Punjabi, HCMC, Vietnam

Located on 40/3 Bui Vien Street, this restaurant sits right in the middle of the Pham Ngu Lao backpacker area; an area where cheap food is more important than good food. My expectations where therefore not exactly high when I entered the place; a feeling not exactly helped by an interior reminiscent of a airport waiting lounge.

Typical Pham Ngu Lao Charm

Upon arrival, I was greeted by a friendly waitress who very promptly took my order of a Mango Lassi that turned out to be pretty good. The menu is fairly extensive and I decided to order dishes that I had never eaten before, apart from the Chicken Samosas I ordered as a starter. Said Samosas took 35 minutes to arrive, which I thought a bit long, and were pretty tasteless. As there were no condiments apart from a very thin mint sauce, there wasn't much I could do about it, either.

The Samosas tasted like they were presented: dull

For the main course I ordered Chicken Karahi (with tomatoes, onions, and ginger), Mutter Pilao (rice with green peas and spices) and a Methi Nan (Nan with Fenugreek). These dishes came considerably faster than the Samosas and turned out to be pretty good. The chicken curry had plenty of meat in it, from what I saw at neighboring tables all the portions were pretty large. The Nan was very good though I realized that Fenugreek is not my thing, especially as most of it was blown all over the table by the fan under which I was sitting. Only the peas in the rice tasted like they had come frozen, but I might be wrong. Once again, I would have liked some Chutneys or pickles to spruce things up a little, but I guess at those prizes one cannot ask too much.

Again zero points for presentation, but actually pretty good

Whilst not the best Indian food I have ever had, it is good value for money. Starters range from VND 18.000 to VND 40,000, a whole Tandoori chicken is VND 140,00, and mains start from VND 65,000 for curries. Drinks are also more than reasonable, with the Mango Lassi at VND 30,000 and Beers at VND 18,000.

But very good value for money

I ordered another Lassi after the meal which took 20 minutes to arrive. I took a look at the kitchen under the pretext of looking for the bathroom and understood why some dishes took so long: the kitchen is minuscule and there is only one blender. Hats off for providing food to the 20 or so persons that were eating when I was there. Speaking of bathrooms: would be nice to have a towel or tissues and a decent soap; I eat my Indian food with my hand and do not really like wiping it on my shorts once I am done. Total bill for more food than I could eat was VND 225,000.

Service: *** Friendly service, but let down by poor organisation
Food: ***
Ambiance: *
Value for money: ****

Entertainment value: ***** The long waits are made bearable by watching the zoo that is Pham Ngu Lao pass outside.
Recommended: Cannot fault the place for decent, cheap food.

Zero condiments though

Ban Khun Mae, Bangkok, Thailand

A recent break from Siem Reap saw us end up in Bangkok. Whenever we are in Bangkok, some things are just inevitable: we will shop (lots), go to the cinema, drink Singha Beer, and have at least 1 meal at the Ban Khun Mae Restaurant; the latter for neigh on 8 years.

Located on Siam Square Soi 8, just a stone's throw away from MBK and the Siam Square Malls, this restaurant is a welcome relief from the hustle and bustle of the area. The building alone, styled after a traditional Thai wooden house, already makes a change from all the concrete and glass all around. The theme is continued on the inside with dark wooden tables interspersed with shelves and cupboards filled with all sorts of bric-brac.

From the outside, just next to the Novotel Siam Square.

Whilst customers are inevitably greeted with a loud "Sawasdee Kha/Krap", the sercvice can admittedly be a little hit-and-miss. Of course they have a good excuse: the restaurant is always humming, and not just with tourists either. A couple of years we took our best friends here, both Thai, and they both agreed that the food was excellent (after initially being a little worried that this would turn out to be an overpriced tourist trap.

The Interior.

Speaking of which, I saw comments that this restaurant was very expensive. With most dishes in the 120-150 Baht range, I think it is actually pretty good value for money; especially considering the location and certainly a fair alternative to the horrible food courts in the malls. Sure, one could probably eat much cheaper at the food stalls in the road but a) they are pretty thin on the ground around Siam Square and b) I am not a big fan of sucking exhaust fumes during my meal.

Fried Fish with Sweet n' Sour, excellent.

