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| - In summary: mediocre-to-bland Asian fusion fare.
Pros: The only dish that seems worth getting is the pad thai. Be sure to ask for chili oil on the side--that's what gives it an extra kick and a trace of authenticity. Also, the dishes come in pretty large portions. The pad thai we ordered was literally a giant mound, at least 4 inches high at its peak. The salt-and-pepper calamari was also a pretty good starter.
Cons: Long wait to be seated (we went on a Friday night so I might be different on a weeknight), lagging service, not-so-fresh sushi and sashimi, dark, crowded interior, cluttered bar (beer selection was not entirely visible and included items not even listed on the drinks menu), and my personal dealbreaker, run-of-the-mill, unfresh food (but you can tell they try). Definitely not a first or second date destination: unimpressive decor/ambiance, think PF Chang's slightly dingier ripoff. (Both restaurants contain the word "bistro." Coincidence? I think not.)
If you're into more Americanized versions of Chinese/Japanese/Thai food--read: deep fried, processed or blander flavors--and want to be in a TGIF/Chili's-style setting with the requisite few vaguely Oriental-looking wall furnishing, Vieng's Asian Bistro might make your cut. But even then, you'll probably want to stay away from the sushi. During the 20 plus minutes we stood in the narrow corridor by the bar waiting to be seated, the same four plates of prepared sushi waiting to be delivered to tables sat before us in the open. The sushi prep counter is a part of the island that also contains the bar, and while the sushi chefs looked pretty competent, no one came to pick up the sushi orders during that entire time.
Despite these warning signs, I ended up ordering sushi simply because there wasn't anything else on the menu that seemed appetizing to me. I ordered mostly nigiri because all the rolls seemed drenched in spicy mayo. Sure enough, the fish tasted lukewarm, chewy and rather fishy, probably precisely because the mayo wasn't there to mask the smell. I've had very fresh sushi and sashimi that didn't taste fishy at all and this clearly just wasn't that.
Other dishes we got at our table: the pad thai, fried rice, and three appetizers: asparagus (tempura style), calamari, and spring rolls. The pad thai was pretty good (if you mess up stir-fried broad rice noodles, you know you're bad). Opt for the spicy version if you can handle it--the chili oil whether they cook with it or give it to you on the side really makes a difference. The fried rice was a little over zealous with the soy sauce and didn't really taste of anything else. The asparagus was battered and deep fried and the spring rolls were actually deep-fried eggrolls--more fried food than I expected, as none of it was mentioned in the menu descriptions. Both are decent appetizers if you're going for fried-food heavy starters. The salt-and-pepper calamari was quite tasty on its own--we ordered sweet and sour dipping sauce just in case but ended up hardly touching it.
Vieng's could have inched towards a 3-star rating for me if the service was more efficient. Even the sushi might have been better or at least not warm and faintly fetid if the food prep and waiters were more in sync. Unfortunately, until they revamp their system, Vieng's comes off as a second-rate Asian fusion joint trying too visibly hard to be classy. Gourmet mediocrity isn't worth the stress of the crowd, wait, and inefficient service--if you're craving their few good dishes, I suggest takeout.
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