Phnom Penh Restaurant Reviews – Sichuan Restaurant
It’s twelve noon on a Sunday and the Sichuan Restaurant is so packed that you are lucky to get a table. I have already warmed up with two liters of TsingTao before my buddy walks in to commence the week’s culinary adventure.
For a small space, the Sichuan has an entourage of servers who manoeuvre swiftly through the obstacle course of tables packed with Chinese patrons. There is a warmth of body heat and steaming dishes which permeates the senses and creates a cosiness. We look over the menu and peck at a hair-raising starter dish of cabbage soaked in garlic and red chili-pepper sauce. Hot tea is barely adequate to quell the oral inferno it ignites.
I begin with a bowl of “Seaweed and Egg” soup ($1). The deep, musty broth lingers with each spoonful. The strands of seaweed are never easy to get from the bowl to mouth in one try, so you have to get a little messy. That’s okay, because I’m already messy on TsingTao and the taste of the food is worth it.
A waitress glides past with a steaming dish of dark brown fried pig intestines laced with golden ginger ($4). I cajole my buddy into trying it for his first time. He agrees and suggests a fish dish. We spot sizzling fried eel ($4) and give it a go.
A few more TsingTao bottles later and the main courses arrive. The pig intestines are superb. Bite-sized tubes of chewy, yet tender, cord have a lingering buttery taste which hooked me from the first mouthful. My buddy tries it and agrees, but focuses more attention on the eel, which is served in a standing metal bowl and mixed with stir-fried onions and sliced green bell peppers. It is a colorful dish of white, black and green. We wait a few minutes for it to cool and release the full flavor. The eel is tender from marinating in the spiced vegetable juices. The bones are soft and harmless enough to be eaten along with the meat.
The dishes are generally heavily oiled at this place. Although some might think it excessive it does add to the taste and consistency of the dishes. The cook has a keen sense of spice, which really gives each dish a distinct taste. It is always possible to leave the some oil at the bottom of the dish.
We take our time with the heavy dishes as enjoy the beer and atmosphere. The finale arrives in the form a deep, dark-red sliced chunk of juicy ripe watermelon. It is a perfect conclusion to such a satiable meal.
The bill comes in at around fifteen dollars. This is quite a bargain for the quality of the food. In the future I would like to try the “fried beef with onion and mushroom” and “fried squid with pepper” dishes – both of which have caught my eye upon passing to another table.
The service at the Sichuan is generally good. It is best when the place is busy, as the servers are too busy to spend time talking or sitting around looking bored or staring at the only foreigner (or two) in the place.
I give this one four stars **** – one less than perfect for the lack of creative interior design.
Frank Lancieri
Sichuan Restaurant – in between Monivong and Psah Thmei
