I’m no expert on the cuisines of Central Asia but it seems to me that the “Mongolian” food at Mongolian grills is about as true to Mongolian food as the fortune cookie is to Chinese food.
How is it that this type of restaraunt came to be called Mongolian? What’s its history? Is it even remotely true?
I haven’t eaten at any other Mongolian grill besides BD’s Mongolian Barbeque, so I don’t know if their history page will elucidate for you. It seems like the “Mongolian” qualifier comes more from the style of cooking than from the foods used. At BD’s, there is a large circular grill where 6 or 7 grillers will cook your stir fry using long metal sticks, reminiscent of swords. It’s kind of cool to watch, especially when they start juggling the sticks across the grill!