Foods from Phnom Penh
Comments
2011 Aug 19
Tried the C2. Kako Khmer today at lunch. Nice big plate of tasty vegetable and chicken curry! I'm not generally huge on Thai-style curries but found this to be a good contender. The rice was great for sopping up all that yummy sauce at the end.
I think if you like the Golden Chicken here, but want something with more veggies, this would be a great choice for you.
I think if you like the Golden Chicken here, but want something with more veggies, this would be a great choice for you.
2010 Aug 16
I think Phnom Penh is the only spot in town that I've been to at least 3 or 4 times and only ever tried one dish: the golden chicken.
Oh yes, the golden chicken.. I've sampled a couple other of my dining companions' dishes, but none have come close. I can't see myself trying anything else until this disappoints, which I don't expect to happen for a while. All the spices and seasonings are perfect on the chicken and curry(? I think, it's been a while) sauce, and the rice is cooked perfectly. Always a right-sized portion, and the nuts that come with it are the cherry on top. The soup (one of the Toms) is good too.
Friendly staff, nice decor. A great (albeit unorthodox) spot to stop for a bite before a Sens game.
Oh yes, the golden chicken.. I've sampled a couple other of my dining companions' dishes, but none have come close. I can't see myself trying anything else until this disappoints, which I don't expect to happen for a while. All the spices and seasonings are perfect on the chicken and curry(? I think, it's been a while) sauce, and the rice is cooked perfectly. Always a right-sized portion, and the nuts that come with it are the cherry on top. The soup (one of the Toms) is good too.
Friendly staff, nice decor. A great (albeit unorthodox) spot to stop for a bite before a Sens game.
2010 Apr 23
FF: My guess is, because you are a caucasian, they think you are used to eating with a fork and knife as appossed to a fork and spoon.
I've automatically been given a fork and knife in a number of chinese restaurants where all the Asian customers were given chopsticks. I then asked for chopsticks (and a bowl).
No biggy.
I've automatically been given a fork and knife in a number of chinese restaurants where all the Asian customers were given chopsticks. I then asked for chopsticks (and a bowl).
No biggy.
2010 Apr 22
Something that has baffled me about this restaurant: they always give me a fork and a knife with which to eat my vermicelli bowl. They have chopsticks, which can help with noodles, but those are only available by request.
Their own website states that Cambodian meals are typically eaten with a spoon and a fork (www.cambodianthaicuisine.ca), as is done for rice-based meals in most of Southeast Asia. The fork is used to maneuver food onto the spoon, and the spoon is used to bring the food to your mouth.
So why on earth would they give me a knife instead of a spoon?? I shall pose the question on my next visit!
Their own website states that Cambodian meals are typically eaten with a spoon and a fork (www.cambodianthaicuisine.ca), as is done for rice-based meals in most of Southeast Asia. The fork is used to maneuver food onto the spoon, and the spoon is used to bring the food to your mouth.
So why on earth would they give me a knife instead of a spoon?? I shall pose the question on my next visit!
2010 Mar 18
Finally tried this place last night and ordered some take out. We enjoyed the very fresh Rice Paper Rolls to start and then dug into the ginger beef (B4), the Phanaeng Kai (C1 - chicken dish). We ordered it medium and it certainly had some kick to it! The only dish that disappointed was the Deluxe Rice (F4) - I felt that one was not freshly prepared and for the high price ($13+), it was not worth it. Next time we'll order a seafood dish and I am looking forward to trying some of their famous soup for lunch one of these days!
2009 Sep 19
BakingBom: It may be very good that you didn't eat that bamboo dish. Improperly cooked bamboo can be toxic, and usually tastes and smells very bitter. (Most bamboo we buy in cans is precooked so we don't have to worry about it... fresh bamboo is another story.) It might be that they didn't cook their bamboo long enough and that was the problem.
2009 Sep 18
The kids and I went for dinner tonight at 5:30 to avoid the dinner rush.
It was our waitress' first night and she was quite nice. I wish I could say the same for the food.
