1 week in Cambodia - 1 week in Mumbai - 15 weeks in Southern California - 0.5 weeks in London - 1 week in Portugal
The Javeri-Kadri quartet and I spent a little over a week in Cambodia way back in January.
Here's where you must eat in Siem Reap:
1. Cuisine Wat Damnak - The best meal I had in Cambodia, by far! Their tasting menu is $25 for 5 courses or $28 for 6. We were absolutely stuffed by the 5th course. Run by Joannè Rivière and his wonderful wife, the place has a homey, serene feel. All the food is locally sourced and based on the simple concept of using local fresh seasonal produce with which to create exquisite Cambodian food. Literally cannot rave about them enough. Make a reservation!
2. Sister Srey Cafe - hipster cafe run by an Australian lady. Solid breakfast for when you're missing kale and salads. I have my misgivings about cute hipster vegan/raw/gf cafes, but after reading this list, I don't feel the need to judge them so hard.
3. Happy Korean Restaurant - There is not much in the way of an internet presence for this place because it is run by a giggling gaggle on non-English speaking Korean women who will feed you so well and make you giggle with them, and it will be some of the best Korean you've eaten in a long, long time. It's on Airport Road and a little hard to find but GO. HERE.
4. Tangram Garden - Nice place, most of the food was good, however they had this one particular caramelized tofu dish with daikon radish that was light, and perfectly seasoned and I still dream about it. Plz. eat, derp!
5. Kaya Cafe - Here's what you have to do- visit around sunset, climb the stairs, snag a nice table overlooking the town, order the beautiful, delicious, sumptuous dessert tasting menu, eat everything, Instagram everything (or not), then lie back and grin at the magnificent world of coconut, mango, sesame and taro based desserts.
And in Phnom Penh:
1. ARTillery Cafe - Another hipster vegan/raw/gf cafe that I will admit to visiting more than a couple times. The owner is a lovely lady and they are doing exciting things with Cambodian farmers!
3. Malis - I'll be honest, this place is bourgie, expensive, and delicious. Run by Cambodia's big celebrity chef, the food here was very tasty across the board, but no points for innovation. Make a reservation.
4. Central Market - We ate here twice and both times it was stupid delicious. All the grilled seafood your heart could desire, washed down with cold homemade soy milk, and lots of hand rolled noodles to stick your fork into amidst the chaos of the Central Market. What's not to like? We picked a food stall at random both times and were not disappointed at either.
5. Sesame Noodle Bar - Tucked in the middle of nowhere, and with a funky odd fusion menu- this place was an unlikely hit in my books. The house noodles, the fatty noodles, the tofu and kimchi and the chocolate sesame bombs are foods I frequently dream about. Go for dinner, the breeze on the outside tables is lovely and the location is quiet and very chilled out. Probably my Phnom Penh favorite.
January in Mumbai is always bittersweet. On one hand the weather is perfect and on the other, just about every single non-resident Indian family member, friend and distant acquaintance tends to use the same three week window during which to visit. January in Bombay usually involves weddings, family gatherings, aunties pinching my cheeks and calling me "healthy" and New Years Eve spent watching Lord of the Rings. Anyway.
Here's where you must eat in Mumbai, India -
1. Cafe Zoe - Big, airy, exposed brick walls, a damn good savoury yogurt, poached egg salad for breakfast, a delicious rucola salad for lunch and a naked cheeseburger and a peach smoothie for dinner. Literally, I could eat here everyday. It's reliably tasty, healthy continental fare in a lovely setting.
2. Soam - I am not a Gujarati girl at heart in the way my grandmother hopes. I do not thrive on theplas and undhyu. However, Soam's paanki's, faada ni khichdi, kadhi, and bhakri's are a necessary pilgrimage.
3. San Qui - I feel a little but guilty about putting this one on here. The Four Seasons Hotel is absurdly expensive and probably a lot more luxurious than I'd like and San Qui, their South East Asian restaurant is stupid delicious. They cater a lot to the corporate lunch crowd, which would usually make them a write-off but if you avoid their greasier dishes and stick to their light vegetable dishes, you'll be golden. They brew their own soy sauce, making their stir fries absolutely unparalled in taste. Literally, you feel like the vegetables are singing on your palate. That may be a bit much, but still. Also their spinach noodles are freshly made and hand cut and yum.
