Gator suyaki - the best Chinese around!

3830 SW 13th St
:(352) 377-4773

5 thumbs up!
 
It takes a big man to admit that he is wrong, and I am that big man.  But, whoah!  How wrong could I have possibly been?  I frequently rail against the sub-par Asian food options in this town only to see them decline even lower.  Bahn Thai was just passable to begin with and the new owners have driven it into the ground.  Same with Saigon Legend.  You know I hate Chopstix, and the former occupant of the place I'm writing about was previously shut down for serious health code violations.  The owner was even quoted as saying that Chinese food isn't compatible with American sanitary regulations.

So when someone told me that Gator Suyaki was excellent, I was naturally skeptical.

I tried it first at lunch with just one other person.  We were told to order the Eggplant with Garlic Sauce and the General Tao's Tofu.  Sweet lord-a-mercy they were both outstanding. 



The eggplant was phenomenal.  I've had dishes like this before, but none came close to the sultry, savory, seasoned wok flavor and rich aromatic garlic.  There were also a few bamboo shoots and some sort of black, thin mushroom.  We've been back several times since, and this dish is always a must have for the table. 



The General Tao's Tofu was equally good.  As it's Chinese food, the dishes don't come with anything that isn't listed in their title.  It was literally just tofu on a plate.  The tofu was expertly fried and glazed with a delicious sweet and slightly spicy sauce though.  I've had this one 3 or 4 more times since the first visit and none have matched the initial visit's preparation.  It's still a solid dish though.  Just be warned that you won't get any veggies with it.

Don't worry, because the menu abounds with options.  You literally need a bookmark for the damn thing.  There must be 500 items on it.  Most of the pure veggie options haven't been amazing, but the straw mushroom dish below was excellent.  It came served in a thick gravy like sauce (vegetarian warning, there is NO WAY these sauces are vegetarian). 

The best way to enjoy this place is to go with a large group.  We've tried so many things on the menu and haven't had to be stuck with a whole plate of one dish per person.  Sharing is the way to go.  Any of the chicken dishes come out like the one pictured below (Honey Garlic), fried to oblivion, but OH SO GOOD. 

The more adventurous people in your party can try the jelly fish salad (never available when we've gone), the stir fried pork stomach or tripe (both of which we tried to mixed reviews), or the pig ear.  The place seems as authentically Chinese as The Great Wall itself.  If you go on a weekend night, odds are you won't hear any language but Mandarin, as the majority of the patrons and almost all the workers are off the boat Chinese. 

Another wonderfully interesting item is the steamed bun.  They come in red bean paste and egg yolk flavors.  The egg yolk bun tastes pretty much like a twinkie.  Pretty ridiculous.

The food is excellent, the prices are great (about 10 bucks an entree), the portions hefty, and it appears to be extremely clean.

I strongly encourage all of you to eat here right away.  It's so damn good and it's been hiding right underneath our noses this whole time!












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