Authenticity in Flavor
With its dimly lit modern ambiance, Bam-Bou is perfect for a private tete-a-tete or a group dinner seated leisurely in one of the cushioned booths. Refined Vietnamese cuisine adapted to the high-end Western palate dominates a menu that includes Laos and Cambodian dishes as well. To forget Shanghai's rainy days, we enjoyed a summery Lemongrass and Champagne Mojito and Saigon Collins (both ￥60) followed by wines from the limited, but all drinkable, choices of New and Old World wines by the glass (￥40-￥80). To start, we were delighted with the Bam-Bou sampler which included seafood on lemongrass with some sizable prawns, lamb balls, summer rolls with an abundance of mint in each bite, and Hanoi-style Fried nem (￥150). Our favorite was the fried nem: crispy wraps with moist and juicy filling. They taste even better when combined with mixed greens. The avocado crab salad with mango and tomato (￥80) was fresh and highlighted the distinct elements of Vietnamese flavors. The traditional beef Pho (￥50) may seem plain to some but the lack of salt allows the gentle flavors of ginger and cinnamon to come through. Our Cambodian-style minced chicken with herbs (￥60) and Laotian grilled eggplant (￥30) were enjoyable despite the profusion of fresh hot peppers. Seared scallop with Vietnamese-style seafood sauce (￥120) was savory and grilled to perfection. For dessert, the glutinous rice with mango (￥40) was nothing exceptional but the Vietnamese creme brûlée with a roasted banana (￥40) was smooth and creamy. The chef, whose northern influences were clear in the interpretation of Vietnamese dishes-particularly the predominance of fish sauce over soybean sauce, has succeeded in providing fine Vietnamese cuisine with authentic flavors.

Kim-Tien Huynh

Add: 3/F, 18 Dongping Lu 东平路18号3楼
Tel: 6437-0136