AsiaLIFE

The Hispanic invasion continues in the Kingdom as an Irish-American and Chinese-American bring California-style Mexican food to Cambodia. Feeling lost? Kate Liana unearths the origins of this casa bonita.

Culinary oddities abound. Some of the world's best Indian food is found in London, and a closely guarded rumour has the best martini in New York City at an unassuming Mexican restaurant in the West Village. According to Aaron Reed and Annette Chan, co-owners of Casa Lika, the best burrito in the world can be found at a gas station in Pescadero, a tiny town in southern California. If you're not up for the plane ride, a good stand-in can be found at their cosy, popular Mexican restaurant on Street 136.

The restaurant's creation is a typical Cambodian tale of opportunity. The couple's close friends, Phallika and Virya, owned The Tavern on Street 240. To help the chef with some of the western food, Annette began making a couple of dishes that were added to the menu. The Mexican food she made proved popular with expats and locals alike. When their friends lost the lease on The Tavern, the two couples decided to go into business together. They found a motorbike garage on Street 136, and undertook a complete overhaul.

The exposed brick wall, a rarely used but easily accomplished style here, gives a unique, laidback, and attractive look. The tables are crafted from Cambodian wood and a local Khmer artist has made faithful renditions of Diego Rivera classics. The warm lighting, friendly staff, excellent margaritas and extensive music collection – over 11,000 songs – make people stay long after their meal.

Not that the couple found establishing their own restaurant was all plain sailing. Making their own flour tortillas was the first major hurdle. They tried pork fat, lard, and vegetable oil before they hit the jackpot with Crisco (vegetable shortening). Their homemade tortilla chips are wonderful – the warm, crisp, golden chips have the perfect combination of crunch and saltiness, miles apart from the cardboard, store-bought kind. They go perfectly with their zesty salsa.

All the produce is local, mostly from Kandal Market. Avocados, another key Mexican ingredient, come from Veggy's on Street 240. The harder to find items, such as some of the beans and jalapenos, are found at Lucky’s. However, like many a Phnom Penh expat, they find the supermarket’s stocking somewhat haphazard. "We'll regularly buy something from Lucky's, then one day it will be gone, and we won't see it again for six months," says Annette. She also admits to having made some concessions. Lime must be used instead of lemon, and canned jalapenos are an unfortunately necessity.

Considering Casa Lika relies on word of mouth from regulars, it’s impressive to see how popular it has become. The two echo the sentiments of other restaurant owners around town who say the fickle tourist market is difficult to capture and expats are a more solid bet.

They’ve faced their share of unexpected problems, like maintenance issues, and different standards and expectations from the staff in terms of hygiene and food handling, although they say that the team, mostly brought over from The Tavern, is excellent.

In August the couple gave birth to baby Reksmei, who is currently vying for their attention with the restaurant. “Time is obviously an issue,” admits Annette, who used to visit the restaurant more often during the evenings. Given this, there's a limit to how many dishes they can introduce, but Annette would love to offer more than the typical Tex-mex hybrids. Carnitas, carne asada, huevos rancheros and horchata are all items she would like to put on the menu. However, that may take a while.

Ultimately the key thing about establishing their own restaurant is the social opportunities it has provided. “We love spending time with friends, eating fabulous food, listening to music,” says Annette. “This place offers us all of that, it’s like a dream come true.”

Casa Lika, Street 136.