4. Kala Ghoda Cafe - Every single south bombay freelancer's office and everybody's favorite cafe. Good coffee, an adorable space and good food. I could spend hours here if they'd let me. Also their almond cake makes everyone believe in gluten free baking, I swear.
5. Kaboom - This place is brand new and I've only been once but I was lucky enough to meet the lovely Yohaan Dattoobhai, the man behind the venture and I think that his enthusiasm alone made me love the place. Catering to the office crowd of leafy Ballard Estate with quality ingredients, homemade sauces, and an innovative new menu every week, I have high hopes for Kaboom and for Yohaan :)
6. Yoga House - A forreal yoga house, with an adjoining cafe focusing on healthy, locally sourced vegetarian food. I love their chocolate mousse so much. Their menu riffs off of the Cafe Gratitude menu, so it's also a cute little reminder of SoCal and vegan hipsterdom in Mumbai.
7. Green Sattva - This is my one stop chocolate shop. They stock Earthloaf AND Mason & Co. my two absolute favorite Indian bean-to-bar chocolatiers. Earthloaf for their cacao nib and palm sugar bar and Mason & Co. for their coconut milk bar. Fuck Lindt, this is where it's at. Green Sattva also has a weekly organic vegetable sale via a WhatsApp group that I am yet to try but if you do- let me know!
8. Blue Tokai Coffee - This is a special mention. It is actually an online store containing the most delicious, freshly roasted Indian coffee there ever was. I believe that they are single handedly changing the Indian coffee game and the way we consume it and I can't wait to see how they grow. I tried their Attikan Estate which they describe as nutty and sweet and it made a bloody incredible cold brew. I also sent some to Dan all the way in Port Townsend, WA and the Stranahan family collectively agrees that it is bloody good coffee and they know a thing or two more than I do.
9. Kofuku - Without a doubt the best Japanese food in the city. Their pork belly is melt in your mouth delicious and I could eat three plates if I let myself. That being said, they fly in all their ingredients from Japan, which irks me because that's the most unsustainable thing I've ever heard off. Use local seafood and meat, Kofuku, come on!
Must Visit-
1. Byculla Market - A big, messy, chaotic, wonderful vegetable market that I love photographing and walking through. The vegetable vendors are also very friendly and love to chat. Go early in the morning!
2. Dadar Flower Market - Another big, messy, chaotic, wonderful market. Also go early in the morning!
3. Flyover Farm - Run by Fresh & Local, an urban farming consultancy, this community rooftop farm has an open house every Wednesday evening, in addition to all sorts of exciting events every week. One of my favorite places in the city. They grow so many exciting things- from mangoes to passion fruit to pomegranate to okra to blue pea flowers, it's wonderful.
4. Bhau Daji Lad Museum - Recently renovated and spearheaded by curator Tasneem Mehta, the new and improved museum is a wonderful place to visit. Their recent Atul Dodiya show was amazing, as is their current show by Thukral and Tagra.
5. Banganga - A hidden South Bombay gem. I won't spoil the magic, but this is the one place I find myself visiting multiple times whenever I'm home. There's always more to discover. Go either at sunrise or sunset and take a walk around the entire temple complex, not just the tank.
6. Chor Bazaar - Thieves market is the ultimate vintage paradise/flea market. I am permanently buying little boxes, posters, sculptures and little objects that I shouldn't because they are just so damn beautiful. Bargain real hard.
7. Haji Ali - Located just off the shore of Mumbai, this mosque and tomb is a chaotic but also incredibly calming place. Visit at sunset, be careful.
I've been in SoCal three years now. That's hard to wrap my brain around. When I first moved here, I was expecting something akin to a scene outta The O.C. Whilst I did find a boyfriend ^^ who looks enough like Ryan to keep me happy (LOL JK), Squaremont is about as far from the Orange County as I'd never have imagined. Either way, this weird, desert climate suburbia has become home and I love it with all my fingers and toes and strands of hair. Having a car and being able to explore has also helped matter tremendously, not gonna lie.
