Ginger Monkey - Restaurant Impossible Update

Tonight on Restaurant: Impossible, Robert Irvine and his crew are in Chandler, Arizona to makeover Ginger Monkey. Ginger Monkey is a gastropub co-owned by Jackson Armstrong who is also the chef and has a lot of restaurant experience.  He can't keep up with the demands of his high-volume restaurant and should be able to run a successful restaurant, but that is not happening.



As I normally do with Restaurant: Impossible episodes, I searched around the Internet to read stories, comments and reviews about Ginger Monkey to get an idea of how the restaurant is doing since Robert Irvine visited, and here is what I found (note - all reviews are post Restaurant: Impossible):



Positive Reviews:

• "Great food! Great drinks. Love the vibe of this place. Perfect for watching games, business lunches, or just hanging out. I've been here numerous times on my travels and it never disappoints. This place is just wonderful in every way. It's a very friendly neighborhood bar with delicious high-end food, great servers (Raul is one of the best servers I've ever had), classy decor, clean bathrooms, a fantastic sound system, and enough TVs to watch any game you want"
• "Best wings around. This is such a great place. I can bring my dog and she can eat also. Food is great"
• "The owner and staff are very friendly and concerned about your satisfaction with the service and food. The food was amazing! The menu is great and the cocktails were perfect! I will definitely be back and invite more friends to join me! Thanks Ginger Monkey Tavern!"
• "This place is always evolving for the better. I went to the recent soft opening and they are dialed in on the experience. The menu has been revamped and along with a complete remodel. Worth checking out! I'm sure you'll stay."
• "First visit to this upscale sportspub- nice vibe, great outdoor space. Food was better than expected with a nice variety of choices, from salad to interesting sandwiches and apps. I will be back for sure."
• "Ginger Monkey after the Restaurant Impossible reopening is delicious! We had the twisted ribs appetizer and I ordered the half chicken. Excellent flavors and textures! We will get the ribs every time. We had a great meal and I would definitely go back to explore more of the menu. Thanks Ginger Monkey Gastropub!"

Negative Reviews:

• "Food was decent, no complaints in that arena. My loss of stars comes from the poor service. Our waiter was rude and cold and did not seem interested in us being here. When taking our orders he was (for lack of a better word) mean. I would recommend the Ginger Monkey if you didn't get this particular waiter. Additionally, they serve the most sorry excuse for an Arnold Palmer on this side of the border."
• "We checked this place out online and were really excited to try it out. Their menu looked amazing. Sadly, they've just had the restaurant redone by some food network show. While it looked great inside their menu is extremely limited. 7 entrees, 1 kids meal and a couple basic desserts. They plan to have this menu for at least a month but their website still shows the old menu and nowhere on it do they inform you that they have virtually no options. We'll give them another try when they have a real menu."

Other News and Links:

• The Restaurant Impossible makeover happened in early March 2020.
• Here is the Ginger Monkey website and Facebook page.
• The website explains why the name of the restaurant is Ginger Monkey - "Doug and Jackson have been friends for many years. Doug has tabbed Jackson "Ginger" in response Jackson has called Doug "Monkey" and hence the name "Ginger Monkey."
• A week after the makeover, the restaurant stated they would slowly begin to incorporate old popular menu items back to the menu.  They also said the Restaurant Impossible makeover was phase 1 of their makeover and the restaurant still had plans to upgrade the bar and patio. (Link)
• The restaurant had to close for dine-in less than two weeks after the makeover on March 17th due to social distancing regulations. They stayed open for curbside takeout that included family meals.  They reopened for dine-in May 18th and implemented a new menu.
• Here are the reviews for Ginger Monkey from Yelp, Tripadvisor, Google
• There are a lot of reviews on the sites and most are positive.
• The Ginger Monkey is currently listed for sale on Loopnet, which looks like it was posted 6/3/2020 (about a week before the episode airs).  The description states, "Income-producing pad restaurant investment property. Well-designed 6,618 square foot restaurant with bar and large outdoor patio with roll-up doors, trellis, fire table and fire place."  The price for Ginger Monkey is a whopping $2,600,000 and includes land.

Conclusion:

The Ginger Monkey was only able to stay open for dine-in service for less than two weeks after the Restaurant Impossible makeover due to social distancing government regulations.  They remained open for take-out service and on May 18th, they were able to offer dine-in service again.  The reviews for Ginger Monkey have been mostly positive and they were also pretty positive before the makeover.  The restaurant is currently listed for sale for $2,600,000 so it appears they want out of the business.  With the price tag so high and positive reviews, one could argue they weren't in need of a Restaurant Impossible makeover.  Maybe the proposal had something to do with being picked for the show.


*Visit Our Restaurant Impossible Update Page to see all Restaurant: Impossible updates, and which restaurants are open, closed, or have been sold. Also Like Us on Facebook and Follow Us on Twitter