Phnom Penh Restaurant — Restaurant in Vancouver

I have no idea if Phnom Penh changed the way they take reservations and walkins but the way they treated our group on a Saturday night was absolutely spectacular. For the regular restaurant goers, this place is always packed and has a hefty line. At first when we went we thought it would be a rush in and out as it usually is but our server very kindly told us that we had an allotted time and to not worry and to not rush instead reassuring us to take our time. For a place as busy as this it was an odd and refreshing experience to know that we had extra time to digest a meal and enjoy ourselves. I hope this doesn’t make any newbies scared to go however it’s just a common thing in any restaurant to kind of eat get your bill and then leave rather than chat up for three hours over 1 cup of coffee.

Usually the trifecta is the beef luc lac, butter beef and chicken wings - but this time it only felt satisfactory instead of the star acts. The wings weren’t as plump and juicy and the luc lac was just regular. That being said - it’s hard to not order the favourites, just a bit of a different dining experience than usual for Those dishes. We also ordered the oyster pancake (crispy and light), fried rice cake (kind of like a mix between radish cake and tteokbokki with a delicious and flavourful dipping sauce) and pea tips (you know - to get those veggies in). For dessert we also ordered the taro pudding which was a nice ending and very starchy (naturally duh) so it was perfect to share between the 6 of us instead of each ordering a dish. They also still have their birthday option where they turn the lights off in the whole restaurant sings happy birthday as the stuffing in the cake which is always nice.

The staff are nice here - they wore masks as of December 3rd and are very attentive. There is a small “waiting area” inside the restaurant so most groups are asked to wait outside - dress accordingly in case those lines are long! Groups of 6 can call ahead for reservations and are subject to 18% gratuity (of course confirm with them as these reviews have info subject to change). Phnom Penh is one of our fav places to go for...

I hate to do this as I tend to support businesses of the people of my community, but this was the worst Southeast Asian restaurant I have been to.

We were strolling around Chinatown and were curious about the lineup, so we decided to give it a try. Waited about 75min to get in, although the estimated time given by the employee was initially 45min. We started with what seemed to be their most popular dishes: the chicken wings and the butter beef... among the most underwhelming food I have had in my life.

The chicken wings: when I pay for wings, I expect to get a plate of wings, NOT drumsticks and a few wings. This is just straight disappointment, at least advertise it as "wings and drumsticks". Seasoning was meh and chicken was not juicy.

The butter beef: I don't understand what is the hype surrounding this dish. It is literally a sad version of a Vietnamese beef carpaccio, with a very strong use of vinegar and very grossly cut slices of beef. If you've ever had authentic Vietnamese beef carpaccio before (or even if you haven't), you can definitely pass on this one.

We were still hungry, so we decided to give the Phnom Penh Dry Rice noodles a try... damn is salt so expensive that they have to cut on this too??? The soup, the noodles, the meat... EVERYTHING was bland.

Service was definitely rushed, but it was expected considering the place is always packed. However, what annoyed me was the waiters CONSTANTLY coming back and forth at our table to pick up dirty dishes. We did not stay longer than 40min in this restaurant and they came to our table 4x to pick up dishes. They be doing that, but when we ordered the extra rice noodles, we had to ask for it twice because they did not pick it up the first time... Service is usually very poor in restaurants like these ones but this one beats everyone at it.

This restaurant probably used to be very good, considering all of the rewards they won in the past, but it is definitely overhyped now (either that, or we were unlucky and went on a really bad day... yeah okay). Food was clearly expensive for the quality. NOT WORTH lining up for, not...

Went for dinner with a small group (5 people in total), just before 5pm on a Sunday. As we couldn't reserve unless it was 6 or more we put our names down and walked around Chinatown while we waited. The wait was about 30 minutes, which was pretty decent.

We were put at a table for 4 with a 5th chair on the end, but it was not uncomfortable or too crowded. We have been here before but not for many years and before they got mentioned in Michelin ratings.

We ordered the Butter Beef (#71 Marinated That Bo) - if you like Beef Carpaccio you will love this. Mouth watering tender thin slices of beef marinated in vinegar sauce. I must order

Deep friend chicken wings (#78 Canh Ga Lan Bot) - this is the staple of Phnom Penh and along with Butter Beef what we always order. Crispy with lots of flavour. Could easily get a second order.

Beef Luc Lac on fried rice (#87 Bo Luc Lac) - First time having this, the beef was very tender and matched well with the friend rice, egg and sauce.

Two Noodle Soup (#5, Hu ties Mi Nuoc Nam Vang) - A traditional dish, not overly flavourful, but bit of comfort food for some. Personally I would get two orders of Butter Beef instead! :)

Chicken Curry (#81 Cari Ga Nam Vang) (but they were sold out of baguette). They were sold out of baguettes so had to have it with rice. It’s a very mild spicy, so most people won’t even notice. A good dish, but again I would take Butter beef/chicken wings over it.

Dessert Durian with sticky Rice (#117) - was curious what this would be like. It more of a coconut sticky rice with a bit of Durian custard in it for a subtle Durian flavour. Not bad, but nothing special.

Service was very efficient, food arrived quickly and hot. Not overly noisy in there. They even hand wall outlets at most tables which was convenient to charge phones with. The total divided amongst 5 people for this and tip came out to about $30 each, which is a very good value especially for the quality of food. Definitely highly recommended, just plan your time to go carefully as waits can get long...