Bamboo House — Restaurant in Portland

I am 100% Vietnamese, born and raised in Viet Nam until I was 20 years old. I am so mad at how places like Bamboo House called themselves Asian Comfort Foods and strayed so far from authentic Vietnamese foods in the name of fusion and to cater to non-Vietnamese and non-Asian customers.

My total check was $45.00 so Not Asian Comfort Foods! At this point, I would not drive back to this side of town to give other items on their menu another chance. If you want non-authentic Vietnamese Foods, then by all means have at it with Bamboo House! Otherwise, there are better foods elsewhere in PDX.

Full disclosed: (1) I am in search of authentic Canh Chua and Thit Kho/Ca Kho Hot Vit in PDX since my beloved Miss Saigon Bistro was permanently closed a month or so ago, (2) Against my reservations after reading multiple mixed reviews about Bamboo House, I still decided to give them a chance before I made my personal verdict, (3) I did not see any reviews about Canh Chua and Thit Kho so it was a red flag, yet I still wanted to give them a chance to proved me wrong; and oh my goodness was I in for a momentous disappointment!, (4) I even called ahead to ask if there were any Vietnamese (owner, staff, and kitchen crew) at all to at least gave me that assurance that it would not be all Americanized Vietnamese foods.

Service was friendly and prompt since I was the only patron during my stay. One party left as I walked in and one party came in as I left. There were 3 picked up to go while I was there. Spacious sitting with plenty of room for groups, and a private table with a divided wall toward the back.

On the menu, it actually printed Asian Comfort Foods! I was actually left angry and in disbelief with the food quality and the inauthenticity of dishes I ordered and falsely advertised printed and posted on the wall and on their menu. When I got my food they were not at all like what was listed on the menu nor a posted photo on the wall for "Braised Eggs" and "Caramelized Pork", I pointed out to the only white waiter-he said this on the phone when I asked (I could hear the kitchen staff and one front staff rolled silverware spoke Vietnamese the whole time), he politely told me, "that is not our picture".

Canh Chua Ca/Sweet and Sour Soup, $17: way too sweet without any hint of sour at all, 3 pieces about palm size of white Swal Fish fillet, lot of bean sprout, but not much of other veggies, came with a cup of steam rice.

Thit Kho/Vietnamese Caramelized Pork & Eggs, $16: for this, you have to look at my collage photo with this review to see the false advertisement in print for yourself. At least on their printed menu, it listed "fried eggs". It was definitely Liquified, NOT AT ALL Caramelized. Again, watch my clip to believe it. As for taste and flavor, it was way too sweet.

I should have stopped there after the two dished above, yet I wanted to be fair and had the whole experience so I ordered the Iced Milk Coffee for $6.00 (I asked and was confirmed that it was indeed the Vietnamese Coffee). Again, it was too sweet and too creamy.

Black Sticky Rice Coconut Ice Cream, $6.00: the only item on the menu for dessert. This typically serves with sugar topping so I applaud them for pairing it with coconut ice cream for sweetness. It was lack of flavor for the ice cream and the sticky rice was undercooked.

Bonus: they have their own parking lot and provides toilet seat covers!

Will post photos soon after I transfer...

This is only based on delivery; I have not dined in, nor would I based on the quality of delivery.

The food was ice cold. Like, cold cold. I ordered a beer with my food and it was boiling hot. Not room temp, but hoooooot. 10x hotter than any of the food.

Once reheated, the food was pretty bland. Not the blandest in Pdx (as I find much of what Ive eaten here) but not as flavorful as expected.

The fresh rolls were very long and skinny, so long they had to be bent to fit in the box. While the presentation was lacking, they were fresh and tasty. The peanut sauce was extremely mehh. The cost of the rolls also doesnt change from shrimp, to pork and shrimp to just tofu. The fact that they charge the same for tofu that they do shimp and pork is unethical-thats ridiculous pdx garbage. There are few veggie options.

The soup I was very much looking forward to was also bland and cold when it arrived. The vermicelli is absolutely the last Ill ever order in this town-I have been let down more than enough and its all overpriced here for exceedingly cheap ingredients. Rice noodles, bean sprouts and basil shouldnt cost $15. Thats robbery. The sauce was bland.

If you order from here expect little flavor, ice cold food and boiling hot beer. The price point is nauseating-just outrageous for quality, portion and flavor. Its a huge deal for me to eat out or order food, I dont know why I continue to waste money on this town. I will say the same as i do in most of my food reviews:good reviews here are from people from Pdx with no taste. If youve eaten food in a real city avoid this money trap. I hope the service in-house exceeds how poor the food quality is. Dont...

i ordered the tofu salad rolls and vegan pho for takeout. veg in the salad rolls were fresh and high-quality, and i loved the addition of chili paste in the peanut sauce. the vegan pho was one of best bowls of pho i've had in portland. it comes with big slices of mushroom, tofu, and (what i think was) fried yuba - the assortment gives a nice variety of texture akin to what you'd find in a traditional pho combo, without necessarily attempting to replicate meat. i can tell a lot of thought was put into creating a well-rounded dish, which i appreciate. the noodles were perfectly prepared, and again, veg were fresh. the broth was pretty good - nicely spiced, with a rich umami mushroom taste. lastly, the portion sizes are insanely generous! almost double the amount of serve as i've received at my other favorite pho spots, making it a much better value for money.

i look forward to ordering from bamboo house again - they'll definitely be a go-to whenever i'm craving vietnamese food....