Fresh Papaya Salad That Will Rock Your World

Another addition to my posts on the fine cuisine of Phnom Penh in Chinatown, is their freshly prepared raw papaya salad. Shaved and sliced to mingle with carrots, cilantro, and hints of mint, topped off with cooked prawns, beef jerky and a sprinkle of peanuts, all in a pond of fish and vinegar sauce! Phew, this starter is simply delectable!

Vancouver Restaurant Awards 2010

Vancouver Magazine just announced their Vancouver Restaurant Awards 2010 and you know what that means? I have a whole new list of restos to try out this year and blog about! Woohoo! Quickly - Restaurant of the year goes to Blue Water Cafe, Best Casual Japanese is Kingyo (yum!) and best Vietnamese restaurant goes to Phnom Penh - hooray!!!

Beef It Up Baby!

Dining with my pals AY and AK (woot woot!) is always a hilarious hoot because it's always laughter and fun filled! It was PH's, oops I mean AK's first time having Phnom Penh's famous butter beef and she gave it two thumbs up! Never having raw beef before and being exposed to that dish above, she was a true solider! Why is it called butter beef? I'm told because the butter is slowly kneaded into the beef and marinated for days beforehand. Garnished with a vinegary sauce, lots of cilantro and fried onions, this is one dish not to be reckoned with.

My 2nd time ordering this hot and sour soup with fish and it was delectable! Served with chunks of tomatos, pineapples, and leeks (?), garnished with green and fried onions, this hot soup will have your nose running for sure (well if you're weak like me and can't take spicyness!).

And of course, there is no way you can visit this place without ordering their #35. Filet beef on rice with egg. According to AY, it felt like we ate an entire cow this evening!

Alongside our meals is my favorite drink, lime soda (imagine a carbonated soda with sugar, salt and lime - yum!) and AK's lychee moo moo shake. Just for clarification y'all, their shakes don't taste like milkshakes, think more of like a slush! Give it a whirl!

No Food Blog Should Ever Exist Without The Mention of Phnom Penh

#35 at Phnom Penh and an order of their famous chicken wings. Filet Beef on Rice with an Egg - you HAVE to order it with a runny egg. Every man and woman needs to try this dish before they die. It will never be duplicated. The sweet beef sauce smothered with rice, fresh veggies, mixed with the egg, drenched in the fish sauce, I will never get sick of it. This night, we ordered 5 #35's and a plate of chicken wings to share. Oh and their awesome lime soda (darnit, forgot to take a pic!). My friend KL made a NY resolution to try everything on the menu in 2010 so I will be sure to update you on his flavorful findings. Also a quick shout out to my pal EM who helps me to 'broaden my horizons' when ordering. You just can't go wrong with this place!

Snack-a-Licious

Who doesn't enjoy a great snack or two once in a while? Yummy, I devoured this very bag of chips yesterday after going on a snack binge at Daiso last week with some gal pals. These okonomiyaki flavored Calbee chips are so good! They taste almost exactly like the real thing! My recommendation would be to go to Ma's Clubhouse for a good authentic okonomiyaki and stay very far away from them at The Eatery.

Now watching a movie wouldn't be complete without a good ol' bag of popcorn. With butter. Layer the butter - even better (a tip that my friend MA taught me). And when the butter runs out, make sure you ask for a free package of seasoning at the counter! White Cheddar is my favorite. Plus with a Scene card, get 10% off on all concession goods! Check out the butter stains on the bag, haha.

My all time favorite office snack. Having a bag of rice crackers around, sure is handy. These are the gigantic sized ones that I purchase from London Drugs around the corner. One negative, they're super crunchy and loud so be aware of your neighbors!

And yes, this IS a snack. We actually had this for a 'snack and dessert' after a meal at our beloved Phnom Penh! We all ordered the #35, filet beef on rice with an egg, ate half of the dish, saved the rest for lunch the next day and drove to McDonald's for sundaes, and in my case, shared fries and a cheeseburger with my piggy sisters. I just can't eat the fudge sundaes without dipping their salty fries into it! A perfect post-clubbing-drinking snack fosho!