Tucked away in a quiet street in Chinatown, surrounded by the telltale signs of unnecessary gentrification, Phnom Penh has been venerated by all that have passed through its doors. Serving up Vietnamese and Cambodian specialties for 20 or so years, there is a constant line-up weaving out the doors any day of the week. The faces you see in line represent every demographic Vancouver has to offer, speaking volumes of the old adage "if you build it, they will come."
Though its foodie aura shines true and bright, I never managed to check them out until just yesterday. More shamefully that I worked only 2 blocks away at Campagnolo and always frequented the weekly Main Street farmers market.
It wasn't too busy when I arrived for our 7 PM reservation - there were only 6 people in line. My aunt waved me down from our large table right beside the kitchen. The menu is this huge bound bible weighing almost as much as a newborn child. Unlike your typical Vietnamese pho joint though, the text was in medium-print, and contained plenty of descriptions so it's not too daunting for the unfamiliar. No pictures though so there's still that little element of playful danger!
The food started arriving at a steady clip. They knew how to time the dishes - our table was never overcrowded, and whenever we would finish one, another would take its place soonafter. I unfortunately don't have any names of the dishes as my aunt did the ordering so I do apologize. I'll try to describe them best as I can.
First up was a bowl of mixed noodles, drizzled with a light soy-based sauce, topped with pork and liver, and a side of pork broth. A nice starter to get the palate going and a reminder that you'd better love cilantro because everything's gonna have a half-ton of it.
Next was a ridiculously huge punch-bowl sized soup brimming with root vegetables, sprouts, prawns and I'm not even sure what else! Very similar to Thai tom yung goong, except significantly sweeter. So sweet that I could only manage 1 bowl of it. My aunt recommended taking it home and cooking some greens in it (gai lan, bok choy, dandelion...) which would help balance the flavour out significantly.
Butter beef, one of their signatures was next - thinly sliced blue-rare steak, topped with cilantro, peanuts and an unctuous lightly-sweetened sauce. The beef is so tender that it just melts on your tongue, hence the "butter" moniker. Not necessarily a dish for the squeamish, but I would sincerely recommend you try it once - the experience of blue rare is like nothing else. Flavour wise, the sauce wasn't a strong factor, but was there to tame the bite of the cilantro, with the peanuts adding some appreciated crunch to the whole affair.
Arguably their most famous dish, chicken wings, came out next. To describe it in 1 word: crack. There's a heap of sugar in the batter and then a healthy topping of garlic and scallions - we ripped through this plate, so much so that my aunt insisted on ordering another dish. There's a good pile of legs and thighs on the plate, with every bite bringing a burst of juices into your mouth. To take it to another glorious level, they serve it with a tangy lime dipping sauce that gives your cerebral cortex a shot of umami overload. Holy. Crack.
Lastly, we had a dish that I was certainly unfamiliar with. It's a giant pizza-sized deep-fried oyster fritter. Wow. Consider my mind blown. The beauty? Texture-wise, the outer rim was dry and crunchy, while the inside was more soppy and gooey. A mild chili dip on the side cut helped cut through the greasiness of the dish, but at this point, after 2 plates of crack chicken wings, cholesterol counting was the furthest thing from our minds. This dish was less about flavour, and more about playing with textures. I couldn't say there was enough oyster to be a significant presence, just enough to give you something to taste among the large amount of egg dough.
As we all slouched back in our chairs, basking in our gluttonous victory, content to sleep the night away - I couldn't help notice that they had a decent selection of "Moo shakes" available including lychee and durian. Had it not been such a chilly autumn evening, and me practically one step into death's sweet embrace, I might've actually considered one... oh well - we have to leave something for next time right?
Overall, I was pleased with the meal. There were standouts, and there were mild disappointments. It certainly wasn't the earth-shattering experience I'd heard countless tales of over the web, but a nice place for a hearty affordable and flavourful meal. If you haven't yet, go check out Phnom Penh at 244 East Georgia St in Chinatown. There's plenty of pay parking around, and it's a casual 7 minute stroll (or a brisk 3-minute run) from the Main Street Skytrain station.
Personally, I feel safer walking than parking my car around there ;-)
Done.
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