Unapologetic Cambodian Food: Khmer-Style Restaurant Doesn't Tone Down Its Roots for Anyone

Khmer Style recently opened its kitchen in Kent, cooking up authentic Cambodian food. The owner, Davy San, is from Battambang, Cambodia, and wants to share Khmer food with everyone, hoping to share her heritage with the world.

Cambodian food, like many cuisines of Southeast Asia, incorporates a plethora of fresh herbs and vegetables, using proteins like seafood, meat, and tofu, and an endless list of sauces and spices that highlight the region's ingredients. But what makes Khmer food distinctively Khmer? There are two core staples: prahok and kroeung. 

Prahok is a fermented fish paste dating back to the Angkor period, born out of necessity to preserve the freshwater fish caught during the abundant season. It's a funky, salty, savory paste that's full of umami, adding a mysterious — yet distinct — depth of flavor to dishes.

Kroeung is an amalgamation of kaffir lime leaves, galangal, turmeric, garlic, and lemongrass beaten together using a mortar and pestle (or blender or food processor for convenience) — essentially, Cambodia's curry paste. These blends of rhizomes and herbs create a fragrant paste whose scent fills up the room, boasting its bold flavors.

When we entered Khmer Style, we were greeted by the owner and head chef, Davy San. Heads up, the seating is limited. The kitchen is right in the middle of the space, allowing customers to watch San and the second cook prepare the foods.

We were given iced coconut milk coffee to start, which was delicious. It had a perfect roasted aroma that wasn't overly bitter, balanced by the sweet, creamy coconut milk with slivers of fresh coconut meat.

Egg Rolls

As I sipped away, the first appetizer, fried egg rolls, arrived piping hot with a side of pickles made of shredded green papaya, carrots, ginger, and cucumber. The egg rolls were bite-sized and filled with taro, ground pork, and onions. The small size was perfect to pop into your mouth with a helping of the shredded pickles — crunchy and savory, with the pickles to brighten the fried-ness. Next up, I tried the nom pan chean, a baguette with a spread made with taro, ground pork, and green onions, deep-fried. I was expecting the bread to cut the roof of my mouth, but I was surprised. It had that light "crispy crunch" when I bit into the baguette, and it was fluffy and soft.

Beef Stick Sandwich

I've always heard my relatives from Cambodia talk about this sandwich but never had one in a restaurant setting. I was excited. The beef skewers were served with a baguette, a slightly sweetened butter and egg yolk spread, and pickles, all on the side — a build-your-own sandwich that allowed me to create my "perfect" ratio. The beef was seasoned well, with hints of lemongrass mingled with the buttery, creamy spread and refreshing pickles.

Lort Chha

Next, San served up lort chha, a stir-fried rice noodle dish with bean sprouts and chives topped with a jammy fried egg and sliced meat pâté, served with sweet fish sauce (similar to nước chấm) on the side. The noodles were short, stubby rice noodles with a chewy texture, seasoned with soy sauce.

Beef Tripe Salad

This salad is made of different types of beef tripe, thinly cut banana blossom, sawtooth cilantro, Thai chiles, beansprouts, Thai eggplant, and shredded chicken. It was aromatic from all the fresh herbs and lime while being pungent from the prahok. If you love the funk of prahok, you'd enjoy this salad. If you're a first-timer to this fermented fish paste, it might be too intense for you.

Pak Luv

Pak luv is a platter of pork organs and ears that's served with sawtooth cilantro, freshly cut cucumbers, the pickle mix, and a tangy sweet sauce to dip. For this dish, the thinly sliced pork organs were tender while the ears had that soft yet cartilaginous crunch with a caramelized brown color. The meat is eaten together with the cucumber, cilantro, and dipping sauce — my taste buds were absolutely dancing. This engaging dish would make a delightful experience to be shared with loved ones.

Beef Larb

When this dish arrived at the table, I was awed by the mountain of medium-rare beef, fresh herbs, bell peppers, long beans, and peanuts. Once you took a bite, the chilled and chewy beef was refreshing from all the cilantro and lime juice. The slight "toasty" flavor comes from the toasted rice grains (turned into a fine powder) that continues to add a delicious complexity to this texture-bomb larb.

Bok Lahong

I pried myself away from the larb as the bok lahong (papaya salad) was delivered to the table. The prawns and squid were huge, succulent, and tender. This papaya salad has salted crab, which adds an addictive umami factor to the dish and has a bit of heat from the Thai chiles and crunch from roasted peanuts. It was a wonderful blend of salty, spicy, tangy, and umami. If you have a low spice tolerance, you can ask San to adjust it to your liking.

Misour Kroeung Samut

The last dish of our grand feast was the misour kroeung samut, a seafood bean thread vermicelli noodle that's served chilled. It's a refreshing plate full of fresh cilantro and tomatoes, lime juice, massive shrimp, and squid that's tenderly supple, with bits of ground pork for an extra savory punch. You can taste the kroueng gently hugging the other ingredients, marrying them into a flavor explosion that keeps you wanting more.

When I'm on the hunt for Khmer food, I want the pleasantly funky, salty, sweet, spicy, and citrus flavors to be at the forefront — working together as a team to dance about on my palate. San and her staff at Khmer Style Restaurant deliver food that's authentically Khmer without watering down the flavors of Cambodian food for the American palate. 

To dine in or order takeout, Khmer Style Restaurant is located at 24228 104th Ave. SE, Suite 106, in Kent, and it is open Sunday through Saturday from 10 a.m to 9 p.m. You can follow San'sFacebook page for updates on its menu and catering services.