Lu Bu Mediterranean Restaurant: A Disappointing First Visit

I checked out Lu Bu for the first time tonight. This smart tapas bar has been open for a while now in Tao Dien, District 2 Saigon. I have been promising myself to get along and try out the food. Tonight I finally made it. The restaurant has a minimalist feel to it, with white walls, white ceiling and white linen. It has a vibrant vibe about it and was crowded. Friday night is 50% off all tapas which probably explained why it was so busy.

I ordered the Patatas Bravas, Chorizo and Meatballs all washed down with a nice glass of house red. At full price this place ranks in the medium to high bracket for the area. This is a really nice looking restaurant with a great ambience, but the food disappointed. Inside with air-con, seats about 50 people and there are almost as many seats al fresco. The garden area is nice with a large Frangipani tree offering shade from the Saigon sun.

Patatas Bravas, rather bland tasting
The service is ok to poor with waitresses constantly refilling my water and tending on customers reasonably well. My red wine arrived almost immediately but the meatballs and potatoes took over 15 minutes which considering how busy they were is not bad. However the Chorizo arrived a full 20 minutes after the other two dishes and after I had finished them. I was sorely tempted to send them back, but persevered. I wish I hadn’t.

The Meatballs were the best dish of the evening
The portions are generous, in fact in the case of the potatoes, possibly too generous. I would prefer smaller portions, cheaper so that I can mix things up more. With tapas I’d rather have four small portions than three larger ones. Then again, dining alone often is like this. Tapas is much better as a shared experience and a group would probably have more fun here.

At least the wine was good
Moving on to the food, I thought the meatballs were really good. Five good sized meatballs in a rich tomato sauce, served with a generous helping of bread to mop it all up. The Patatas Bravas was disappointing, with the tomato sauce and aioli too bland for my palate. It would have benefitted from a little seasoning. The Chorizo was probably the worst I’ve ever had. I had a couple of tastes and left it.

To cap it all when they brought the bill there were three glasses of rosé and 2 glasses of white wine added on. Did they honestly think that I had drank 6 glasses of wine in less than an hour whilst seated on my own? I obviously pointed out their mistake and it took a full 10 minutes for them to sort it out and no apology was offered.

So all in all a really disappointing meal for me after quite good recommendations from friends. Maybe I caught them on an off night, I’ll come again with friends who rate the place and see if it is a different experience.

!steemitworldmap 10.807826 lat 106.733530 long Lu Bu Mediterranean Restaurant D3SCR

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