings were unreal and packed with tons of flavor. *Great bar program and local brews on-on-tap *Seems like a silly thing, but their pickled cucumbers were quite tasty. I'd buy a few jars of that to take home. *Chinese BBQ Pork Shoulder (aka Char Siu) was mind-blowingly fantastic. Tender, with a nice crisp exterior and a great char to go with the sweet-heat glaze. 10 out of 10 would definitely order again. *And speaking of mind-blowing, the Hong Kong French Toast was also amazing. The crispy exterior and soft custardy middle was heaven on a plate. Another 10 out of 10--SAVE ROOM AND GET THIS!!The Meh:*Interior is very cramped and there is some tables where you might have to share space with strangers, if that's your bag, baby. *Recently opened new location in Boulder is take-out only. *Wasn't really a fan of the Auntie Zhang's Chinese Noodles, as the glass noodles seemed kinda undercooked and the sauce just seemed to be missing something. Don't get me wrong, it was ai'ight, but just nothing I'd order again. The Ugly:*Parking is a bit of a shit-show as their parking lot holds maybe a half-dozen (properly parked) vehicles, and the street parking is a bit hit-or-miss. Conclusion: We only had time for two meals in our short one-day stay in Denver and Ginger Pig was a fabulous decision. Highly recommended.

3.5 stars. I'm glad I finally got to try Ginger Pig after all these years! It wasn't what I expected because it's marketed as Asian street food, versus Asian fusion. Street parking isn't bad, and it's better than the chaotic lot in front of the restaurant. I arrived 45 minutes before my partner so I could put my name down and have a drink at Billy's Inn first.You order at the counter, and food is brought to your table. We ordered Char Siu, Tom Yum Noodle, and Sichuan Spicy Eggplant. The only thing I liked was the eggplant, which is hard to mess up. Flavors and textures were great. The Char Siu was meh - non-Asian pork belly coated in Asian BBQ sauce. And the Tom Yum Noodle was made with spaghetti.A lot of the flavors were great, but I wasn't a fan of the ingredients. Definitely open to trying more things on the menu and understanding the unique style, but I wasn't sure after dining here why it was Michelin recognized. Didn't have much interaction with the staff, but the vibe was lively and fun. Would also try more of the beverages next time, too!

The restuarant was super busy at 8 o clock on a friday night. We were told that the wait would be 30 mins and it ended up being slightly longer. They don't take reservations so if you don't like waiting I would come at a less busier time. It smelled so good outside the restuarant and we didn't mind the wait. The decor inside is really cute and the seating situation is pretty interesting. Theres outdoor seating and indoor seating and good for big parties. They were playing an old Power Rangers show on the TV which I found very entertaining. After you're seated, you order at the front with the cashier. I liked this method because no servers need to wait on you and check in on you to see whether or not you're ready to order. Everyone was also super friendy here. The entrees come with a side of the smashed cucumber which I really enjoyed. Its super refreshing and sour and does a good job cleansing the palate. The korean fried chicken I would rate 8/10. It was yummy, but not super crunchy. The flavors are good and strong. The tom yom noodles were 8.9/10. I really enjoyed these. They're not as sour as the tom yom soups I have had, but the flavor was very good, noodles weren't mushy and the mushrooms were yummy. The eggplant dish was a 7/10. I didn't get any spice that usually comes with szechuan dishes and the flavor was missing a bit. The dish is a bit greasy too. We also got the hong kong french toast is which is not pictured, but it was a 10/10. I would definitely reccommend you come here just to try the french toast. Overall, the food got cold pretty fast and was slightly on the more expensive side, but we did enjoy our dining experience. I would reccommend this place especially for big parties so you can do family style and try a little bit of everything.

What a great place for some Asian fusion. Casual restaurant where you order at the bar. There were 4 of us at 6:30 and we had to wait maybe 10 minutes for a table on a Friday. You can order drinks at the bar while you wait. The green dragon drink was so refreshing and a must if you like cucumber cocktails. The paper crane was good to but more whiskey forward. The food is great! I could have skipped in the corn dog as it tasted like a normal corn dog and felt a little out of place for me. For noodles we got the ants climbing a tree and the spice level was just right! The cumin lamb stir fry was good but nothing to make it rely stand out. Finally the beef and veg soup and the Chinese bbq pork shoulder will be the reason I am coming back! The soup was so rich with flavor and really warmed me up, the pork was super tender with a nice sweet and savory sauce. 10/10

The food was ok, I never would've linked it to the idea of Michelin whatever. The most awful thing was the wait. It wasn't clear there was no wait service. Wait, that wasn't entirely true either. There are waiters who will bring out your food to you and accept your tips but you're supposed to go up to the counter to order your food. Which makes no sense as we were waiting, somebody suggested getting appetizers first. We thought we were doing that to kill time until we get officially seated. An hour later (you read that right) it was looking like we might get a table? And we had to get back in the long line to order the food. I was so mad in the end I had lost my appetite.

