cambodian crisis

The SEA Cambodian restaurant in Fort Greene,
Brooklyn is still closed, despite their sign
stating that January 8th would be re-opening day!
Would someone who frequents or lives near the
site report if and when it reopens? It would be a
tragic loss should they close, as their cuisine
is superb and they are the only Cambodian eatery
within hundreds of miles.
Allan Evans

Actually, the food at this Combodian joint is quite
good. Focus on the Cambodian dishes, avoid the Chinese
fare and you should be just fine. Pleasure found me
consuming a king fish steak. Draped in a light
cilantro cream sauce, and slightly overcooked, this
pleasurable dish worked well with rice and proved to be
a first date success. The deep fried tofu, firm
exterior, silky inside, received oohs and ahs. The
wait staff is down to earth and they aim to please.
The prices are fair but not a bargain. Surely worth
the visit.

Cambodian Cuisine recently reopened, as reported here, but not after a second renovation...the owner was simply on vacation, in Cambodia.

And I had an AWESOME meal there.

Everybody: go there, ok? Use it or lose it!

Cambodian Cuisine's in fort greene, brooklyn, at 87 s. elliot between lafayette and fulton 718-858-3262

Walking by the corner of S. Elliott and Lafayette last
night, it appeared to me that Cambodian Cuisine was
reopened. I was holding a heavy bag full of laundry,
and was rushing home, so I didn't have a chance to look
in, but it seemed operational, nothing changed. Have
no fears about bringing kids, I don't think that they
installed crystal chandeliers.

Thanks for confirming the reopening of SEA! Life
would be worse without this rare presence of
Cambodian food in our midst.

Way to go Rachel. We chowhounds salute you!

Thanks...and what do you think of K-dell's (sp???), the Belizian soul food place nearby?

ciao

I rarely get to brooklyn (I'm originally from the
Bronx, and it might be genetic -- my parents avoid the
borough on principle) and made a special trip last
summer to go to Cambodian Cuisine. I was underwhelmed.
The food was OK, but most was not really that special.
The only dishes that ALMOST had the homemade khmer
taste were the curry noodles and the ground meat dip
for veggies.

Besides, they didn't have any pork on the menu. Are
they Cham (Muslim minority group in Cambodia) or
something? One of the best Cambodian dishes is made
with pork: fresh pigs belly and eggs stewed with
caramel and fish sauce (Khmer bacon and eggs).

I wish them well and hope they reopen, but can't swear
that I'll hurry back there.

"Besides, they didn't have any pork on the menu. Are

they Cham (Muslim minority group in Cambodia) or

something?"

don't THINK so...they're in a Muslim-heavy nabe, though (not far from the famous "No Pork Chinese Restaurant", come to think of it).

They are in many ways a prisoner of their nabe...90% of customers want cheap chinese, few are interested in the Cambodian stuff, and prices must be kept artificially low in order to accomodate. Their recent upgrade (becoming more overtly Cambodian, redecorating, deemphasizing takeout, increasing number of Cambodian dishes, etc) was a brave move indeed.

I'm a bit upset about all the negatives springing up in this thread; admittedly they're inconsistent, but if out-of-nabe chowhounds stop coming around, they'll never make it. And the food there can be SO GOOD. Those who haven't eaten well there, PLEASE go back (once they reopen, of course) and find out. They can use the business and the encouragement, and you could use the deliciousness.

ciao

"but if out-of-nabe chowhounds stop coming around,
they'll never make it. And the food there can be SO
GOOD. Those whohaven't eaten well there, PLEASE go back
(once they reopen, of course) and find out."

OK, OK I'll go back. Enough trustworthy people seem to
think they deserve another chance. Somebody please
post when they reopen, and how they place looks when
they do (i.e. should we leave the kids at home, etc.)

Are you talking about the Cambodian restaurant on Eliot
Place, just off Fulton Street in Ft. Greene? If so, 5
of us had dinner there this fall and the food was just
terrible. The chicken broth had a foul, stale taste to
it which contaminated every thing they used it in. It
was so bad that we actually had a discussion about
leaving after the first courses but the person
responsible for choosing this restaurant was gung-ho
to see it through and talked us in to staying. After
dinner even he admited it was a bomb. Too bad as I
always heard that it was a good place. You don't get
the chance to eat Cambodian that often.

Hi, Steve, good to have you back on the boards!

I've had nothing but great meals at Cambodian Cuisine, but for years I've been getting scatters of negative reports (though never as bad as yours). The place is perpetually in financial trouble; everytime they try to improve or expand their (limited) menu, they run out of money (how can they make a profit at the prices they charge--necessarily low to allow them to compete with area chinese take-outs?). A restaurant in trouble for money is necessarily an inconsistent one.

I wish this place could get some investors, and open a souped-up version in a more upscale nabe. There on S. Elliot they're gonna continue to spiral down and die. Great, proud kitchen (when they're not up against the wall) and nice people, and the cuisine is unavailable elsewhere (as Allan Evans says, not for hundreds of miles). It's a shame.

In any case, trust me: bliss has been attained there on many ocassions!

Ciao.

Jim-How are you? I tried to call you about a month ago
but you weren't around. I assumed you were out on the
road. Too bad about the Cambodian but it was barely
edible. Let's hope they called Cambodia for
reinforcements. I need the name and address of the
Brazilian with the best Feijoida in the world in
Queens. I'm off to Europe for 2 weeks on business but
when I get back I'll give you a call. We should get
together and chowdown one night.

"Too bad about the Cambodian but it was barely

edible"

again, that was just one meal. I've eaten stellarly there. It's hard to keep up consistency when money's not flowing...you've got to buy cheaper ingredients, re-use stuff you'd otherwise not, freeze things, etc etc.

As a S. Elliott Street resident (check the local street
signs, there is conflict as to the proper spelling of
the street name, two t's or one), I can attest that
eating at Cambodian Cuisine is very hit and miss. In
general, the "Cambodian" dishes are far better than the
standard Chinese fare. Also, try the curry noodle
soup. The prices can't be beat, but the "Stir-fry
mixes vegetable" style dishes can be very bland.

I'll alert the board when it reopens.

"In general, the "Cambodian" dishes are far better than the standard Chinese fare."

agreed, but for the record, even in Cambodia most restaurants cook a blend of Cambodian and varying proportions of Chinese.

allan, you'll recall that this happened a year or two ago, too....they closed for renovations, and their projected opening kept getting pushed back. It was worth it, when they reopened as a sort of Cambodian Cuisine Starship (seriously, it's now called "Cambodian Cuisine", they've dropped the "SEA" from their name).

So here's hoping all is ok. If they go out of business, I'll be disconsolate

JIM

Yesterday after taking my Board of Dread (Ahhhh, I mean Ed) licensing interview at Brooklyn Tech, I decided to walk around the environs. I happened to pass the Cambodian place you're talking about and noticed some painters with ladders and buckets going inside...Maybe it's just an extended renovation...I have to go back in a couple of weeks so I'll let you know...