And the march through central New York's ethnic restaurant's continues. Yesterday I treated my parents to A Taste of Cambodia which is a, uh, well, Cambodian restaurant.
AToC (that's my own acronym, but you can use it if you like) is located at 244 Roosevelt Drive in Utica, just across from where my grandfather use to earn his wages (well, its just an empty lot now, hopefully the city can find some use for it). Now, don't be confused here. The restaurant has only been at this location for a couple months. It used to be located on Bleecker Street, in the heart of downtown. Unfortunately, the proprietors haven't been very good about updating their Facebook page, so disregard that and be sure to visit the Roosevelt address.
It's a really quaint place, with only about 8-10 four-seater tables in a small room, but it has a classier feel than some of Utica's other Asian joints, and there is some nice decor related to Cambodia, including an awesome painting of Angkor Wat. Like most of the ethnic places around here, there was only one waitress on hand to serve us. No worries though....we were the only ones there.
Now, I have never been to Cambodia (THAT has got to be changed, tout de suite), nor have I ever had Cambodian food, so this was unfamiliar territory for me. Luckily, the menus give lengthy, detailed descriptions of each item, so the unfamiliar customer need not worry about ordering something blindly and then having a live duck put in front of them or something like that. Now, the menus are a bit limited. There is only one sheet, front and back, with appetizers, soups, noodle dishes, specialties, and desserts. Bear in mind though that this was the dinner menu, and the lunch menu is most likely different. I will probably have to visit again to get an idea of that.
We started out with an appetizer of pork dumplings (a serving comes with four). Though coming at a pricey $6, they were obviously freshly made (they didn't come out right away) and not bad on the taste buds either. Some might find them a tad on the salty side, but it didn't bother any of us three. Cilantro is mixed in with the pork, boosting the dumplings on the health scale.
So then came the main event. You can accuse me of being a bit boring, but I was in the mood, and went for the Jungle Pad Thai ($9, in the noodles section) (at least I am making a fist of comparing all the Pad Thais in the area). That price is actually a steal for what you get: A massive mound of delectable noodles and bean sprouts, basically buried in peanuts. I can usually house my Asian dishes no issue, but there was so much on the plate I struggled to finish. Mom decided on the Curried Stir Fry ($11, under specialties), which can be beef, chicken, or tofu (she went with chicken, which was of course all-white, breast meat), mixed with peppers, onions, and holy basil, all on a bed of rice. She couldn't stop raving about it, and, after trying a few bites, I would have to agree it was pretty stellar. The curry taste was a bit heavy, but not overpowering. Curry fans should definitely give it a shout. And then of course, there was Dad, ever the adventurer, who chose the Cambodian Crepes ($11, under specialties). You get about 3 large, thin crepe-style pancakes, made out of rice flour, each filled with minced pork and chicken, bean sprouts, onion, some coconut, and topped with lettuce and cucumber. It also comes with a peanut sauce for dipping. Yeah, that one was a winner. The crepes, sweet but not too sweet, mixed it with all the rest of the stuff were just delicious. Mom, no fan of coconut, also approved (the coconut is barely noticeable).
After literally leaving nothing on our plates, Mom declared that, out of the places I have taken them, this was the best. Hard to argue with. Absolutely no complaints about the food, the hygiene, nor the service. The service is a bit slow, but realize that everything is being freshly made, and I found out that the kitchen staff is literally comprised of one Cambodian lady just running around back there. Its maybe a little bit longer a wait than in an American joint, but its worth it. Regarding desserts, we passed. First off, we were stuffed, and second, the desserts all had some amount of coconut, so Mom wasn't interested. AToC is a little bit pricier than its counterparts, but not by much, and again, the quality meets the price. Thumbs up, all round.
Grade: 5/5.
Also, if anyone in the Utica area is peeping this review, or will be in the area at some point (I don't know why you would, but, still) go give AToC and the other ethnic restaurants I have reviewed some business! Its shameful to see a place like AToC so empty, even on a Thursday evening. I'm tired of seeing a line snaking around Little Caeser's, when we have places offering up fairly-priced, authentic, and, above all, awesome tasting ethnic food. It also worth noting that these restaurants have all been run by no-kidding immigrants, so you might get a cultural experience, and learn a thing or two.