The pad thai was only just ok but greasy, stodgy and stuck together. So only just edible. The soup was tasty, the spring rolls yummy.
The other dish (can't for the life of me remember the name) was completely inedible. The bamboo shoots smelled truly awful. With all the food on the table I was worried about where the rancid smell was coming from. When we got to the dish with bamboo it was clearly that one.
The manager came over and did not win any service recovery points. She insisted it was fine and supposed to smell that way when not smothered in curry. I finally said okay, it just may be a style of bamboo I'm not used to but we really didn't care for the dish and wouldn't be eating it. After much backing and forthing she continued to sneer and insist it's fine. I said I'd pay for it if I had to but we wouldn't be eating it. She shrugged and walked away with the plate.
When we went to leave a third person brought the bill and said he gave me a "little discount" on the bamboo dish. He wasn't kidding. It was insulting to see he'd discounted it by 1%. That's it. I paid our bill and will never be back. So disappointing.
It was our waitress' first night and she was quite nice. I wish I could say the same for the food.
The pad thai was only just ok but greasy, stodgy and stuck together. So only just edible. The soup was tasty, the spring rolls yummy.
The other dish (can't for the life of me remember the name) was completely inedible. The bamboo shoots smelled truly awful. With all the food on the table I was worried about where the rancid smell was coming from. When we got to the dish with bamboo it was clearly that one.
The manager came over and did not win any service recovery points. She insisted it was fine and supposed to smell that way when not smothered in curry. I finally said okay, it just may be a style of bamboo I'm not used to but we really didn't care for the dish and wouldn't be eating it. After much backing and forthing she continued to sneer and insist it's fine. I said I'd pay for it if I had to but we wouldn't be eating it. She shrugged and walked away with the plate.
When we went to leave a third person brought the bill and said he gave me a "little discount" on the bamboo dish. He wasn't kidding. It was insulting to see he'd discounted it by 1%. That's it. I paid our bill and will never be back. So disappointing.
2009 Jul 29
I was so delighted a few months back to find out (thanks to OF) that an Ottawa branch of Phnom Penh, which I frequented in Kingston, actually existed! However, since I live at the other end of town, it took me a while to get there. When I finally went last week I was not disappointed; everything was as delicious as I remember!
My friend and I got the "Dinner for Two" package and received the following:
- Tom Yum Goong soup
- Cambodian spring rolls
- Ginger beef
- Phanaeng Kai (chicken)
The soup was incredibly tasty although similar to Rich's review below, I had to down a relatively large amount of water to calm the spice. The cambodian rolls were crispy and filled with ground pork, chicken & vermicelli..mmmm! I didn't enjoy the ginger beef which was my friend's choice but I knew that would be the case when we ordered it; it's just not as tasty as their other dishes and reminded me a little of cheap Chinese take-out. The phanaeng kai was absolutely delicious, whole pieces of chicken breast cooked in red curry paste with basil, lime leaves, peanuts and then covered with a dash of coconut milk; the sauce was phenomenal!
If only I lived closer to Kanata, I would definitely become a regular! My only other quip besides the fact that they are situated too far from me is that they are missing the "special dishes" from the Kingston menu; perhaps I could ask them if they could make me my favourite special #3?
My friend and I got the "Dinner for Two" package and received the following:
- Tom Yum Goong soup
- Cambodian spring rolls
- Ginger beef
- Phanaeng Kai (chicken)
The soup was incredibly tasty although similar to Rich's review below, I had to down a relatively large amount of water to calm the spice. The cambodian rolls were crispy and filled with ground pork, chicken & vermicelli..mmmm! I didn't enjoy the ginger beef which was my friend's choice but I knew that would be the case when we ordered it; it's just not as tasty as their other dishes and reminded me a little of cheap Chinese take-out. The phanaeng kai was absolutely delicious, whole pieces of chicken breast cooked in red curry paste with basil, lime leaves, peanuts and then covered with a dash of coconut milk; the sauce was phenomenal!
