Are Mongolian grill restaurants doomed to mediocrity?

[Lightnin]

@pravnik

Can you recommend a good one in Austin? I have one I like in Dallas, but not Austin.

I’m partial to Mongolian Grille (with the “e” at the end). They’re in two locations that I know of- at the intersection of IH35 and Mopac, and on Hwy183 near Jollyville. They’re a bit pricier than the other chain in town, but I think they’re cleaner and have a better selection.

@EJsGirl

Do you guys mean that they pour water over the food while it’s cooking? How bizarre- I have never seen that! How gross.

Yep, that’s exactly what I mean, EJsGirl. And yes, it IS gross. It just washes off all the flavor.

[OpalCat]

@baronsabato

I love Mongolian BBQ because it always tastes good (again, it doesn’t really matter what sauces you put on because the chef puts in a good amount of stuff anyway) and it’s fun and usually very cheap.

Wow. Very different from my experience… the place that was filthy and we walked out of? $13 per person for one trip, or $14 for all you can eat. Not including drinks or anything. No sharing.

[Moirai]

Damn… I usualy get the #4- mongolian BBQ with choice of meats, soup, rice, wonton, fried shrimp, egg roll and sesame pocket biscuits (you open up one end and stuff it with the BBQ mixture- fabulous). I think it’s about $6.95, maybe $7.95. And tea is free.

[Miller]

@Snooooopy

My favorite Mongolian grill had a soft serve vanilla ice cream machine in it. I wasn’t sure how Mongolian that was supposed to be.

Maybe they stole it from the Chinese restaurant down the street.

[OpalCat]

This place doesn’t have different options on the menu. It’s just “one trip or all you can eat” period. And considering I’m a vegetarian, and considering I usually split a small entree at a normal restaurant, $13 is a really, really expensive price for some stir fried veggies.

[crazyjoe]

@Lightnin'

Back in Austin, I used to enjoy the various Mongolian BBQs. If I had a bad meal there, it was pretty much my own fault, and over the years I’d really figured out what I liked on my stirfry.

Here, though- there’s one Mongolian BBQ joint. And in this place, they pour water all over the food to keep it from sticking- which completely washes away all the sauces I so carefully select and mix. The end result is a tasteless mash of boiled meat and vegetables.

I went there once, and I’ll never go again. If I want tasteless, boiled food, I can do that at home for much cheaper.

I’m going to bet you didn’t put enough oil in it. It’s a common mistake, and to keep the food from overcooking, undercooking, or sticking, they need to use the water to keep it mobile on the grill. If you put enough oil in it, they never (at least from what I have seen ) put water on it.

Oops, I just noticed you said you were a regular…so I guess at that place the guys were just ignoramuses.