Bambu Vietnamese Cuisine — Restaurant in Springfield

we come from years of Pho eating on the West Coast. we have tried a few places in town. this place offers the best so far for us. the spring rolls are amazing with both beef and shrimp and the peanut sauce is very well made. they provide the right amount of side herbs for the Pho. I did taste the broth to be on the salty side as each bite I took thats what came to my mind. My real dislikes are the fact the portions are so huge. One person can hardly eat an enormous bowl and they only offer one enormous size. which leads to left over food wasted because most people don't take the soup home afterwards. Prices, well to compare about 2 years ago the cost for Pho and Springrolls for two people would cost less than $25. but now you pay $40 for the same, except much is wasted here because its too large. They need to offer a normal size bowl. And then of course the smoke filled the restaurant like many other reviews mentioned but after a few minutes we didn't even notice it. Very cute and spacious inside. Typical Vietnamese decor. Two servers were kind and attentive. We are hoping to try more from the menu here when we can. We also...

Never again, after eating here many times over the years. Yesterday's dining experience for my family and visiting friends was a bust. --The acrid smell of cigarette smoke greeted us when we opened the front door and then lingered around our dining table. --An occasional bit of gristle in meat is normal; more than this is gross and unacceptable. --The peanut sauce and some of the entrees were simply bland. --Check out the receipt. For our party of seven (four adults and three children), Bambu stuck me with a 18% mandatory tip AND tacked on a 3% fee for my using a credit card. Can you say "avarice"? First an 18% tip is absurd, notwithstanding the opining and whining from the restaurant service world. Our waitress did NOT perform $12.57 worth of work. Tsk. Second, many businesses rightly deduct cost from the bill of a customer who pays with cash, for the merchant isn't charged a credit card fee by the customer's CC bank. I like this and it's just. Charging customers a fee for using a credit card, however, is theft (unless customers are told BEFORE sitting down for dinner that CC users will be charged this...

I don't know how people are still giving this place 5 stars. 6 or 7 years ago it was my favorite restaurant to visit in Springfield. I'd be willing to bet it's been that long since the dining room was properly cleaned. Fake plants and just JUNK all over are just covered in grime. The sauce bottles and S&P shakers on the table are so gross and sticky you don't even want to pick them up. I used to LOVE the food. It has suffered. The lettuce in my order today was so old I didn't even want to eat it. I paid $3.50 for a Vietnamese iced coffee that came about 75% filled in a small glass. The restaurant used to have a faint smell of smoke, now it smells like an ashtray at all times. I was shocked that even my to go order smelled like cigarette smoke. The waiter I had today apologized for "not knowing Thai" when I asked a question about the menu. (Service was otherwise good, it was just a bizarre thing to say in a Vietnamese restaurant-and I'm pretty sure I've seen this waiter there before ) Bambu needs to get it together. I personally won't be...