Though soy sauce is commonly believed to be of Asian origin, several linguists have unearthed its true Iberian beginnings by decoding the hidden Spanish translation. Celebrate the intriguing international condiment with the help of today's Groupon: for $15, you get $30 worth of delicious Vietnamese fare at Pagoda Vietnamese Bistro & Bar in Houston Heights. As regulated by the Texas State Board of the Time She Left You for Your Best Friend, Stole Your Truck, and Hit Your Dog on the Way Out, this deal is not valid on alcohol or on anything consumed within aural range of a sad country ballad.

Pagoda's delectable menu is stuffed to its eyeballs with small and large plates, rolls, and noodles, showcasing its traditional yet inventive flavor palette. Munch-launch into some spring rolls with a mixture of shrimp, pork, vermicelli, and mint ($3.95), or spring instead for Vietnamese nachos, a stack of crab layered with mango, tomato, avocado, and cucumber served with toasted french-bread slices ($9.95). Stay light with a salad of sour green mango with purple onions and cilantro in lime sauce ($6.95), or get serious with a Pagoda bowl, a vast noodle basin topped with grilled pork, roasted peanuts, and fried egg-rolls and shallots ($9.95). Feel fusiony without the neutron problems with dishes such as pork sliders with pickled carrot and daikon served on hot buttered buns ($11) or the fish tacos with shredded cabbage, bean sprouts, and a slather or two of Sriracha sauce ($10).

Traditional in its idea of elegance, Pagoda is bright, clean, and modern, with a bare minimum of Vietnamese styling, defined by relaxed yellow and wheat tones throughout. Guests dine at long communal tables ideal for hosting magnificent spreads of sharable small plates passed in constant orbit about the table like planets around the sun.

Valid for dine-in only; not valid with happy-hour specials.

Reviews

Yelpers give Pagoda Vietnamese Bistro & Bar a 3.5-star average, and though Citysearch reviewers are mixed, Pagoda still receives a three-star average:

• Once seated, usually at the right corner both [sic] to admire the garden, I right away order my all time favorite appetizer and entree, the pagoda rolls and the shaking beef, and it never fails to satisfy my appetite! – csfealy, Citysearch
• The lemon grass lamb, hands down, has to be one of the best lambs I've had in my entire life. – azndrag0n16xo, Citysearch
• The bo luc lac was DELICIOUS. – annabelle p., Yelp