If you’re looking for something flavorful and exotic, consider a meal at Tung’s Kitchen in Pasadena. Tucked into a strip mall on Fairmont Parkway, it’s easy to overlook this excellent Asian restaurant. The menu offers a variety of dishes, specializing on Vietnamese and Chinese cuisine.

Some of the most popular items include the crisp and delicious spring rolls, served with a dipping sauce made from fish sauce, julienned carrots, and garlic chile paste for a little kick. For entrees, the vermicelli noodle bowls are well-received, overflowing with flavor and protein. The pad Thai is also quite good, with a huge portion of savory noodles. The sweet and sour chicken also wins raves from regulars.

Lunch offers bargain-priced specials, which mostly come in at just $8 and include egg rolls and salad.

Tung's Kitchen
4300 Fairmont Parkway
Pasadena, TX 77504
(281) 741-0923
www.yelp.com/biz/tungs-kitchen-pasadena-2

CC-BY-2.0/Flickr/Elsie Hui

There’s something so entertaining about watching skilled carpenters and designers take an old, outdated house and, with a few coats of paint or some new cabinets, turn it into something entirely fresh and modern. Follow along with some of HGTV’s most popular home renovation experts on these immensely entertaining shows.

Property Brothers
Hosts Jonathan and Drew Scott are some of HGTV’s most beloved hosts due to their quirky personalities and the always-entertaining bond between twins. On their HGTV show, Property Brothers, realtor Drew convinces potential homebuyers to buy a fixer-upper instead of the overpriced home of their dreams. Over the course of an hour-long episode, designer Jonathan completely renovates the more affordable (if less admirable) home into something even better than the house they originally imagined.

Cousins Undercover
On this equally entertaining HGTV show, cousins Anthony Carrino and John Colaneri are on a mission to reward do-gooders in a community with a well-deserved home makeover. The show’s recipients include selfless teachers, single parents, and dedicated doctors, the stories of whom will surely tug at your heartstrings. If you’re a fan of happy endings and beautiful home renovations, Cousins Undercover is for you.

CC-BY-SA-2.0/Flickr/Kalle Schärlund

When your sweet craving hits, you usually reach for the ice cream, cookies, or chocolate. At Bambu Desserts and Drinks, however, you can experience sweet drinks and desserts in a way that you’ve likely never seen before. This unique cafe serves Asian milk teas, exotic smoothies, and Vietnamese coffee drinks in a wide variety of styles and flavors, from passion fruit milk tea to taro coconut smoothies. The dessert menu consists of Asian dessert favorites made with pandan jelly and a number of fresh toppings that may look a bit strange at first, but will likely convert you into a fan after the first bite.

The shop is fairly sparse inside, but there are flatscreen televisions on the walls and ample seating to accommodate large crowds. Step outside of the box when it comes to sweets with a visit to Bambu Desserts and Drinks.

Bambu is open 9 a.m. to 9 p.m. Mondays through Saturdays.

Bambu Desserts and Drinks
9820 Gulf Freeway
Houston, TX 77034
(281) 501-3111
www.drinkbambu.com
www.yelp.com/biz/bambu-desserts-and-drinks-houston

CC-BY-2.0/Flickr/KentonNgo