[Restaurant Spotlight: Bambu Vietnamese Restaurant]

Springfield, Missouri, is fairly well known for its distinct style of "Chinese" food--specifically of the cashew chicken and sweet-and-sour chicken variety. As such, one doesn't really expect to find much in the way of authentic Asian foods--mostly Americanized versions that, while tasty, are loaded with MSG and fried fat. However, that's changed in recent years.

For one thing, sushi has really taken off as popular local cuisine, and several restaurants dot the landscape, including Sakura, Nakato, Kyoto, and Wayo. All I've eaten so far, have been quite tasty, but like sushi in general (particularly here in the U.S.), eating it out can get expensive very quickly. While those little rolls are surprisingly filling, on my budget, I can't justify spending seven-to-fifteen dollars for one roll except on very rare occasions.

It's sad, too, because I love the Jurassic roll at Sakura's. Oh, lordy...

There are a few others popping up, covering cuisines from Thailand, India, Korea, Vietnam, and more.

But, still, no true dim sum, and I love me some dim sum. I guess that's what I get for living in the Midwest....

  I have found a tasty little restaurant on Battlefield Road, however: Bambu Vietnamese restaurant. A quick look at the menu reveals a largely lactose-safe menu, and their website even shares a list of menu items that are also gluten-free. Score! Ratings online reveal that, while not completely on par with Vietnamese restaurants in some of the coastal cities, most patrons consider the food to be authentic, healthy, filling, and delicious.

I have no previous experience with Vietnamese cuisine, but I can vouch for the other three factors. First off, within a three day period, I ate from the restaurant twice--once with carryout, once eating in with my mother.  Both times, mostly because I craved the meal after eating it the first time, I ate the:

BUN TOM THIT NUONG

• Gluten Free
 
• Bun Vermicelli

$7.99

Charbroiled Shrimp & BBQ Pork on Vermicelli

Charbroiled Shrimp and sliced BBQ pork on the top of vermicelli, shredded lettuce, carrots, sliced cucumber, mints, bean sprouts, and roasted peanuts. Served with fish sauce on the side

Holy moly.

Crazy-fresh vegetables, filling vermicelli, and no sign of preservatives... so no funky feeling afterward.

Without even trying, I made three full meals out of the dish. The pork is succulently sweet and moist, and the shrimp, well... it's shrimp! And I'm a lifelong shrimp connoisseur. It was charbroiled without being spicy, and if spicy is your thing, have no fear--Bambu gives you plenty of spicy condiments to choose from at your table. I nearly died laughing as my mom made the same rookie mistake I did by trying one of the chili sauces...

"Oh, now that's not too bad." She figured she'd pour some on her meal when it came.

"Hang on, Mom, it takes about thirty seconds to--"

Suddenly, her eyes bulged. "Right on cue, Mom."

Good times.

I haven't tried any of the other meals yet, since I don't get paid next month and therefore have to make every penny stretch, but the Pho noodle soups come highly recommended from Yelp patrons, and most of the items on the menu seemed to be largely dairy-free and beneficial for those of us watching our weight.

Now, it may surprise you since you know I have a bit of a spice aversion, but I'm a pretty adventurous eater. I made a vow early on in life that I would try everything at least once (with only a few exceptions, and none due to a food's exotic or weird nature), and most things, if I didn't like them, I would try them again a year or two later. So it's not a challenge for me to try out new foods, and it doesn't intimidate me much. If you are a little nervous to try Vietnamese, let me reassure you--there are a lot of similarities to some of the fresher Chinese dishes. It has its own distinct flavor, but you can easily taste the fact that both nation's cuisines come from the same area of the world.

Springfield restaurant patrons, whether visitors or residents, have you eaten there? What did you think? What menu items do you recommend for the uninitiated?

And non-Springfieldians... can you recommend similar restaurants in your area?

Why the Blog?!

It's the holiday season here in the United States, and a condition that I've had in the past for, at the most, six months at a time, has become completely chronic.

I'm now lactose intolerant.

In the past, when my system's been out of whack, I've had to avoid richer milk products to avoid spending way too much time sitting on the porcelain throne. But eventually, I usually was able to return to my regularly scheduled cheese, ice cream, and miscellaneous products. So when it hit me about nine months ago, at the age of 27, I thought if I simply waited it out, I'd be back to normal.

Well, not this time. Nine months later, I can't even have a spoonful of green bean casserole unless I want to be homebound for about 48 hours--even if I take a dose of Lactaid at just the right moment. And it's taken my well-intentioned mother nearly this entire time to start reading labels before donating food to my personal pantry (and even then... oy!), and this month has been the first one in over a year when I haven't had to use copious amounts of air freshener in the bathroom.

Now, I love me some milk products, so this has been a rather difficult transition. But some research and experimentation has led me to conclude that, with a little extra effort, there can be life after lactose. More and more companies are producing products that remove the lactose from the milk or making products that use real alternatives to milk without sacrificing taste and that don't cost significantly more than normal lactose-laced products (because I don't know about you, but I barely make ends meet as it is without having to consider a specialized diet!)

This past week was Thanksgiving, and for once, Mom thought ahead and looked up a recipe online for pumpkin pie that did not use milk, and much to her and my surprise--it tasted the same! I'll be sharing that recipe in the near future.

Now, I'm just starting to be proactive about finding lactose alternatives, and living in a smaller city (Springfield, Missouri), there aren't always some of the products available that are more easily found in St. Louis, Kansas City, and some of the coastal area. So, I'm going to be sharing my newfound recipes and products, reviewing them here, and passing the information along to you. There may be other food-related posts as well.  But I can't do this alone...

So what can you do? If you encounter a well-priced store, product, a recipe, or a milk alternative technique that is truly comparable to the real thing, send it to me! Tell me where you found it, the price (or price to make), and tell me about your experience. I'll share it here, and eventually, I hope we'll have a splendid little Life After Lactose community and the comfort in knowing that we're not alone!

So send your submissions to Niki at HoldingOntoTheMagic dot com. Tell me your name and your website/blog, so I can give you credit, and any other helpful information.  Photos, links, and other media can help readers get a better idea what we're talking about, so don't be shy about sending those along.

Check back soon for recipes, products, store reviews, and more!