Gerald S.
Yelp
What do you get when you mix a Vietnamese wife and chef, who spend many years in Cambodia, with a Chinese husband and entrepreneur?
Neon Phnom Penh Restaurant on 7th and Wolf in deep South Philly, and some very good unintentional fusion dishes from that golden triangle of spicy cuisine. This small corner house with eight tables and booths has a cozy feel, from the wall art and houseplants, down to the Buddha shrine sitting on the floor with oranges in supplication.
We ordered their spring rolls (3 for $5), beef with fat noodles, and beef lo mein. They were all good to very good, but the star of the show were the deep fried spring rolls that had a great rough texture and were filled with ground pork, veggies, sprouts and homemade sweet dipping sauce with peanuts chunks. They were nearly a meal by themselves.
The fat noodles were also quite delicious with plenty of tender sliced beef, Chinese broccoli, string beans, onions, peppers, scallions and a tasty brown sauce that melded everything together. Liked this a lot. The lo mein was also good, but not at the level of the former dishes. It had an interesting, indefinable almost smoky flavor, with plenty of meat and greens, but not as scrumptious as everything else.
We ended up taking half of each of the mains home with us, and one of the rolls, for subsequent consumption by our son. He devoured all this the same night, and claimed to like it all, while also questioning the ingredients of the lo mein and that somewhat odd taste.
Still, a worthy stop in the heart of Cambodiatown. Plenty of atmosphere, and a friendly family team that spent more time that normal chatting with us about their lives in Asia and Philly. Good people with an interesting story to tell.
Made for an entertaining and satisfying dining experience.