After being thoroughly let down by the internet (to recap: I searched online for good stuff to eat in Siem Reap, only to find a bunch of suggestions for touristy cafes with Western/Cambodian menus), I was just randomly wandering around looking for somewhere to eat lunch.

Fish curry in Siem Reap

I stumbled onto this place, which was packed with locals and which didn’t have a tourist in sight (other than me, of course).  I immediately attempted to pull it up on Google Maps to see what I should order.  Alas, it wasn’t actually in Google Maps.

Thankfully, it was easy enough to order — they have a bunch of pots out, and you point to what you want.  I pointed to some kind of green stew and a sausage, sat down, and had my food in front of me within thirty seconds.

Fish curry in Siem Reap

I’m not gonna lie: this wasn’t my most inspired choice.

The stew/soup was some kind of curry with greens and chunks of fish.  It was way too mild, with zero spice and a muted flavour — it wasn’t unpleasant, but wasn’t particularly memorable, either.  Normally this would be fixable with some chili sauce, but if there was any at the table, I didn’t see it.

Fish curry in Siem Reap

The other off-putting thing about this was the fish, which had about a billion tiny bones — many of which had spread into the stew itself.  I inspected each mouthful quite thoroughly, and I still spent an inordinate amount of time spitting out bones.

The sausage was the highlight (if only because it wasn’t a minefield of inedible fish bits).  It was a Chinese-style sausage, and it was sweet and satisfyingly greasy.  I should have just ordered a bunch of these along with a plate of rice.

Location: Again, it’s not in Google Maps, but here’s an approximate location of where you can find it (if you want to find it (you don’t)).

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