The menu is extensive, this also includes Thai desserts which the restaurant is known for. The staff do ask for the degree of spiciness. I would skip the bravado and go for "mild" to "medium"; the "spicy" dishes will melt cutlery, destroy stomach linings, and will certainly come back to haunt you the next time you are in a restroom.

Service is fast and efficient, if not always too heavy on the friendliness. Don't bother with ordering starters and mains separately as everything will arrive at the same time anyway. The cold drinks start from 50 Baht for a fruit juice, via 95 Baht for a Singha, to 150 Baht for one of the many old-fashioned cocktails (though why anyone would want to drink an Eggnog with their Red Curry beats me).

Everything is good here.

The Spicy Salads are all very good, our favorite is the Spicy Glass Noodles Salad for 120 Baht. We then move on to a curry, the Green Curry for 130 Baht always hits the spot. Every fish dish we have tried was very good and what is never missing is the Fried Rice with Shrimp Paste for 85 Baht. I don't know where they get the small dried shrimps from, but they are delicious and I just cannot find them in any shop. Portions are a very decent size; we will never learn and end up ordering too much food most of the times.

I am no big fan of desserts in general and Asian desserts in particular as they are usually too sweet for me. However, on those rare occasions when our eyes were not bigger than our stomachs, the boiled Tapioca topped with Coconut sauce (40 Baht) will certainly have us roll out of the door; ready for some more shopping.

Though the desserts are as sweet as they look.

In the evenings there is live entertainment in the form of traditional Thai music; I believe this starts at 19:00.

We can certainly recommend this restaurant and sincerely hope that it will not be replaced by a hotel or yet another shopping mall as long as we still go to Bangkok. Apart from excellent food, this place is great to get away from the craziness of the nearby shopping area; and if it is to just gather strength for more shopping.

Rating (out of 5):

Service: ***
Food: *****
Ambiance: ****
Value for money: ****

Recommended: Absolutely

Contact details:

Ban Khun Mae
Address: 458/7-9 Siam Sq., Soi 8, Pratunam, Bangkok
Phone: (662)250-1952-3
E-mail: contact@bankhunmae.com
Web: www.bankhunmae.com/index.html

The Nest

This restaurant has been around for over a year but I must admit that I was reluctant to go in there at first as it appeared a little too "design" for me. Nothing wrong with design of course, but experience has shown me that often the more design, the lousier the food.

There are exceptions to every rule and I am glad to be able to report that The Nest certainly is one of those exceptions. Situated right in the middle of Sivath Boulevard, it starts with a great location; perfect place to duck into after having done the shopping at the nearby Angor Market.

The good impression starts on arrival where we were greeted by friendly staff and let to a table every time we have been there; certainly something many restaurants in Siem Reap should take note of. In more than one restaurant I have been to, not only was there nobody to greet and meet, I had to find and/or wake up the staff.

Restaurant interior.

One can choose to sit at tables or lounge in huge couch thingies. I tried the latter but find that, whilst they might be OK for a drink, they are not very comfortable to eat on; at least not for stiff old me. The whole design of the restaurant is very open, which I like. It does obviously pose a problem though when it is either very hot (they use fans with water spray, but even that is not enough when it is really boiling) or when the rain really hammers down and comes in sideways. However, minor inconveniences for a real al Fresco experience.

You can choose to dine here.

The menu is heavy on steaks and I suggest that this should be the main reason for any potential diner to come. Whilst the Khmer food is not bad, there are plenty of Khmer restaurants around. It is also a sort of Khmer fusion which just does not convince me. But the Steaks, oh my God the Steaks!!! They certainly must be amongst the best in town. Therefore, do not waste your time and head straight for the steak menu.

Beef Tenderloin, very yummy.

Service is friendly and very attentive throughout. Cold face towels and pretty good warm bread come straight away. The one time we had to wait a little longer, the staff came, apologized, and explained that a group of about 30 people had just ordered. I have no problem with waiting, especially in a restaurant that has German Erdinger Weissbier on promotion (Newsflash: that promotion is currently no longer available, darn).

Al Fresco dining, not advisable during the rainy season.

Prizes are around USD 4.00 for starters, USD 5.00 - 8.00 for noodle dishes, USD 12.00 - 22.00 for mains, and Steaks are from USD 15.00 - 18.00. The drinks menu is extensive with soft drinks and beers starting at USD 2.50 and going all the way to USD 40.00 for some very decent bottles of wine. There is also a large cocktail menu; probably just the thing for those lounge chairs. Go for a Champagne Cup at USD 250.00 a pop; it serves 45 drinks and I am sure that by the time you are done, the bill becomes but a minor nuisance.

