Yesterday, I went to this tasty hard to get into Khmer spot with a group. They used to be a pop-up but opened now on weekends only in crown heights. The spot is small and they only take reservations on Instagram (sure is Ugly Baby.) The food was good though I found the entrees much better than the smaller plates. For traditional Cambodian, I would recommend Bayon more but this was very tasty. We also stopped at Island Pops afterwards for dessert which was excellent (heavily recommend the sorrel but the soursop was also great)
Photos in order/mini review-
Bone-In Heritage Pork Chop- Tuk trey ping poh $42. Favorite dish. Perfectly cooked pork and a wonderfully complex sauce (salsa-ish with some sourness, heat, and sweetness.)
Flank Steak & Tuk Kreung- Charred eggplant and fermented fish dressing $38. Steak was cooked very well and was nice with the slight ferment flavor. 2nd favorite.
Crispy Whole Fish- Whole dorado, tuk m’pil, tuk trey koh kong, lettuce wraps, herb adventure: shiso, rau rum, fish mint $48. Came with two dipping sauces (tamarind with peanut and a spicy fish sauce.) Also nice. A bit hard to eat with all the leaves but well fried.
Grilled Pork Jowl & Melons- Chili pickle dressing, herbs, $24. Had a mix of watermelon and honey dew for the melon mix with me preferring the honey dew. Nice spice with some crunch and sweetness. Favorite of the small plates.
Clams Machew- Sour tamarind kreung, celery, water spinach $32. Liked the Thai eggplant in there. A bit small for the price point but well flavored.
Golden Squid- Fried squid, salted duck egg, curry leaves, scallion oil $24. They found it a bit salty (a bit too much salted egg) but liked the textures.
Cambo Corn- Sweet & salty coconut milk, scallion oil, $14. Ordered as I can't eat squid. Nice blend (more sweet than sour.)
Photos of the menu and wine/drink list in photos 8/9
Scoops from said Island Pops in photos 10
Website (warning, flashing logo-) bongnyc.com
by CabassoG
11 Comments
Do they have amok there? That’s the thing I miss the most from Cambodia (and mango sticky rice)
Fuck I’m hungry
Wow!
That’s looks far better than anything I ate in Cambodia. The food I had there was hearty, like Streak Lok Lak, but not super sophisticated. Coulda just been my choice of restaurants though.
Appreciate the Island Pops shoutout, I’m obsessed with their sorrel pop and wish I could have it on hand whenever it’s hot.
Damn.
This place rocks
Bong is really bubblin
Fantastic spot. Deserves to blow up
Are you also Khmer?
Embarrassed to realize I have no experience with Cambodian food at all. Thanks for sharing!