Le Bambou

If you know us, you know that we love pho. And though we can find great pho at home, we also had to explore the other side of the pho equation -- its French origins.

Our first stop was to Le Bambou in Paris' Chinatown. It was very strange how this restaurant felt both familiar and foreign at the same time...like Vietnamese spoken with a French accent. 

Familiar -- the veggie plate / Foreign -- mint instead of basil, lemon instead of lime

Familiar -- hot pot of jasmine tea / Foreign -- champagne-lychee aperitif 

Familiar -- noodles and beef / Foreign -- a murky, sweet broth and shaggy tangle of scallions 

We're not sure if Le Bambou's pho was some variation that we're not aware of, but it didn't quite hit the spot. However, it was solid and warmed us up on a chilly night. If this was the worst we could do in Paris, it wasn't too shabby at all. 

Not another rainy day!

The last day of our New Year's extravaganza ended up cold and wet. But if this happens to you, don't give up. There are things that can help...

Beverly Soon Tofu
Just looking at a huge boiling bowl of tofu soup will make you think you're wading through a balmy lava river instead of a pot hole in the parking lot. And that huge sizzling platter of meat will make you think you're dancing atop a smoking BBQ grill. Heaven!

Shaky Alibi
Nothing brings warmth and cheer like an impromptu gathering with friends to help you share a crispy liege waffle, topped with salted caramel ice cream, caramel sauce and fresh whipped cream. This waffle was almost as good as the company!

Pho
...And if you still need some help after all that, convince a family member to make you some pho. Like Windex or duct tape, pho can fix anything!

Phogettable

Sometimes that craving for Vietnamese food hits like a ton of bricks and we need to eat it like NOW. Unfortunately, we have yet to find a good Vietnamese restaurant west of Chinatown. But with each new place that pops up, our hope is renewed.

We were totally excited when Unphogettable opened and even more excited we finally had the opportunity to check it out.

After we ordered, cucumber water and accessories promptly followed.

Then came our first entree. This "vegetarian vermicelli" be shady. There were two kinds of egg rolls in it, and we think one kind totally had pork inside. Either that, or it was made with really funky, meaty veggies. Anyway, aside from making us feel kind of guilty, the bun was ok and just lacked the punch of tons of fresh Vietnamese herbs (love you, tia to).

Of course, we also had to try the pho. Now, we're of the belief that no pho is quite as good as mom's pho, and, in a pinch, the next best thing is a greasy bowl from Pho 79. So our expectations for any other pho are pretty low.

And thank goodness, because this pho was so mediocre and so...phogettable. Despite the cute signage that tried to convince us otherwise.

Brazilian Pizza / Pho Pizza

What do cool people do when they get off work early the Friday of a long holiday weekend? Carbo-load, duh!

Brazilian Pizza
We checked out newly opened Bella Vista in Culver City for their dinnertime rodizio - basically, all-you-can-eat Brazilian pizza slices that you select from servers who wander around with different freshly baked pies.

We sat in the covered patio, where this guy was playing acoustic covers of Brazilian and American songs.

We wanted to try a little bit of everything, but even though the slices were mercifully small, we hadn't tried half of the many flavors offered by the time we were full.

Accessories

The pizzas definitely had a Brazilian twist to them. They all had the same thin crust and hardly any sauce. And there were seemingly authentic toppings such as a very creamy catupiry cheese, dried beef, hearts of palm and picanha, a churrascaria staple. There was even a beef stroganoff pizza, which was essentially just a crust with beef stroganoff on top, sprinkled with these tiny fried potato sticks. This was a bit rich for our blood, but seemed to be a big hit with most of the diners.

As though eating 100 slices of pizza for dinner wasn't enough, there was also pizza for dessert, God help us. The banana, cinnamon and mozzarella was just ok, but the chocolate and condensed milk was awesome.

Pho Pizza
Our visit inspired the idea to make a pho pizza. That's right. We're still working out the details, but it basically would have a hoisin- and Sriracha- infused sauce, anise-flavored beef or chicken, and bean sprouts, scallions, cilantro, onion and purple basil sprinkled on top. If When we make it, we'll let you know. And if someone else beats us to it...well, just remember that you heard it here first.