An Evening in Siem Reap

Another day of temple trekking, another hungry group of people. This time we wandered into the centre of Siem Reap for beers at the Red Piano, before meandering up and down ‘Bar Street’ trying to choose where to eat. We settled on In Touch restaurant, for it’s mixture of Thai and Khmer dishes and it’s upstairs balcony seating, with views down over the action.

We started off by ordering a bottle of white wine, to be told that it was out of stock… so we ordered another to be told the same thing. We could kind of see where this conversation might be leading, so asked what they did have in stock – turned out they only had one wine, a red, out of the entire wine list, so we stuck with a jug of Angkor beer and turned our minds to eating.

We started off with some Pork and Prawn parcels with a plum dipping sauce, which unfortunately were a little blander than their golden crispy exterior promised

We then mixed things up a bit between Thailand and Cambodia, going for a Thai Beef Panang curry

A Thai Green Chicken Curry with Eggplant

And a Cambodian Pork Lok Lak – marinated pork strips cooked in a fiery peppery sauce.

And of course some stir-fried vegetables.

Our initial impression wasn’t altogether favourable – the food was cold and the dishes slightly bland. However, as we ate on, the flavours seemed to develop and we found ourselves quite enjoying the meal.

So not as successful as our evening before… but we left fairly satisfied nonetheless… although I’m pretty sure I wouldn’t return…

In Touch – Bar Street, Siem Reap (opposite the Red Piano)

Khmer Cuisine

We had managed to build up a fairly large appetite during an afternoon of exploring the awe-inspiring Angkor Wat, so we jumped in a tuk tuk and made our way to the Luxe Guide-recommended Viroth’s. We were certainly glad we did – Viroth’s provides a lovely little open air oasis tucked away on a side street in Siem Reap, complete with decking, running water, tropical foliage and twinkling candles.

More importantly, the food was fantastic and a great introduction to Khmer cuisine, a first for all of us. We dove straight into the main courses – the Eggplants sautéed with Minced Pork, Ginger and Local Herbs

The Roast Chicken Khmer Style which was roasted with ginger, onions and Chinese basil and served with morning glory and a lemony dipping sauce which was just superb

The Amok Fish, which is Cambodia’s signature dish, which is fish cooked in coconut milk, lemon grass and local herbs, and is delicious – not too thick and coconuty, but light and fragrant

And some Sautéed Vegetables, which was a mixture of vegetables including pineapple and tomatoes cooked in an oyster sauce and local herbs, which was the perfect accompaniment to the other main dishes.

We were of course extremely full by this stage, but couldn’t leave without sampling their Bananas Flamed in Rum, which were sticky and gooey and lovely, and perfect with the coconut ice cream.

So we left Viroth’s very satisfied… and very happy to be in yet another country with such fantastic cuisine….

Viroth's - http://www.viroth-hotel.com/restaurant.php

Vietnamese Dinner

Ever since we went travelling in Vietnam in 2003, and I succeeded in my quest to have Spring Rolls every day of my trip (often twice a day!), I have been a huge lover of Vietnamese food. Strange then that we haven’t really eaten much of it since we moved to Asia… well… apart from the odd lunch and takeaway from the Orange Lantern… and the odd plate of Spring Rolls from the various Indochine bars…

Anyway, tonight it was all about a proper Vietnamese sit-down dinner (although strictly speaking it was South-East Asian, not just Vietnamese), and fabulous it was too. This was our first time upstairs at the Indochine on Club St. We’ve spent many an evening in the downstairs bar supping cocktails and nibbling on the aforementioned spring rolls, but never ventured up the narrow staircase to the restaurant. It’s a beautiful space with white linen tablecloths, and large Buddha heads adorning the walls, and the menu is full of mouthwatering dishes.

Believe it or not, we gave the Spring Rolls a miss this time (unheard of!), and dove straight into the main courses – Pepper Beef with Garlic and Butter – big thick chunks of tender beef sautéed in herbs, spices and butter, which were really delicious, especially when dipped in the accompanying sour-sweet dip

Tiger Prawns in Lemongrass and Chilli Sauce – this sauce was so zesty and spicy and tasty that I just couldn’t stop spooning up those juices

Stir-fried Vegetables with Basil and Chilli – even these were delicious, especially the baby corn (although when I mentioned that to Mr Greedy Glutton, he said he hadn’t had a chance to try any before they all disappeared… oops!)

I am adding this restaurant to my list of favourites… yes, that ever-growing list of restaurants… that I seem to add to every week….

Indochine Club St - http://www.indochine.com.sg/

A South-East Asian Selection

A couple from home were in Singapore for a stopover, so we met up with them for drinks and dinner after their day of sightseeing. They’d eaten at Raffles the night before, so we weren’t going to compete on fine dining, so we instead went for atmosphere and took them down to Indochine’s Siem Reap II on the river. I think this is a great place to bring first-time visitors to Singapore, where you can enjoy a relaxed drink and dine al-fresco amongst the fairy lights, with a view of the Singapore skyline and river.

I love their menu also, which offers a selection of dishes from around the South-East Asian region – in fact we quite often come here for a drink after work, just to have the Cha Gio (Vietnamese Spring Rolls). Tonight we started with their Siem Reap Platter, which has a selection of favourites – the aforementioned Cha Gio, Goi Cuon (Fresh Rice Paper Prawn Rolls), Pik Kai (Laotian Chicken Wings), Xin Lord (Laotian Sun Dried Beef) and Chao Tom (Deep Fried Prawn on Sugar Cane).



This is a great way to start a meal and, in fact, I’d probably just be happy having only this for my meal, all the elements are so very moreish. We did choose mains, however, opting to share the Yam Pak Nam, the Indochine House Salad which comes with shredded chicken, watercress, lettuce, tomatoes, cucumber, egg and fried shallots, finished off with a Luang Prabang egg dressing and topped with roasted peanuts;



the Nem Nuong Ga, a BBQ Chicken Set, which comes as a plate of grilled chicken skewers with vermicelli, star fruit, cucumber, mint leaves and coriander, which you wrap into lettuce leaves lined with rice paper, then dip into the chilli sauce;



and the Bun Bo Xao, which is curried stir-fried beef scattered on rice vermicelli, cucumber and lettuce and garnished with mint leaves, basil, crushed peanuts and served with sweet and sour chilli fish sauce.



It was a satisfying selection, and the dressings definitely make the dishes, as do the accompanying Lychee Martinis!

So stomachs lined, relaxation achieved, sightseeing accomplished… it was time to whisk our friends down to Clarke Quay to show them where the action really is… despite their 6am flight to Perth the next day…

Siem Reap II – www.indochine.com.sg