Phnom Penh's Irina restaurant offers Russian cuisine and top-notch vodka
Chim
Taste of Russia in the capital
Written by David Gainsboro
Wednesday, 20 May 2009
Phnom Penh's Irina restaurant offers Russian cuisine and top-notch
vodka.
Hidden on a side street in a residential area far from the hustle and
bustle of the waterfront is Irina, Phnom Penh's only Russian
restaurant.
It may seem odd to eat food from one of the coldest countries in the
world in an equatorial country such as Cambodia, but have no fear.
While heavy, the food is delicious.
Irina restaurant offers traditional Russian food in a relaxed
atmosphere with excellent service and exceptional vodka. The
restaurant recently celebrated its 10th anniversary and has been in
its current location on street 352 for three years.
The owners, who never wanted to be locked into one place, have
relocated seven times over the years.
"We rented, and we jumped like frogs," said the restaurant's co-owner,
Irina Godlevstaya. "It was not so easy."
In the beginning, the restaurant had only four tables and was a
veritable hole-in-the wall, said Godlevstaya.
She and her husband, Gennadiy, who were in a partnership with some
local people, borrowed US$2,000 to open their own place.
And the restaurant has come a long way since its inception.
In its current incarnation, three years into a five-year lease,
Irina's has both indoor and outdoor seating areas, each with space for
approximately 20 people.
While the ambience of the restaurant seems to suffer from a bit of an
identity crisis, it works.
The outside, with its thatched roof, offers an open-air, tiki-bar
feel. The eclectic collection of Russian memorabilia on the walls is
juxtaposed with smooth American background jazz, clean table settings
and white tablecloths.
The vodka
Before looking at the menu, there is an important decision to be made:
How much of the top-notch vodka will you drink? A single shot, a 100
gram mini-pitcher or a whole liter?
The waiters refill the shot glasses very quickly, so watch out - the
drinks may soon catch up with you.
A few years ago, Godlesvstaya distilled small batches of vodka using a
family recipe given to her by her mother.
She altered the recipe to use local ingredients, such as pineapple,
and gave the vodka to friends and special patrons as gifts.
Unfortunately for many, the homemade vodka never even appeared on the
menu.
The food
The food at Irina is all pretty heavy, and the flavour profiles are
simple. The palate is overwhelmed with salt, oil, root vegetables such
as potatoes and beets, and butter.
The entrees are all similar, the only variation being whether they are
fried, minced, stuffed or baked.
I would suggest the shepherd's pie or beshbarmak, an Uzbek-style
lasagna, both of which are smaller and lighter than the oil-rich Irina
special.
The appetisers with a higher salt content pair especially well with
the vodka. The flavors are intense, and I recommend getting a few
appetisers for the table and sharing to experience some different
flavors.
Try a variety of chasers for the vodka as well as the pickles. One of
my favorites was the selyodka, a Russian-style salted fish. This light
sushi-like fish is served with thinly sliced onions and just melts in
your mouth.
The borsch was another standout. It's a little salty, with a
distinctive flavour of beets, carrots and potatoes in a light broth.
Whether you are looking for a whole meal or just some appetisers, next
time you are going out for drinks, consider Irina, a great place to
enjoy Russian appetisers and high-quality spirits.
Komin the almighty fucking failure analyst from Cambodia เขียน
one is better to provide the best in Cambodia is non other than the
fucker Komin and his wife prostitue wife whore den at Tonle Sap. Buy
one get one free, Hurry call Komin now at
(855) FUCK KOMIN
On May 20, 6:09 pm, Chim <Chi...@aol.com> wrote:
> http://www.phnompenhpost.com/index.php/2009052025954/Life-Style/Taste...
Jesus Christ the Cunt Fucker
On May 21, 2:06 pm, Komin the almighty fucking failure analyst from
Komin the almighty fucking failure analyst from Cambodia เขียน
On May 22, 9:00 am, Jesus Christ the Cunt Fucker
> > > enjoy Russian appetisers and high-quality spirits.- Hide quoted text -
>
> - Show quoted text -
Monster
You cannot call Fucking Failure Fuckhead Paedophile Monkey Screwer
Komin a BASTARD because he KNOWS who his father is.
His father is also his grandfather because his mother is also his
sister. He's all fucked up because of he's derived from an incestous
family. That's why he is a faggot paedophile living in Cambodia.