AToC (that's my own acronym, but you can use it if you like) is located at 244 Roosevelt Drive in Utica, just across from where my grandfather use to earn his wages (well, its just an empty lot now, hopefully the city can find some use for it). Now, don't be confused here. The restaurant has only been at this location for a couple months. It used to be located on Bleecker Street, in the heart of downtown. Unfortunately, the proprietors haven't been very good about updating their Facebook page, so disregard that and be sure to visit the Roosevelt address.
It's a really quaint place, with only about 8-10 four-seater tables in a small room, but it has a classier feel than some of Utica's other Asian joints, and there is some nice decor related to Cambodia, including an awesome painting of Angkor Wat. Like most of the ethnic places around here, there was only one waitress on hand to serve us. No worries though....we were the only ones there.
Now, I have never been to Cambodia (THAT has got to be changed, tout de suite), nor have I ever had Cambodian food, so this was unfamiliar territory for me. Luckily, the menus give lengthy, detailed descriptions of each item, so the unfamiliar customer need not worry about ordering something blindly and then having a live duck put in front of them or something like that. Now, the menus are a bit limited. There is only one sheet, front and back, with appetizers, soups, noodle dishes, specialties, and desserts. Bear in mind though that this was the dinner menu, and the lunch menu is most likely different. I will probably have to visit again to get an idea of that.
We started out with an appetizer of pork dumplings (a serving comes with four). Though coming at a pricey $6, they were obviously freshly made (they didn't come out right away) and not bad on the taste buds either. Some might find them a tad on the salty side, but it didn't bother any of us three. Cilantro is mixed in with the pork, boosting the dumplings on the health scale.
So then came the main event. You can accuse me of being a bit boring, but I was in the mood, and went for the Jungle Pad Thai ($9, in the noodles section) (at least I am making a fist of comparing all the Pad Thais in the area). That price is actually a steal for what you get: A massive mound of delectable noodles and bean sprouts, basically buried in peanuts. I can usually house my Asian dishes no issue, but there was so much on the plate I struggled to finish. Mom decided on the Curried Stir Fry ($11, under specialties), which can be beef, chicken, or tofu (she went with chicken, which was of course all-white, breast meat), mixed with peppers, onions, and holy basil, all on a bed of rice. She couldn't stop raving about it, and, after trying a few bites, I would have to agree it was pretty stellar. The curry taste was a bit heavy, but not overpowering. Curry fans should definitely give it a shout. And then of course, there was Dad, ever the adventurer, who chose the Cambodian Crepes ($11, under specialties). You get about 3 large, thin crepe-style pancakes, made out of rice flour, each filled with minced pork and chicken, bean sprouts, onion, some coconut, and topped with lettuce and cucumber. It also comes with a peanut sauce for dipping. Yeah, that one was a winner. The crepes, sweet but not too sweet, mixed it with all the rest of the stuff were just delicious. Mom, no fan of coconut, also approved (the coconut is barely noticeable).
After literally leaving nothing on our plates, Mom declared that, out of the places I have taken them, this was the best. Hard to argue with. Absolutely no complaints about the food, the hygiene, nor the service. The service is a bit slow, but realize that everything is being freshly made, and I found out that the kitchen staff is literally comprised of one Cambodian lady just running around back there. Its maybe a little bit longer a wait than in an American joint, but its worth it. Regarding desserts, we passed. First off, we were stuffed, and second, the desserts all had some amount of coconut, so Mom wasn't interested. AToC is a little bit pricier than its counterparts, but not by much, and again, the quality meets the price. Thumbs up, all round.
Grade: 5/5.
Also, if anyone in the Utica area is peeping this review, or will be in the area at some point (I don't know why you would, but, still) go give AToC and the other ethnic restaurants I have reviewed some business! Its shameful to see a place like AToC so empty, even on a Thursday evening. I'm tired of seeing a line snaking around Little Caeser's, when we have places offering up fairly-priced, authentic, and, above all, awesome tasting ethnic food. It also worth noting that these restaurants have all been run by no-kidding immigrants, so you might get a cultural experience, and learn a thing or two.
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