Winner, winner Peking duck dinner
Of stellar versions, Bamboo House’s is like eating in China
In November, my friend Michelle, whom I hadn’t heard from in a while, sent me a lengthy text about a Peking duck restaurant in Humble: “I hope you don’t mind this suggestion,” she wrote, “because we really like this restaurant and we want them to stay in business.”
At the time, the recommendation was strong enough to make me want to visit right away, but getting to Humble takes more than
an hour from my house in Sugar Land, so I put it off and forgot about it until another friend went and sent me pictures.
Bamboo House is the most unlikely place you’d think to find real-deal, so-good-you-could-imagine-you’re-eating-in-China Peking duck. There’s not much going on in the vicinity of Bamboo House, just off the Sam Houston Parkway East feeder road about 10 minutes from George Bush Intercontinental Airport. Though the sign outside says “Best Peking Duck in Houston,” its location would make anyone skeptical about this claim. But step inside, taste the duck, and you’ll become an instant believer.
The owner, Lianzhuo Chu, 50, has spent his entire life cooking. A professional cook from Shandong, he’s owned and operated restaurants in California, New Mexico and Shanghai. While living in New Mexico, he came upon a sales listing for a restaurant space in Humble, which included a fully built-out professional kitchen, a parking lot and the land upon which it was built. An avid fisherman, Chu was attracted by the prospect of buying a turnkey business with easy access to indulge in his favorite pastime. But the location was a potential issue because the demographic he needed for the type of cuisine he wanted to serve lived closer in to town. So he chose to specialize in Peking duck, something he knew that, done well, would be a big enough lure to get Houstonians to drive to Humble.
When he got the building, Chu made minimal changes, with one exception: He purchased a special duck-roasting oven and installed an exhibition-style open kitchen in the main dining room so customers could see the ducks being roasted and carved in real time. The restaurant, which opened in July 2018, therefore retains the feel of its previous incarnation as Samba Seafood, a Mexicanthemed seafood joint complete with a small bar decorated with neon lights and festive yellow paint.
I’ve visited several times now and love the mishmash of cultures on display. Large groups of Asians occupy the main dining room in front of the duck kitchen. There is always at least one Peking duck on the table, along with several Sichuan-style dishes, ranging from noodles to spicy chicken. Scattered around the main dining room and spread out into the secondary seating area are patrons who care less about Peking duck. On their tables, you see typical Chinese-American dishes such as General Tso’s chicken or sweet and sour pork and fried rice.
I go specifically for the Peking duck. In fact, I’ve timed several of my inbound flights to IAH so that I land just in time to head straight to the restaurant. It’s a major treat after a day of traveling, and a wonderful welcome home. I love going up to the exhibition window to watch the chef as he deftly carves each bird into two glistening half-domes of golden, reddish-brown duck skin.
Picking up a piece of the skin — served with brown sugar, hoisin sauce, cucumbers and scallions —with my chopsticks, I dip it in the sugar for that critical first taste. Next, I pick up the handmade pancake, smear it with a good amount of hoisin, add a good helping of cucumbers and scallions, along with three to four pieces of the duck skin and meat to make a perfect bite. Time after time, I marvel at how beautiful the skin is, how airy and light, how the crispness is as delicate as a meringue but slightly heftier, like pork chicharrón skins, with a rich fatty element reminiscent of duck-fat fries.
Bamboo House’s presentation of the dish is also something to behold. Custom-crafted rectangular bamboo trays hold the first half of the duck and its accompaniments. The other half of the duck is served atop a small candle burner about 10 minutes later, to ensure the skin doesn’t get cold or soggy. The duck itself is placed in a white porcelain duck-shaped dish.
Chu’s daughter, Yuchen Che, who is in charge of operations, says that to bring the most authentic Peking duck to customers, Bamboo House sources a New York Long Island duck, which is the closest to Beijing white duck used in China.
The whole Peking duck at Bamboo House comes with 20 house-made wrappers and is served with a second course of duck soup. Half orders come with 10 wrappers. As a gift to its customers, the restaurant also offers a special birthday discount in the form of a free half Peking duck for pre-tax purchases of at least $50 and a free whole Peking duck for pre-tax purchases of at least $100. So if you’re wondering whether you want to make the drive, that should be a great incentive.
Like my friend Michelle, once you’ve been there, you’ll not only tell your friends about it, you’ll be making plans to go back, and stat.