On the trail of Cambodian food in New York

The fruitless pursuit of Cambodian food in New York continues unabated. Sonja from Brooklyn Ramblings goes hunting:

I must have looked lost, as I was soon greeted with “hey guy – whatcha lookin’ for?” When I said Cambodian, my good samaritan just looked bewildered. But then I started getting some interesting leads. First I stopped in at St. Rita’s youth program, which does a lot of work in the Cambodian community. The staff there told me that there was a Cambodian grocery a few blocks away, above the park on University. Very excited, I walked there, but it turned out to be a Vietnamese grocery. The owner pointed me towards Jerome Ave just south of Kingsbridge, where he said there was a larger Asian grocery that was owned by someone who is Cambodian. Once at Phnom Penh Market (2639 Jerome), the owner confirmed that she was Cambodian but said that they didn’t sell any Cambodian food, just Thai and Vietnamese. This is the point in my fantasy where I would get invited to their house for some home cooking, but alas, that didn’t happen.

Also first-time commenter Tara scouts out the upcoming location of Kampuchea Noodle Bar on the Lower East Side:

…thought you might appreciate knowing that this noodle joint will be steps away from 99 Rivington, the site of the album cover for Paul’s Boutique. Also, Cambodians will surely be displeased to know that while dining at this restaurant they will be forced to watch the frequent street traffic to and from New York’s most storied sex paraphernalia store, Toys in Babeland, 94 Rivington.

See Also: Brooklyn Ramblings, Cambodian Street Food on The Lower East Side