Monorom, 2150 E Anaheim St., Long Beach, CA 90804
Monorom in Long Beach’s Cambodia Town specializesin homestyle Cambodian/Khmer cuisine, a cuisine that is similar to Thai and Vietnamese. The glossy picture menu had detailed descriptions of each dish and color pictures. They have various noodle and rice dishes, soups, curries and salads. I liked how several dishes feature pork blood. Prices are reasonable.
* Milk tea: I’m not sure why I ordered milk tea at a Cambodian restaurant. It was bland, watery and lukewarm (it was supposed to be cold).
* Kuyteav Goen Sursh (Student Noodle with seafood $7.95): “Prepared with rice noodles, battered egg, garnished with bean sprouts, crushed roasted peanuts & a side of secret fish sauce.” It’s very similar to Pad Thai (though another dish on the menu called Koh Koh Noodle is said to be the Cambodian version of Pad Thai. Initially it tasted like chow fun but once I added the fish sauce, pickled jalapenos and hot sauce, it was quite a delicious concoction of chewy thin rice noodles, fake crab, squid, shrimp, crunchy bean sprouts, scallions, scrambled eggs and peanuts.
The restaurant is casual but attractive, with dark walls and small Cambodian statues. Each table has a caddy of sauces and condiments.