Here are my favorite sources of nourishment in the SoCal/Los Angeles region-
1. The Grovehouse - Pitzer College is home to the best sandwich shop in the whole wide world. I would trek many miles right this minute for an egg-cellent Grovehouse sandwich, a glass of their kombucha and a warm cookie.
2. Weekly Farm Stand at the Grovehouse - {shameless plug alert} Farm Stands happen every other Thursday from 4-6pm. We feature sourdough bread by Zach made with locally grown and milled flour, fresh almond milks from Celena, fresh and organic sprouts from Ben and Aidan, and occasionally, tacos and smoothies by me, alongside all the delicious organic Pomona Farm produce. COME THROUGH Y'ALL.
3. Pomona College Organic Farm - {another shameless plug} The other Thursday (when we're not having Farm Stand^^ you can usually find me at the Pomona Farm teaching a cooking workshop in our beautiful outdoor cooking space. We've done everything from stinging nettle pasta to raw vegan fava bean sushi to homemade soda to vegetable fondue. Plus it's all free and open to the community. WHUTTT.
4. Cookbook - To be honest, I think that Cookbook is a fairly pretentious and snobby little establishment catering to rich white hipsters in echo park. That being said, their ricotta is to die for, and they stock the best chickpea miso in all the land, and they also happen to have a unfairly good in-house harissa. I love their ricotta slathered on Clark Street sourdough with a little drizzle of honey. Shit, I'm hungry now.
5. Gjelina - This place is an institution in its own right, and always a party and too trendy for its own good and it's been that way for a long, long time. But it is also the best fucking treat meal in all of SoCal. Small plate everything, a little like Bar Tartine, but much more SoCal and by definition simpler and more laid back.
6. Grand Central Market - GCM to-do list: Giant ass loaf of sourdough from Clark Street Bread, all forms of meat, bacon and salami from Belcampo (also their cheeseburger), cheeses of all kinds from DTLA cheese in addition to their farro salad, carnitas tacos from Las Morelianas (don't be shy and eat your offal), mango and sticky rice from Sticky Rice, any kind of ice cream from McConnell's, Valeria's for mole oaxaca. There! Eat your fucking heart out. Rinse and repeat. Refuse to stand in line for Eggslut on principle. Atta girl.
7. Donut Man - Once, at the very end of my freshman year, we drove to Donut man, and ate 12 donuts between 3 people. I nearly threw up and couldn't look at a donut for months after but if I were ever to eat a donut again, it would simply have to be from donut man. Nothing else will be, let's be clear. Donut friend, fonuts, dough, donut plant- these are mere imposters in the face of Donut man.
8. Beverly Soon Tofu - I have eaten here religiously for three years. It is in the heart of Koreatown and I usually couple lunch here with a shopping trip to the Koreatown Galleria where i buy vats of kimchi and bags of miso and end up with a fridge full of Korean condiments and I eat well and happily for a whole month. Every single item here is delicious, but you can never go wrong by ordering one portion of soon tofu, one of dolsot bibimbap and one of beef galbi. Holy shit I love this place so much.
9. The Commissary and POT- I love Roy Choi so much it kinda makes my face hurt, especially that one time at POT when he came over and said hi and I just wanted to hug him and ask him questions and give him a fist bump and let him know he could trust me. Then I went to the Commissary and it was vegetable infatuation and I desperately wanted Roy Choi to know that we could take out friendship to a whole other level because you like vegetables this much too?!!
10. Taco Man - Ever since James wrote about Pomona's taco scene, I've been making my rounds and trying all of them. Taco Man has emerged as my clear favorite. The Al Pastor burrito, oh mio dio.
11. Barbareno - I will be honest and say that I haven't eaten here yet, but I will buffer that by saying that Jesse Gaddy is in charge and there are few people I would trust with feeding me as blindly as I would trust Jesse Gaddy. If you are in Santa Barbara, please eat here and then tell me all about it. Grazie.
