BUI, SOLANO AVE
Though Tom and I have our favorite places to eat in our area, we do like to try new places. And so on one evening we ventured out to Bui, a local Vietnamese restaurant on Solano Ave, since we couldn't decide on where else we wanted to eat. Now, we had avoided this place for a little while, mainly because the sign outside indicated that it was a "Contemporary Vietnamese" restaurant and I prefer hole in the wall, authentic (and cheap) Vietnamese food.
When we entered the restaurant, it was about a third full, and I noticed that there wasn't a lot of staff on the floor. We were seated right away and presented with menus. As I suspected, (along with the white table cloths on the tables) this place specializes in more French influenced Vietnamese cuisine. So though I was just craving a bowl of noodles, that wasn't really what the offered here.
Tom and I ended up ordering a few appetizers to share. Here's my summer spring roll below. You can tell from the photo that it's a little dry looking (clearly made a while in advance), but it was pretty good.
As our meal progressed, the dining room started getting fuller and fuller - to the point that nearly every seat was taken. It was clear that the restaurant had not expected this as they had a single server and a single runner for the ENTIRE restaurant. Now, I can fully understand that for restaurants in this economy, it's prudent not to have too much waitstaff, especially on a Thursday night when you don't expect to be busy (and haven't been in the past). But I think it's also important to have people on call, just in this type of situation.
After our entrees were cleared, we were mistakenly handed our check by the waiter. We notified the runner, but it took another 10 minutes to flag down the waiter to convey the mistake. Meanwhile, the table to our left were regulars, who were surprised at how busy the restaurant was, and the table to the right were newcomers who were rightfully annoyed that it took 20 minutes just to get their drinks.
We were eventually given our entrees. (by this point I had forgotten to take pictures). Tom got a seafood stew, that I found was way too salty, but the thought it was pretty good. And I did get wish for a bowl of noodles with shrimp. It was pretty nice, but I could've gotten the same thing for half the price elsewhere (though not on Solano Ave.)
Our overall dining experience wasn't totally negative. The waitstaff was just way too busy and I felt sorry for them. I was truly more annoyed at the owners who were clearly ill prepared. I don't think we'll be going back to Bui, though. The food was fine, but I truly do enjoy less fancy Vietnamese food at the much lower prices.
After our entrees were cleared, we were mistakenly handed our check by the waiter. We notified the runner, but it took another 10 minutes to flag down the waiter to convey the mistake. Meanwhile, the table to our left were regulars, who were surprised at how busy the restaurant was, and the table to the right were newcomers who were rightfully annoyed that it took 20 minutes just to get their drinks.
We were eventually given our entrees. (by this point I had forgotten to take pictures). Tom got a seafood stew, that I found was way too salty, but the thought it was pretty good. And I did get wish for a bowl of noodles with shrimp. It was pretty nice, but I could've gotten the same thing for half the price elsewhere (though not on Solano Ave.)
Our overall dining experience wasn't totally negative. The waitstaff was just way too busy and I felt sorry for them. I was truly more annoyed at the owners who were clearly ill prepared. I don't think we'll be going back to Bui, though. The food was fine, but I truly do enjoy less fancy Vietnamese food at the much lower prices.
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