If only I lived closer to Kanata, I would definitely become a regular! My only other quip besides the fact that they are situated too far from me is that they are missing the "special dishes" from the Kingston menu; perhaps I could ask them if they could make me my favourite special #3?
Older
2008 May 2
Phnom Penh offers four noodle soups that are similar to pho. I tried the S11 Spicy Rice Noodle (Chicken, Meat Balls, Ground Pork, and Shrimps). Very nice indeed! Fairly tasty broth, good spice level, with a generous proportion of hearty noodles. Two shrimp, two or three slices of chicken, and a pile of meatballs kept things interesting.
2009 Feb 26
Went to Phnom Penh recently and ordered the golden chicken curry, spicy.
The level of heat in this thing is pretty awesome: it's more "forward" a heat than some of the curries I've tried, meaning that it hits you right away, rather than creeping up on you.
Quite delicious, with a good balance between the spice and the coconut/peanut.
The level of heat in this thing is pretty awesome: it's more "forward" a heat than some of the curries I've tried, meaning that it hits you right away, rather than creeping up on you.
Quite delicious, with a good balance between the spice and the coconut/peanut.
2008 Oct 27
We ate here on Friday - and I went with my favorite. I ordered it "spicy" which may be too much for most, but it hit the spot. The spicy one comes out a darker brown colour than FF pic below (I'm guessing he ordered medium). This time there were definitely more crushed peanut in the sauce but it was great!
2007 Nov 30
Get the Golden Chicken. Really. NOW! You won't know what hit you. I used to eat this at the Phnom Penh when I went to Queens in Kingston. It's chicken in a rich, spicy, peanut curry. Not sure if it's curry though. The closest comparison to it would be the jungle curry at Royal Thai. But this is much better. A couple of my friends found the medium spicy level too spicy but perfect for me.
We started with the Cambodian spring rolls which were Perfectly crispy and tasty. The peanut sauce with it was good but I nabbed one of my friends sweet fish sauce type sauce which came with his shrimp rolls. I found that went even better.
We started with the Cambodian spring rolls which were Perfectly crispy and tasty. The peanut sauce with it was good but I nabbed one of my friends sweet fish sauce type sauce which came with his shrimp rolls. I found that went even better.
2010 Apr 22
When I come here for lunch, I inevitably order the Exotic Noodle because it is so delicious! However, I decided I needed to broaden my horizons a little... and ordered the only other dish that includes the scrumptious spring rolls: Poh Piah Supreme (N2)
Poh Piah Supreme is similar in structure to Exotic Noodle -- just delete beef and sauces, and add char-grilled pork and shrimp. The pork and shrimp were tasty, with a nice deep grilled flavour. I was very happy with it, but would still favour the Exotic Noodle for its addictive red sauce.
Poh Piah Supreme is similar in structure to Exotic Noodle -- just delete beef and sauces, and add char-grilled pork and shrimp. The pork and shrimp were tasty, with a nice deep grilled flavour. I was very happy with it, but would still favour the Exotic Noodle for its addictive red sauce.
2009 Feb 6
I savoured a bowl of Exotic Noodle (N3) for lunch today. The lemongrass beef is quite different from the grilled kind you find at Vietnamese restaurants. It has a dark red colour and a pleasantly rich caramelized flavour. The white sauce in the photo is coconut, which helps mellow out the beef.
The great thing about this dish is that it contains a couple of delicious meat spring rolls -- perfect for lunch, when it's sometimes hard to justify having an appetizer. The bowl of fish sauce was awesome and made the noodles, lettuce, bean sprouts, and cucumber quite delectable.
The great thing about this dish is that it contains a couple of delicious meat spring rolls -- perfect for lunch, when it's sometimes hard to justify having an appetizer. The bowl of fish sauce was awesome and made the noodles, lettuce, bean sprouts, and cucumber quite delectable.
RiceLover
My friend and I also had the golden chicken which was very similar but included jalapeno peppers ground in the sauce so it had more of a kick and with added green beans.
Portions are generous.
I was very happy and satisfied.