Genghis Grill Mongolian Stir Fry Restaurant Review

I've been to a Mongolian barbecue place in Dallas (Irving), Texas before, several years back, but living in the sticks of the Permian Basin, we don't get a lot of choices for ethnic cuisine. We've only just recently gotten a hibachi grill in our town. When I went to visit my friend in the Houston / Galveston area, I knew going to a Mongolian grill was one of the things I absolutely wanted to do.

While watching television one evening, I noticed a commercial for the newly-opened Genghis Grill Mongolian Stir Fry in Webster (Clearlake), Texas. We Google mapped it, and took off to go dine.

Genghis Grill Mongolian Stir Fry Theme

If you've never been to a Mongolian grill, let me explain briefly how they work. There is a large, round grill that is very hot. Mongolian chefs are trained to use special sticks to maneuver the food on the grill, keeping it moving so it doesn't burn. The sticks are meant, according to one of the chefs at the Genghis Grill, to resemble swords worn by Mongolian soldiers.

We were told that in many Asian type cultures, only chefs and warriors can wield 'weapons', which is one of the reasons why much of the Asian cuisine is served chopped into small pieces, so the eater doesn't have to wield a knife to eat. Chopsticks are used instead of utensils.

With the Mongolian grills, as it is with Genghis Grill Mongolian Stir Fry, you get a bowl or two, hit the food bar, and you fill it up with raw foods: raw meat, raw seafood, raw veggies, raw toppings. Then you fill up with powdered spices for flavor, and then you add the sauce in a little cup or over the top, which includes an oil and flavorings for sautéing your food.

The bowls are then given to the chefs, who will toss the raw food on the grill, and with the special sticks, will stir fry your food in front of you. Some of the chefs even do some interesting tricks with the sticks while cooking (for which they cleverly have a tip jar handy), and you can watch your food being stir fried, with the foods you personally selected.

Genghis Grill Mongolian Stir Fry Food Choices

The Genghis Grill we went to was a brand new restaurant in the Webster (Clearlake) area of Texas. Nestled in between other dining establishments and across the street from the Jason's Deli (read my Jason's Deli review on my profile), the restaurant is one of the smaller Genghis Grills I've seen. It's slightly crowded and the buffet style line is awkwardly positioned for getting food. However, the food choices, though the bar looks small, are excellent. There's fresh fish in an oil sauce, shrimp, scallops, calamari, crab meat, fresh beef, chicken, pork, sausage, turkey, pepperoni and more.

For dry spices, there's salt, pepper, garlic salt, garlic and herb, lemon pepper, dragon salt (my favorite), and more.

The vegetables include everything from spinach, sprouts, bamboo shoots, pineapple, onions, carrots and more.

Then there's the toppers, like pico de gallo, cilantro, jalapenos, and other yummy things.

And then the best part of all, the sauce flavoring. What sauce you choose can make or break your Mongolian bowl. At Genghis Grill, I simply adore their Dragon Sauce, but it's not for those with weak tongues, because it breathes a little fire onto your food, for sure. There's peanut sauces, citrus sauces, teriyaki sauces, and more.

If you can't decide what to put in your bowl, there are recipe cards available that tell you exactly what spices complement to make a great bowl with names you might recognize, like Teriyaki Chicken Bowl, or others.

Once you select your sauces, you then take your sauces and your bowl/s of raw selections to the chef and let him know what carbohydrate you want with your bowl. You can choose from two types of noodles, several types of rice, or tortillas. The chef takes your order, marks it, takes it to the grill, and gives you a number.

At this point, you can either stand and watch the chef make your meal, or return to your table where the servers will bring your completed bowl to you based on the number you will put on the stand at your table for them to see.

Crunchy toppers of sesame seeds, sesame sticks, or peanut crunchies complete your bowl.

Genghis Grill Mongolian Stir Fry Prices

Considering you can fill up your bowl with nothing but meat if you so wish, and knowing meat is the most expensive part of a meal, the cost for the Genghis Mongolian Stir Fry bowl is reasonable at a little under $10 bucks for one bowl and about $13 bucks for all you can eat.

Genghis Grill Mongolian Stir Fry Drinks

With a full wet bar, mixed drinks, and a really awesome sangria served in a very large glass, you can order whatever whets your appetite for drinks, including a wide variety of flavored teas, bottled flavored teas, strawberry lemonade, and soft drinks.

Genghis Grill Downside

We have gone to the new Genghis Grill Mongolian Stir Fry in Webster (Clearlake), Texas twice now, and both times, I thought I was going to get cooked from the temperature inside the restaurant. If you sit near the front, you get the Texas heat from the doors and windows and if you sit near the back, you get the horrendous heat from the massive round Mongolian grill. Tip the cooks well, because it has to be double or triple the heat for them.

At one time, the waitress said they had fans in the restaurant, but they have removed them. They still need them, or they need to spring for better air conditioning, because I and my guest were uncomfortable. If you can choose where to sit, choose a location away from the grill. You'll have to walk a little farther to get to the line for selecting your bowl, but it's worth it to be comfortable while eating.

Another downside to the Genghis Grill in Webster (Clearlake, Texas) is that, although they say they are handicapped wheelchair accessible, they are not. Yes, there are ramps instead of stairs, but the interior is so crowded, there is absolutely zero way a wheelchair can maneuver inside the restaurant, and the space between the divider and the wall on the buffet line for filling your bowl is only about 18 inches, which is the standard width of a regular wheelchair seat, making the wheel base too wide for a standard wheelchair to fit through the line. The serving buffet is not low enough for someone seated to serve themselves even if the chair could go through the line. The path to the restrooms would be impossible for disabled patrons too.

Part of going to the Genghis Grill is the experience, and if someone in a wheelchair has to have others get their food for them, they do not get to experience the full effect of the reason for going. It's disappointing in today's world to see a restaurant wholly unable to provide for disabled patrons. If you are disabled, have difficulty walking, or have to use a wheelchair or other mobility device, you probably would want to skip Genghis Grill in Webster, which is a shame.

There is a patio, when the weather is nice, where disabled patrons could sit comfortably, if you don't mind having others get your food for you, because the patio is a good distance from the serving line, and maneuvering the restaurant is simply impossible.

Genghis Grill Mongolian Stir Fry Conclusion

Except for the downsides mentioned, Genghis Grill has great food, with good flavor (after all, you season it yourself) at a relatively reasonable price. You can even join the Genghis Kahn Klub and get one free bowl for every 10 bowls you purchase. There is no cost to join.

I do hope Genghis Grill will realize that in an area as large as the Galveston / Houston area is, they really do need to be better prepared for their disabled patrons.