La Bruschetta Pasta Bar — Restaurant in Khan Chamkar Mon

I do not venture to Tuol Tompoung often as I absolutely hate the traffic, but I had a craving for good Italian food and had heard that La Bruschetta has a decent spread. Hopped into a Tuk-tuk and braved the endless traffic lights to get there.

The first thing that struck me was how small the place was. They only have 12 seats and even those are crammed right in. If it rains, they are down to six seats, I guess some would call it cozy. The kitchen was also tiny, and I was really looking forward how they would manage all this.

There were three other guests when we got there, and that made the place feel pretty busy already. We did get our menus within seconds. There were two ladies working there, looking after both service and kitchen. One very friendly, the other a little on the grumpy side.

We started by ordering a couple of beers and, of course, we ordered Italian beers. I must admit that I know nothing about Italian beers, the only Italian beer I remember ever drinking was Peroni. We ordered a Ichnuso and a Menabrea at $2.50 each. To be honest, I was not impressed. The Ichnuso was pretty tasteless and whilst the Menabrea was somewhat better, I understand why Italy is not exactly known for its beers.

Anyway, we were here to eat, not to go on the lash. We started with Bruschetta. I am not a big fan of the generic tomato Bruschetta, but they had a few interesting choices here. We went with the anchovies, olive oil, and chili oil option. Pretty darn good, the bread was amazing. I did not detect any chili oil, not sure if it was forgotten or they just put very, very little, but it was a good start.

The main course arrived within 30 minutes, quite a feat considering the kitchen is the size of a shoe box, a small shoe box, and there were deliveries going out as well. My friend had ordered the truffle lasagna, and I ordered the “orecchiette” with salmon cream sauce. Both lasagna and my pasta were obviously freshly made and perfectly cooked (I am very much in the “al dente” camp). My portion looked small, but it turned out to be more than enough. My only tiny gripe is that I would have loved some of that delicious bread with my pasta, I love soaking up a good cream sauce.

Our neighbors had ordered Tiramisu, and I would have loved to try as it looked really good. However, I was stuffed to the gills and had to pass. My friend ordered a chocolate budino and, after a bit of begging, let me have a (small) spoon full. I have never had one of those and cannot judge if it was authentic, but it was very good. Almost too sweet, I could see this go down well with a coffee.

Overall, I really enjoed the food here, especially after a couple of not so good experiences with Italian food in Phnom Penh. The only thing I did not like (apart from the beer, but that is not the restaurant’s fault) was how tine the restaurant is. I am a grumpy old man and do not like my fellow diner sitting on my lap. Apart from that, highly...

I went with my boyfriend, we ordered one normal bruschetta with tomatoes, two plates of tagliatelle beef meatballs with the tomato sauce and a Panna cotta with the strawberry and blueberry sauce (pic provided). I would say that it was an entirely enjoyable experience, but would be an even better one if I had gone for dinner instead of brunch. The bruschetta bread was satisfyingly crunchy and the tomatoes were fresh. The homemade pasta was filling but enjoyable down to the last bite, my only qualm is that I couldn’t see any dairy free options. The Panna cotta was the show of the dishes we had though, I can only describe it as a gorgeous flavor that was not too sweet, the fruit was not too sour either. The taste of the sauce blended and gradients smoothly with the base, making it overall one of the best desserts I’ve had in a long time. As someone who doesn’t enjoy fruit with desserts, I was amazed at how the Panna cotta really felt so easy to eat. I will definitely be returning for...

I went with a friend, the food was great. I would recommend if u wanted a real Italian food. The meatballs was delicious and the Arancini tasted like the one I had in Italy. It might take a while for the food to come out, cause they made it there at the place. But It was so worth it, I bring some pasta home and it taste good even without heating up. Also they have Spritz Aperol and that was what got me there in the first place. Overall would definitely go again. And I wish they would do delivery too like foodpanda or wownow cause I would have order. Aha one more thing it might be a little but hard to park the car, so walking or grab would be the...