Caprese with Buffalo Mozzarella.

If you do order a starter, and keep in mind that the steaks are quite big, try the Caprese of ripe plum tomatoes and Buffalo Mozarella. Unlike in many places in Siem Reap (including Italian restaurants) the salad comes with real Mozarella and not the plastic-like cheap Ersatz cheese so many restaurants prefer. I also liked the Pork Gyoza though they could have been a tad warmer.

Pork Gyoza.

We inevitably order Steaks each time we are there. They are all good and they are all decent chunks of meat at 300 grams each. Side dishes come extra (USD 1.90), I can recommend the Pumpkin and Risotto Croquettes. There are 6 different sauces to choose from, the Pink Peppercorn and Passion Fruit Sauce is very good, as is the wild Mushroom sauce (though the latter could have used more mushrooms last time I was there). Hard to say which steak is the best, but if I had to choose a single one, it would probably be the Australian Beef Tenderloin. I suggest you order the meat one stage less cooked than you usually do (i.e. if you normally order medium, order medium-rare here). Not only will you do justice to the quality of the meat, but as the steaks come in pretty solid chunks you risk that the outside of the meat is overcooked otherwise.

The Missus did try the Mackerel for a change last time we were there, whilst the Couscous was very good, the fish was a tad dry; as I said earlier: stick to the meat.

Pan-fried Mackerel.

Not a big fan of desserts personally, and the selection is pretty small, but the Mango with Sticky Rice is sinfully good. Probably worth a few hundred calories, but if you have made it until here, than you just know it will be salad and gym for the next couple of weeks anyway.

Tempura ice-cream, 412 points at WeightWatchers.

Overall, a great dining experience. If there was one thing I could change, it would be the uniforms. Both waiters and waitresses were these baggy, past-the-knee shorts that might look OK on back-packers on Khao San road but which are totally out of place in this restaurant.


Rating (out of 5):

Service: *****
Food: *****
Ambiance: *****
Value for money: ****

Recommended: Oh yes! Whenever the carnivore in me awakens, it is inevitably The Nest I head for to sink my teeth into a bloody piece of cow.

Master Suki

Master Suki, Green Suki, Angkor Suki, Hawaii(!) Suki, SK Suki. Many different restaurants all over Siem Reap serving basically the same thing: hot-pot. Electric plate in the middle, pot with broth on top, and then you order whatever you would like to chuck in there. A simple enough concept and one that is very popular with locals as well as with Asian visitors. It is fast, cooking your food is fun, and prizes are pretty reasonable.

We went to Master Suki, the only reason being that it is close to where we live; as far as I am concerned the food tastes all the same in the different Suki restaurants. The only diffence is that in some restaurants the food comes on a conveyer belt, much like in a Sushi restaurant, and in others it comes on small plates.




Like in all the Suki restaurants, the decor is pretty basic; I guess it is the Asian-influenced answer to Mickey Dee's or KFC. The punters are supposed to come in, eat, and bugger off to make room for the next guests. Service is also spotty. They were all very friendly, but I am guessing the girls are hired from the booneys as they are cheap; this shows in both the feet-dragging and the absence of English. No worries though; the menu comes with lots of pretty pictures.

The individual dishes are all around USD 1.50 each, but portions are small and you would have to order quite a few if you are hungry. As with all hot-pots, this is best enjoyed with a few people as that makes it possible to order a wide variety of dishes. Add some veggies and mushrooms and you are laughing. If you do not like hot-pot very much, then there is always the option of meat, fish, or fried rice dishes. Prizes vary according to the meat and size of the dish, but range from about USD 3.00 to USD 6.00. Juices are around the USD 2.00 mark, as are the beers.

This particular restaurant also has a Chippie connected to it; good if you cannot face anymore Asian food. The fish is really not bad and decent value for USD 5.00. I couldn't tempt my daughter with it, so she went ahead and ordered "Bowels Beef (sic)", Pig's Intestine and Jellyfish. Just kidding, she may be half Vietnamese, but she prefers to stick to more conservative food.


As usual in Suki restaurants the food arrived about 2 seconds after we ordered. The hot plates are very efficient, bringing everything to a boil in no time at all. Is the food tasty? It really depends on you and what you dump into the broth, you can make it as yucky or as yummy as you wish.



