Bambu

Went there on Valentine’s day for a casual dinner and at first loved the ambiance. It feels very quaint and cozy. Also really liked that you can bring you own wine and they will serve it to you. After those two positives everything else is a negative. I gave the waitress my food allergy card so she could give to the chef and of course she didn’t. My salad came out topped with cheese and when I pointed this out she said she would take it back so she could take the cheese off! After they brought my salad back with my bottles of oil and vinegar I only used a little and before I knew it the waitress had taken the bottles and gave them to another table. When I asked for them back they told me they only had one bottle of oil and vinegar for the entire restaurant! The food was meh to say the least. I paid $ 8 for a house salad and my fiancé said his lamb chop was descent.

Love this place for its ambiance, service, décor, and best of all the taste and quality of the food. We started with the meze appetizer that comprised of hummus, sun dried tomato hummus, and olive tapenade with pita chips and warm lavash. For our lunches we had crab cake salad, cubano panini, reubenesqe panini, and caprese panini. For dessert we tried their home made organic ice cream — summer peach flavor. THE FOOD AND SERVICE WAS OH SO GOOOOOODDDD!!! Plus, this cute restaurant is in the area of Gross Pointe — very hip. Next visit we will try their pizza.

Great food! Imaginative Main fare specials. You can bring your own wine, they open and pour with no added fee. Recently updated décor.

Let me start out by saying this place definitely has what I like to call the east side weirdness factor. The décor is bare bones. It looks like the place could pack up in the middle of the night and be gone the next day. The atmosphere is really weird. They need more music or something. It was super quiet and I felt like I could hear everyone’s silverware clanking against their plates. There weren’t very many people there, yet when I called to make a reservation, they acted like they were super booked up and I was lucky to be getting a table. Finally, only on the east side would you find a restaurant named Bambu that specializes in pizza
All that aside, this place was such a pleasant surprise! Here are all of the things I loved:
1.You can bring your own wine and there is no uncorking fee.
2. Although we ended up going with the pizza, the specials list sounded delicious and seems to change often based on seasonal ingredients.
3. Salad was delicious and inventive– We opted for the Caprese, but it was not what we were expecting. It was almost deconstructed… tomatoes, lettuce, mozzarella balls in a basil/​olive oil vinegarette. Yum!
4. The pizza was awesome! We had the Milano (sausage/​portobella) and thought it was very close to a pizza we shared in Rome, Italy last fall. Ingredients were quality abd crust was not too thin, not too thick.
5.They make their own ice cream. And it’s delicious.
Although the ambiance could use some work, I will definitely give Bambu another go, and it is a welcome addition to an area where the dining options are less than exciting. This place totally has 4 star potential.
Arigato. I mean, Grazie.

Hmm. We wanted to like this place, and it wasn’t terrible but … things didn’t get off to a great start when we arrived at 6:15 or so and were told that «we’ll sit you guys here but there’s a reservation for this table at 8 o’clock, so …» So what? When the patrons that like the location of our drafty little table arrive we’ll gather our food and find a nice open spot on the floor?
Wondered why that was a concern that was shared with us. 11 tables, only 6 of which were occupied, and you’re telling us in effect that we have an hour and 45 minutes to get our food down and get out. Nice.
Appetizer was a plate of hummus, pita chips from a bag, some fried tortillas and an olive dip. It was … overpriced?
We wanted to try the pizza (created our own of grilled chicken, feta, artichokes, fresh basil, tomatoes and spinach) and while it was obvious that the ingredients were fresh, it was small and soggy in the middle.
We couldn’t help but think that this little place just had some identity issues. It’s almost like it wants to be a higher end restaurant but the layout is impractical (small, so that we were seated a few feet from the roll of paper used to cover the tablecloths, and no booths) and ambiance had the day off and was probably just down the street at Jumps (the lighting in Bambu is better suited for a deli).
I don’t know … are we being too tough after just one visit? Maybe, but other than a mid-​afternoon stop for a panini or a wrap, I don’t think we’ll be back.

Stopped in for a carry out and had to wait 35 minutes but the paninis are worth it! The cauliflower soup is delicious. Many veggie options and great authentic ice cream thats to die. Can be pricey, but the place is adorable.

I usually don’t like to review a place until I’ve actually had a meal there, but my 2 carry out experiences have been so great that I needed to write a review now.
Pizza, ice cream, & cupcakes. That’s it. 4 stars for pizza, ice cream, & cupcakes.
Pizza margherita was cooked perfectly. Slightly charred crust, lots of mozzarella, a great basil/​garlic aioli, & we added pepperoni, which was high quality.
The cupcakes are excellent. They look gorgeous & taste great, too. The chocolate is better than vanilla, but both are worth trying. At $ 2.40 a piece they are pretty expensive though.
The ice cream is what really amazed me. All organic & made in house, the consistency is perfect, the flavors vibrant, and quality is top notch. We’ve tried 4 flavors — coconut, mango, chocolate, & cherry. Of the 4, the coconut might be one of the finest ice creams I’ve ever tasted. Perfectly creamy with plenty of shredded coconut & tremendous coconut flavor. Again, the price is high — $ 5.25 per pint, but this should be savored. You’re not eating ice cream every night — splurge on the great stuff.
The main drawback here is price, but ice cream & cupcakes are treats, right? You’re worth more than Hostess & Breyers — head over to Bambu and indulge.

It just keeps getting better! we tried the pizza: Milano with fennel sausage, basil, grilled onions, portabello mushrooms, marinara sauce and mozzarella. The Goats Cheese with spinach, pine nuts, chevre, basil and roma tomatoes. Both were excellent! They also make amazing ice cream.

Love the food. Love the simplicity of the dinning room, Did I mention the food was great!!!