Garlic & Ginger — Restaurant in Gainesville

I have been going here for years, but had not been ere from 2017 to 2023. For 2024 I have been going at least x1 per month. I have been shocked at the decline.

The food is decent. However, the (free) water is frequently foul tasting - like something wrong with the pipes.

They have poor service and do not check up on the tables

Bad experience overall after going there 6+ months (this year) and then suddenly being charged for the side dishes ($4 surcharge). When I pointed out they charge the usual head server there said it was standard to charge but they had always been too nice not charge and that I was being unfair to the restaurant. I simply stated I didnt know they charged extra for side dish refills and that I had never been charged before and that no where did it say that - further, IF I had known I would not have gotten the refills as they are not worth $4. I was upset they changed policy without telling me and treating me differently than previous times all while claiming the high road of them being generous while insinuating that I was cheating them. I told them that I would pay having now understood that they charged this way and said they should just be clear and consistent with the rules.

The side dishes there are basic and not great - always: 1) kimchi (sometimes good sometimes bad), 2) soy bean sprouts (usuallly good) and 3) a basic korean cole slaw that sometimes has fish cakes. In Korean cuisine - this is a minimum and quite cheap on their end - further adding to my frustraiton.

Plain rice is $3 a bowl which is high.

I would say I will not go back but they are maybe the only Korean place in town (although I think there is one on 13th St). I would go back IF my family insists and I cant go anywhere...

Being on the road, we went for dinner at about 5pm on a rainy Wednesday..  Being there so early, we didn't think it especially weird that there were no other diners.   But when no one else had showed up an hour later, we were starting to get the picture.

We both had the Dolsot Bimimbap ($16.99 or $17.99 with "seafood").  Having a choice of protein other than beef was nice.  I had chicken and A had tofu.

We both like beer with Korean, but weirdly there was no Korean beer on the menu, so we settled for Kirin.

Just ahead of our entrées a woman brought out 4 small banchan dishes. One was an okay kimchi, one seemed to be just plain lettuce, and 2 were nondescript and bland vegetable mixes.

We were really hungry so we both ate everything in our biimbaps.  But it was the worst we've ever had.  There's a sushi place in tiny Coos Bay, Oregon where they have it dialed in better.

The biggest problem was that the bowls here were nowhere near hot enough, so you didn't get the crunchy fried rice texture you're looking for.  Plus the onion and other vegetables remained hard and raw.  But the fact they hard-cooked the yolk of the topping egg made it even worse, if that's possible.

Last but not least, my pet peeve is being expected to tip the owner.  Which is who the man who seated us and served us seemed to be, all except for the woman who carried out our banchan and food bowls, and who we never saw again.  But there at the bottom of the bill was a schedule of...

Tried this place because of the reviews. I would not recommend this place to anyone. Over priced for dishes that don't come close to authentic tasting Korean food. Ordered the bulgogi which was very small in portion at a high price and the bibimbap, which only consisted the beef, rice and some spinach. No egg, carrots, bean sprouts... nothing. Just disappointed. It was also not hot, as if the bowl was just sitting there for a while. Our server was nice and kind but when I asked for some lettuce to wrap some of the bulgogi in it, the server came back and said that the manager had to charge $8 for 3 slices. Really??? Not impressed at all. I'm no expert on Korean food but spent a year in South Korea and have a understanding of what things should taste like and I understand that food will be different in other countries but the Korean restaurants down south in Fort Lauderdale are on point. It's not me, it's just Garlic and Ginger. This place is a joke. Maybe if they changed things around and offered better tasting food that isn't lacking in ingredients or flavor, I'd give them...