12. Bouchon - I ate here for the first time this May with the Stranahan clan, and really enjoyed it. It's a fancy pants place with a complicated wine list and very fancy guests that made it all feel a little stiff but there was absolutely no denying that the food was excellent in every single respect.
13. Sqirl - I used to adore Sqirl I adored it so much that I had a standing monthly date with myself there where I'd order their incredible citrus juices, and the sorrel pesto bowl with a poached egg, and sit on the bar stools facing the subway tiled walls and grin to myself and eat away in silence. But as time has gone on the sorrel bowl has grown less and less exciting. The last time I tried their salad of the day it was vastly disappointing. However, I adore Jessice Koslow, and I believed in the essence of Sqirl, before it became the brunch of choice to every Silverlake resident. Sqirl will come through in the end, and I'm willing to give it another chance.
14. Pho Ha - Best pho in the Inland Empire, no doubt about it. Mixed combo pho, extra fatty brisket and sriracha please.
I was in London for too short a time for one so hungry, but here's my tragically short list of eats in London. More coming in the fall! -
1. Dishoom - I'm going to be honest with y'all, I don't love Indian food. I grew up eating it, and yes, I think about bhindi often, but besides that I don't miss it or cook it often. Dishoom changed that so hard. Literally dude, the food was so good I just wanted to wrap myself in a blanket and stay forever. It was Bombay nostalgia done perfectly, with enough fresh flavors to keep things interesting. Mamma, can we go back please?
2. Ottolenghi - I ate here three times. In fact, I even ran out of Heathrow Airport during my 6 hour layover so I could eat here again. Best decision ever. Literally, nobody does vegetables like Ottolenghi, let's be clear about that. I hate bay leaves and I don't particularly like tadka spices- but then added to roasted sweet potatoes with a grilled eggplant tahini yogurt? I will follow you anywhere. Expensive, especially for take out, but worth it. See it as a pilgrimage. Forget about eating paleo and get dessert. Seriously.
3. Franco Manca - Sourdough pizza that took me straight back to Duino. Inventive, delicious daily specials and really good wine. Organic, seasonal everything.
4. The Dairy at Clapham - I trekked all the way to Clapham with my big fat suitcase to eat here. And 'twas worth it. Also apparently it is the 7th most sustainable restaurant in the UK?! They are so cool, and chill and unapologetically British, I love it.
Finalmente- our family holiday in Portugal was incredible. We slept, cooked, read, laughed, explored and hiked. The food we ate on the other hand, was less than grand. Honestly, I left fairly disappointed with Portugese food in general. Bloop. Here were some of the highlights though-
1. A Cevicheria - Almost my favorite meal in Lisbon. Ceviche innovation taken to a whole new level, with lots of delicious, south asian flavor influences. Also a bloody good pisco sour, if I may.
2. Cantina Lx - In the hip Lx Factory, Cantina uses a wood oven for a lot of their mains and the duck that I had was smokey and delicious. Overall nice vibes and a welcome change for the seafood joints you'll eat at across Lisbon.
3. Mercado da Ribiera - Once the biggest market in Europe, the market recently went through a big overhaul by Time Out and now features food stalls from chefs from across every region of Portugal. Wish we'd gone back more often because there was just so much to try.
4. A Taberna da Rua das Flores - Stumbled upon this place totally by accident and it was late and I was starving so I know very little about it but it was really good food in a cute setting. Not easy to find in Lisbon oy!
5. Enoteca de Belém - My favorite meal in Lisbon. Belém is a touristy, sweaty place that is too spread out and gives me vivid memories of storming hungrily through the heat trying to avoid the line at Pasteis de Belém, and then I found this sanctuary and all was well. It's a little hidden, but you'll find it. Make a reservation!
6. ODE Porto Wine House - Excellent, if expensive food. The flavors of Portugal, simplified and innovated upon. All local, seasonal and organic ingredients. Some of the most delicious, succulent pork of my life. The house that the restaurant is in is also particularly beautiful, especially if you can get a table upstairs by the windows.
7. Kaikou Sushi Bar - Delicious, inventive and interesting sushi. We tried just about every flavor and there wasn't a single one that I didn't like. The quality of the fish seemed good, as far as I could tell via taste and smells.