The tree was there first, so it stayed while Jenny and Patrice built the restaurant around it. It cuts into the seating space during the rainy season, but they figure the green is worth it. “When people in a Lexus drive up and ask if we have air-conditioning I point to the tree,” says Patrice, “Air-con is expensive and we would have to increase our prices.”
Who do they want to attract? Beatles fans (three of their albums play non-stop) who want to eat spectacular Khmer and European food. Patrice, born in France, refers to himself as a European cook and is inspired in the kitchen. From time to time he ventures out of his domain to personally check whether folk are enjoying his food. Jenny – waitress, cashier, manager and owner – runs the front operation. Her first language is Khmer, but she is also fluent in English and French and will soon add German to her polyglot portfolio.
A meal at L’Orchidee starts with a cold, wet towel. Could anything be more refreshing than wiping your hands and mopping your neck on a hot, sweaty day? Next comes the complimentary spey chrok, a cross between Ukrainian sauerkraut and Korean kimchi. The pickled cabbage perks up your taste buds with a hit of vinegar.
According to David, a dedicated regular, the chicken amok is “like a party in your mouth”. It follows a traditional recipe Jenny got from her grandmother. Mirka, from Slovakia, adds that the food is: “Beautiful. Really tasty and perfectly spiced: not too much, not too little.”
The menu lists the prices in riel and offers small and large portions. Highly recommended is the amok fish served in a banana leaf (18,000 riel; 27,000 riel) and fried chicken with lemongrass (14,000 riel; 21,000 riel). Carnivores can tuck into the lok lak – fried beef with onion, tomatoes and a fried egg (16,000 riel, 24,000 riel) – or the French style filet in cracked Kampot pepper (32,000 riel). Dessert hounds will drool over the crème brulee (8,000 riel).
Want to try a truly local dish? Order the cow’s tongue (1,800 riel; 2,700 riel) or the duck feet salad with glass noodles (12,000 riel; 15,000 riel). According to Jenny, “Khmer people really like cow’s tongue and we slow-cook it for hours.” The bar has what you want and there’s a focused wine list. Non-tipplers can imbibe fresh coconut (4,000 riel) a smoothie (8,000 riel) or soft drinks.
“We aren’t going to get rich quickly because we want to build up relationships,” Jenny confides. “People are important and we want them to come back and to bring their friends. We want our customers to stay with us forever.”
L’Orchidee, #82 Street 464; 010 998123.