Honestly, before arriving in Cambodia, I was a bit weary of the food. I had previously read an article detailing how Cambodian food is much less flavorful than Thai or Vietnamese food, and I was really just not looking forward to it… But Cambodia food really surprised me, and I find myself missing it more than the other foods that I enjoyed in my trip!
As you can probably tell from the title of this post, one of the most surprising and most delicious meals that I had in Cambodia (and also in Singapore and Malaysia) was at the Hut, and this was a complete surprise to me.
I went to The Hut for lunch on my Happy Angkor Tour; our tour guide choose the restaurant, and I was not that excited about it (especially after our lunch the previous day…). The Hut is located off a back road, not too far from the entrance to the Floating Village. Again, not excited.

The Hut!
However, upon arrival, things started to loo up! The Hut is an all outdoor restaurant set amongst beds and beds of flowers, kind of in a jungle. There are a number of open air tables and a few tables with swings as chairs out back!

Outdoor seating.

Swinging tables and chairs!
As we did in most places, we started with the fresh spring pork rolls! The rolls were awesome – stuffed with fresh greens, carrots, and a lot of pork and served with a side of peanut dipping sauce. Fabulously delicious.

Spring rolls.
For main dishes, I ordered the Bay-Chhar, or friend vegetable rice for $6.50! I had been really loving fried rice dishes in Cambodia, and this one was particularly good. It was also served with a somewhat sweet sauce (kind of like duck sauce) and a soy sauce-esque sauce. I loved this dish.

Fried rice.

Close-up.
Dan was a bit more adventerous in his Cambodian eating, and he ordered the Machu Srea Kroueng – beef tenderloing and morning glory soup with curry paste and scented tamarind. The soup was really tasty and Dan enjoyed it. It also photographed very well.

Machu Srea Kroueng
Finally, for dessert, we split the Chek-Chien, which are fried bananas with a side of honey and sweet sauce for $3.00. These were some of the best fried bananas that we had in Cambodia. They were served with local Cambodian honey and a sweet milk sauce.

Fried bananas!
STEAL OUR TRIP
The Hut Natural: Off Route #6, Steung Village, Prasat Bakong District, Siem Reap, 00000. T: +855-12-926-391. Open daily 10:30 – 18h. Credit card accepted. Honestly, this restaurant can be a bit difficult to find. Print directions ahead of time. I do not think that you need a reservation, but arrive on the early side to sit in one of the swinging chairs!
ON A BUDGET
You can see the prices, and they are not expensive! The food is high quality and the portions are a good size. Highly recommended for upscale, regular, and budget travelers!

Sample of the menu.
[…] For dessert, we split the banana fritters (I think I was subconsciously trying to recreate my The Hut Natural lunch) with rum raisin ice cream. These were good but not as good as the one’s at The Hut Natural. […]
[…] for a few hours one afternoon after doing some temple exploring in Angkor and the BEST lunch at The Hut! Unknown to us (although we did specifically request to visit the Floating Village), it was dry […]