in the house of bamboo

Bamboo Asia on Montgomery is temptingly close to my office, so I finally gave in and tried the place. The cafeteria-style eatery serves up freshly-assembled Indian, Japanese, and Vietnamese-inspired lunches, all for a simple $8 per meal. I say inspired because, well, you'll see.

Meals - whether you choose a salad, rice/noodle bowl, wrap, or sushi plate - are made right in front of you.

The selection at the Indian counter.

I have been wanting to try the Poppy Seed Beef Salad from the Vietnamese counter for a while and I was very happy I finally got around to tasting this. You can't tell from this photo but there is a lot of beef here. The beef cubes are marinated in a delicious tangy "spicy shaking beef" sauce, though the beef isn't very hot temperature-wise. There are a lot of different fresh vegetables in the salad but enough beef to keep any meat-lovers happy. The dressing is light and tangy and made for a lunch that satiated me yet did not put me to sleep. This Poppy Seed Beef Salad is a winner!

A week or two ago I had come in and tried the Indian counter because it had the shortest line. Now I know why. The curries here are very bland... this is a Chicken Tikka Guacamole Wrap made with tomato curry... now maybe there's no such thing as tomato curry in Indian fare and that's why the wrap bombed or maybe it was the inclusion of the rich guacamole but this wrap had very little Indian flavor whatsoever. The wrap is a nice size for $8 and you get a fair amount of chicken but it tastes like watered-down guacamole more than anything. If you want Indian food, you should walk to an actual Indian restaurant.