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Bamboo Diner: A downtown delight

The Commuter

Wednesday, January 27, 2010

BamBoo Diner

BamBoo Diner

Selena Gwin
The Commuter

If you’re looking for delicious food at a good price, stellar service, and a more unique dining experience than your average night out, BamBoo Diner should be your next stop.

The newest culinary offering from the owners of Sybaris and Clemenza’s, BamBoo Diner has a colorful, brightly-lit entrance and an easy-access parking lot across the street. As the name suggests, BamBoo Diner combines the best of Asian and American cuisine in downtown Albany.

When you enter, you can’t help but notice the creative interior. A paper dragon frolics across the ceiling and the warm red light from the globe lamps placed over tables add to the illusion of flames. Seating is well placed and every surface is gleaming and spotless, from the hardwood floors to the lacquered tabletops.

On a recent visit for dinner, my boyfriend and I were greeted by a friendly hostess, who had water and menus for us immediately after we were seated. Our server was very prompt, knowledgeable and attentive – after describing the specials with ease, she answered our questions, took our order and came right back with our drinks. I had the loose-leaf Fancy Jasmine tea, and was totally blown away by the bold fragrance and sweet yet complex taste. BamBoo has four other varieties of tea at $2 each, as well as a carefully selected range of beers at $3 a glass and wine at $6 a glass.

Waiting for food doesn’t take long at BamBoo Diner; we had ours in less than 10 minutes, and the portions were generous. I was delighted to see that BamBoo offers four different kinds of curry, all available with your choice of grilled meats or smoked tofu, ranging from $9 to $15. The curries are served steaming hot in a large bowl and come with a side of Thai sticky rice wrapped in a banana-leaf packet. I tried the Thai green curry with coconut milk, and it was incredible! It consisted of tofu and tender vegetables resting in a creamy, spicy sauce with hints of aromatic basil. My boyfriend’s General Tso’s chicken, the nightly special, was also excellent, crisp and juicy with a tangy sauce and served over veggie fried rice.

BamBoo Diner has a variety of appetizers guaranteed to tempt, including chicken satay, one of my all-time favorites. Most of these appetizers are only $6. Their House Specialty dinners, all under $15, include noodle dishes and favorites such as BBQ pork ribs – there’s even a Vietnamese meatloaf. The heat is indicated by chili peppers next to the name; my dish was a three-pepper item and had lots of fire without overpowering the flavor. BamBoo is also vegetarian-friendly, with quite a few choices for appetizers and dinners.

Even though BamBoo Diner has only been around since mid-September, they’ve already succeeded in bringing the tastes of Asia to Albany. The manager stopped by to chat with us during our meal to make sure everything was going well, and the check was presented swiftly. Our server even labeled and dated our leftovers for us! One of the best things about this restaurant is the head chef, Dave Arguedas, who was chef at Clemenza’s before coming to BamBoo. A graduate of LBCC’s culinary program, he had nothing but good words for his experience at LBCC: “I’d recommend it.”

Unfortunately, I haven’t yet made it past dinner to the desserts at BamBoo Diner, but next time I’ll make sure to save room for the chai cheesecake. The prices are slightly lower at lunch, perfect for a quick bite to eat at a bargain, although the menu is more diverse at dinner. For now, the only improvement they could make is to move a lot closer to LBCC, so I can satisfy my craving for curry more often.

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