Alphabet Meals: C is for Cambodian (9th Aug 2013)

Monday, 26 January 2015

C is for Cambodian (9th Aug 2013)

A Cambodian meal in Camden continued (and, as it turned out, ended) the theme of using the same letter for the location and the cuisine, though I remember that this was pure coincidence.

In an attempt to try something a bit different from the usual Chinese, and for Emma and I to bring back some memories of our trip around Asia in 2010, where a month or so was spent in Cambodia, a hunt for Cambodian restaurants in London brought up only one real contender:

http://www.lemongrass-restaurant.co.uk/

Aside from the good reviews, the menu did show some dishes that we recalled from our trip to Cambodia, like the Amok, in addition to the usual generic Asian fare, so we gave it a go. If I remember correctly, we didn't book as I thought that being in Camden, if it was packed, we'd be sure to find an alternative, albeit probably Chinese, restaurant.

As it turned out, there was no need to book since, once we actually managed to find the restaurant (it is down a side street away from the main hustle and bustle of Camden), it was pretty much empty.

More of a cafe than a restaurant, I remember it being quite sparsely decorated and very basic, but that is no bad thing. We were joined that evening by my niece, Charlotte, so between the five of us we were able to sample a fair number of dishes. Unfortunately with it being quite a while ago that we went, I can't actually remember how it all tasted. I know that someone had the fish Amok, since it was a Cambodian speciality, though as vegetarians that would not have been me or Emma. On the good side, I don't remember anyone thinking that the food was in any way bad. On the bad side, I also don't remember anyone thinking that it was particularly fantastic either.

I would definitely be tempted to visit again, though maybe not to make a special journey to get there. Unfortunately a lot of the 'different from standard Asian' dishes are not vegetarian, so Emma & I would end up with standard Asian fare that, although we very much like, is no different from other Asian restaurants. For meat and fish eaters though, the Cambodian dishes would be worth trying out.

No comments:

Post a Comment

About Alphabet Meals

Back in early 2013 I met up with my wife, Emma, my sister, Joanne and her husband Andrew for a drink and a bite to eat in London. Emma & I live just outside the M25 on the Kent/Surrey border, whilst Joanne and Andrew live in Essex and that, coupled with the fact that Emma and Andrew both work in London, and the easy transport links to and from London, made London the obvious choice to meet up.
We met in Angel, and for a meal we went to an Afghan cafe that I had read was very good. Eating an Afghan meal in Angel gave us the idea that we could arrange a more regular meet up and go for a meal corresponding to a different letter of the alphabet each time. 'Bonus points' (not that points are awarded!) for the meal being in an area with the same letter - e.g. Afghan in Angel, Balti in Brick Lane etc - though we know this is not something we can maintain for each letter!
So here's the blog of that venture. Primarily to record where we went and when, and what the meal was like. It is not intended as a food critic's review of the restaurant, just a few notes here and there.
I didn't start the blog until Jan 2015, after we had already reached letter 'J', so some of the early entries are written from dim and distant memory!
Oh, and Emma and I are both vegetarian, which makes finding a suitable restaurant much more challenging! As you may be able to see from the entries, we are very flexible in interpretation of the letter-cuisine link: the letter can stand for the country of origin, the cuisine, or even the dish! The aim is to inspire trying out new food and restaurants we would not otherwise find, not to be too rigid to the rules!
This blog is primarily written by me, Chris, with I'm sure contributions from the others.