Well where to start, I have been waiting over a year to try this place out. Let me just say that any time I drove by the place was usually super busy with no place to park and now I know why. So I took the day off and showed up just after they opened and there were only a couple guys eating and a few people at the bar. We got seated immediately and made our choices and went up to the register to place our order. We tried a little bit of everything and were shocked and amazed at the presentation and the mouthwatering flavors that blended so well together, not too spicy, just enough savory and acid, wonderful use of umami. Not only that, but the place is very down to earth, fairly casual, and welcoming to their neighbors and to the people who have heard of its reputation and notoriety around town and in the restaurant world. Their staff are super friendly, and down to earth everyone in black tee-shirts, ball caps, and accommodating to those who may not be experts with chopsticks. There are roll up glass garage doors for a nice indoor outdoor feel. If you need a little cushy for your tushy, the booths are very comfortable and not bolted to the floor so you can move them a little if you need to. If I have one suggestion and this is a stretch the batter on the corn dog was a little thick, but the flavor of it too was out of this world.

Pros:1. Presentation - the food and drinks look so inviting2. Decor - fun hipster vibe with Asian flare 3. Service - everyone was super kind and accommodating (it's kid friendly too)4. Portions - bigger than they appear online/in photos5. Volume - not too loud or too quietCons:1. Parking - the lot has like 5 parking spaces (be prepared for plan B). We lucked out and sagged a place but don't assume that will happen to you. 2. Food - It's hot. I've had worse. But very few dishes don't punch you in the face. Milk anyone? 3. Format - It's an order at the counter, but they seat you. Is it sit down or fast food? Feels like a weird combo of both. Not sure if I like it?Ordered:1. Vegetable egg rolls - delicious and fried to perfection (don't miss out on the hot dipping sauce) Score: 5/52. Ma Yi Shang Shu - Ants Climbing a Tree - noodles are awesome. Meat is sensational. Heat was a bit much for me. Drowns out ability to taste other elements after a while. I think a small kick is always better. Score: 4/53. Kæng Bū - Crab Green Curry - Crab was ok. Curry had a little aftertaste that wasn't very pleasant. Rice was good. Score: 3/54. Kid's Sweet and Sour Chicken and Broccoli - no complaints from the peanut gallery. Ate all the chicken. Most of the broccoli. Seemed happy. Score 5/55. Hawaiian Butter Mochi Cake - divine (not pictured). Chewy, light, perfect sweetness. Save room for dessert and get this. Score: 5/56. Watermelon Cooler - light and refreshing Score: 4/57. Kuromi Cream Soda - the winner. Such an awesome drink. Just get one. Hard to describe it but very good blend of flavors. Score: 5/5It was a fun experience to eat here. Doubt I would go back but it's worth a one and done trip. Overall rating is 4/5.

The food here is always so good. My goal is to eventually order everything on the menu. We went this past weekend and we got the Korean Cornflake Dog, Chinese Beef and Vegetable Soup, Ants climbing a tree, and the Chinese bbq pork shoulder. The pork is a go-to and we get it every time, the ants on a tree dish was just the right amount of spicy, the soup was amazing, and the corndog was also good (I'm not a huge corndog person, but we did like it).

Everything was VERY OILY and garlicky. The cucumbers they give with an entree helps- but it's VERY vinegary. I would not come back. Not worth it.. - Chicken Karaage 2.1/5The chicken is flavorless.. but at least it's crispy! Wouldn't get again.-$7 Mentaiko Mayo Dipping Sauce for Karaage 1.3/5Honestly not worth it. Barely taste the Mentaiko. Not worth. - Char Sui (Pork Shoulder) 2.4/5Not tender at all.. the taste is too... sweet? - Dumplings 1.7/5The dumplings.... Not so good. The sauce however was super yummy! It's garlicky and kinda sweet but not too sweet. - Garlic Noodles 1.4/5Very very creamy.... The noodles don't match the sauce. Would not get again. - Three Treasures of the Earth 2.3/5Very oily and garlicky.. eggplant is super overcooked. Potatoes were good though.

Adding $4 for a small container of sauce to the chicken karaage is crazy.They also add an inflation feeService is great.Space is small and packed in with people, which is coolOverpriced for what you get.