Now if only they could do something about the uniforms:





Rating (out of 5):

Service: **** staff appear little motivated, but are very friendly and willing to help
Food: From * to ***** depending on what one chooses
Ambiance: *
Value for money: ****

Recommended: If you want a quick meal, do not like KFC, and think it is normal to eat hot-pot when it is 37 degrees outside: yes. Seriously, it is actually quite good and at least the food is fresh.

Sala Baï Hotel School

The Sala Baï is not a "real" restaurant per se, rather it is an outlet of the Sala Baï Hotel School (more information here: http://www.salabai.com/html/index.php?p_lang=en) and is meant to give the students a chance to practice their newly learned skills. Thus, not only will you do a good deed when eating there, you will also come across lovely kids that try very hard to hide their trembling hands. I can sympathize with that; been there, done that. The restaurant is only open from Monday to Friday, opening hours are 07:00 - 09:00 and 12:00 - 14:00 and it is located on Taphul Street.

The restaurant interior. Nice enough.

As soon as you get there, you will be greeted by a very friendly hostess that will positively fuss over you. This attention continues; it can be a bit much at times but then do remember that they are still learning the ropes. The setting of the restaurant is nothing fancy but friendly enough (can a restaurant actually be friendly?). Lots of second-hand books in case the food takes a little longer, though I always found the service more than fast enough.

The menu is very small, but they do have a choice of an Asian or Western set menu that changes every week. The menus usually are between USD 6.00 and USD 8.00 for a three-course meal, I do think it is excellent value for money; I have eaten a lot worse for a lot more. Mind you, today I heard the next table complain that "c'est pas donné" (it is expensive), but then they were French and in my experience the French make everybody look like big spenders. Some people shouldn't travel, but maybe they were still pissed off at the dismal showing by the French national team in the World Cup. Drinks are USD 2.00 for fruit shakes, USD 2.00 for an Angkor can, and USD 3.50 for a glass of wine.

Watermelon Gazpacho! But the cheese was excellent.

We both had the Western menu, even though I am not a big fan of Gazpacho and even less of watermelon. I ordered it for the fresh cheese that came with it. I ended up eating my daughters Gazpacho, she likes it even less than I do. Bummer!

Pork chops with Mushroom Risotto.

The pork chops that came as the main dish were really good, as was the Risotto, though I would have preferred the latter just a little bit more "al dente"; it was a tad over-cooked. Like the service staff, the kitchen staff are also still learning; though they do better than a lot of the restaurants recommended by Lonely Planet....

I am on a chocolate diet.

The dessert was a highlight for me. According to the menu it was supposed to be a frozen chocolate cake; luckily it was more of a chocolate mousse and I will be damned if it wasn't one of the best I have had in Siem Reap!

This is certainly a restaurant I would recommend, but only to people that remember that things can go wrong. Having said that, in my 10 or so visits, this place has never let me down; no burnt food, no soup in my lap, just a bunch of extremely willing (if nervous) kids that would be a credit to many a regular restaurant out there.

Rating (out of 5):

Service: ***** (taking into account that they are trainees)
Food: ****
Ambiance: ***
Value for money: ****
Recommended: Absolutely; good food, good cause, what else could one wish for?

Good Nah

After some not so glowing reviews, I can finally write about a restaurant without bitching non-stop. Now I know nothing about Filipino food and can't say if the food is authentic, but it tastes darn good. The restaurant is on Taphul Street; behind the Hotel de la Paix and next to the Salabai Hotel School.

Not exactly suitable for a 300-strong wedding party

The restaurant is very basic, as is the presentation. But then main dishes are only in the USD 2.50 to 4.50 range, with both soft drinks and beer at a Dollar; certainly value for money as far as I am concerned. They do have excellent music, not Filipino but contemporary stuff, makes a change from the Muzak so many restaurants seem to prefer.

The owner, who I guess is a Filipina, as well as the Khmer staff, are extremely friendly and helpful. The menu is only a couple of pages but I actually prefer that; restaurants with menus the size of the New York phone directory must have huge freezers in the back. And a small menu also means that the Missus doesn't take 2 hours to choose. Even with the small menu, do not expect your order to arrive all at once. The kitchen is tiny and they do a dish at a time. You don't want to be in a rush eating here. Oh, and don't use the face towels; they are so horribly perfumed that your sense of mell might take hours to get back to normal

Can't remember what that was. Adobo perhaps?

We have eaten there a number of times, but one of my favorites is the Kaldereta Baka, or beef stew with tomatoes and coconut milk. The meat is cooked to perfection and is so tender that a knife is not necessary. The deep-fried pork hocks, Crispy Pata, are also very good.

Pork stew: not suitable if on a diet.

The only thing I would give a miss is the draft beer. I guess they do not have enough turn-over and the beer tasted flat on the couple of occasions I tried. The other minor discomfort, which is no fault of the Hood Nah, is that the garbage truck does its rounds between 19:00 and 19:30; if you have a sensitive nose you may want to avoid that time.

If you are looking for an unpretentious but good meal, then I can certainly recommend the "Good Nah". As I am writing this, I am actually tempted to go back tonight.

Rating (out of 5):

Service: ****
Food: ****
Ambiance: ** (though not without a certain rustic charm)
Value for money: ****
Recommended: Yes

La Volpaia

A fairly recent addition to the Italian restaurant scene, this place is not far from the museum. It certainly has potential as it is set in a garden, well away from the road. As with a previous visit, we were the only guests when we arrived and we had to rouse the staff. I sympathize though, the town is completely dead at the moment and the location that far from Pub Street can't help. However, once up and running the staff were extremely courteous and efficient, certainly an asset to the restaurant.

The restaurant is well set back

As the garden wasn't really set up, we decided to sit inside. A mistake really as the air conditioning was not working and there was a very musty smell because of that. I suspect that the A/C does work but staff have order to switch it off to cut costs. The restaurant interior has all the charm of a railway station waiting room ca. 1950; the atmosphere was not helped by Kenny G coming over the loudspeakers at full blast. Not sure where Kenny G's elevator music fits in with an Italian restaurant?

Please hire an Interior Designer!

Starters range from USD 3.50 - 8.00, Pasta goes from USD 5.50 to 8.50, and Pizzas go for anywhere between USD 6.00 and 8.50. They only have 3 meat dishes and one fish dish; the meat starts at a whopping USD 16.00 and the Salmon Steak goes for USD 14.00. Soft drinks are USD 1.50 and beers are USD 2.00 - 2.50. There is no wine list (in an Italian restaurant) though they did have house wine on offer. The beer was also a little too warm, can't be because the restaurant was that busy/

The missus had what she always has in an Italian restaurant: Carpaccio. This was supposed to come with rocket leaves, but they were out; so it came with a mixed salad instead, this for USD 6.50. I am no big Pizza fan, but as I was not too impressed with the meat the first time I went there, I ordered a Pizza "With four different kinds of Cheese" at USD 8.75.


Just like during our first meal there, our orders came well apart; amazing considering we were still the only people. The first time my wife had Carpaccio in this restaurant, it was quite good. However, whilst the meat the first time round seemed to come from (imported) fillet, this time the source must have been a water buffalo that died of old age; the Carpaccio had the consistency of chewing gum. Fair enough, but if the owner decides to downgrade the meat, he should do the same with the prize. On a positive note, the shaved Parmesan cheese on top of the Carpaccio was very good.

Nice presentation, tough meat

Not much to say about the Pizza. After all, it is not easy to mess up a Pizza. The cook certainly wasn't stingy on the cheese, which I like. He was a tad stingy on the baking time, which I like less. Now I know that some people like a thick base, I prefer Pizzas (if I eat one, which rarely happens) with as thin a base as possible; if I want a slice of bread, I'll ask for one. At the La Volpaia the bases are paper-thin, which is fine with me. The spicy oil they had as an optional topping was excellent and packed a good punch.

Pizza and Beer, staple diet world-wide.

Conclusion: Yet another restaurant with wasted potential. Great spot if you are taking out the secretary and don't want anyone to see you, not the best spot in town for good Italian food. I think the owner has a problem positioning the restaurant: the menu is that of a cheap Pizzeria, the prizes on the other hand are anything but. Get that right, work on the interior design, and this could really become a first-rate place, especially if he can keep the same staff.

Rating (out of 5):

Service: *****

Food: ***

Ambiance: */**** (Inside/outside)

Value for money: **

Recommended: No/Yes (Inside/Outside)