By Scott Alarik
Globe Correspondent / March 30, 2008
boston.com
Mittapheap Restaurant
877 Western Ave., Lynn
Telephone: 781-477-6045
Hours: Open seven days, 8:30 a.m. -9:30 p.m.
Credit cards accepted
Handicapped access
Mittapheap means friendship in Cambodian. If you come here you'll understand why this restaurant has that name. Inside this plain, spacious dining room near the General Electric plant in Lynn, the chefs make food that makes people happy.
Mittapheap is run by Hong Kim, a polite and soft-spoken man who grew up in Phnom Penh. A former billiard parlor owner, Kim arrived in Massachusetts four years ago and set out to learn English. In September, he bought Mittapheap.
There's nothing pretentious. Step inside, and you'll see colorful cloths sharing an altar with a Buddha. Within seconds you'll be seated by one of Kim's sisters, who also share in the cooking.
It's easy to get lost in the menu, which offers more than 100 dishes. If you come, remember that everything is made to order, and that means you won't be out the door in 15 minutes. All types of Asian fare are offered, but we asked for the Cambodian dishes. And, while we had the choice of dozens of meat dishes, we ordered vegetarian and were not disappointed.
The owners like to add spice to food, and that's why we chose the hot and sour soup ($1.75). Ever try a food that didn't smell great but had an amazing taste? That was the case with this soup. They dump a lot of pepper in this soup, thick with eggs, mushrooms, bamboo shoots, and tofu. It's guaranteed to clear your sinuses.
We sipped on fresh coconut smoothies ($3) and listened to Cambodian pop music as we awaited our entrees.
The tofu pad Thai ($5.25) was delicious and light on the soy sauce. Kim served a heaping plate of stir-fried rice noodles, topped with tofu, bean sprouts, scallions, and crushed peanuts.
We were startled by the superior quality of the sweet and sour fish ($14), and the spicy Thai fish ($15) that arrived. If you want something that you might not dare cook, try the full-grown tilapia deep-fried. There's a certain charm to the way they deliver the fish to you. After you order (you can choose either tilapia or flounder), Kim goes next door to an Asian grocery store and picks out the fish.
In New York or Boston, you'd pay up to three times as much for each dish and walk away happy.
The sweet and sour tilapia was topped with red peppers, onions, pineapple, and garlic. The spicy Thai tilapia was covered with garlic, peppers, onions and lime.
Sometimes, even after a good meal, you don't want to think about the food, the restaurant, or the conversation. The opposite is true of this place. It's not loaded with fine art or marble lobbies, and there's no fancy bar to stand around at while waiting for your table. It's about fine food and good people. And even after an enormous meal, you might even want to come back the next day.
Globe Correspondent / March 30, 2008
boston.com
Mittapheap Restaurant
877 Western Ave., Lynn
Telephone: 781-477-6045
Hours: Open seven days, 8:30 a.m. -9:30 p.m.
Credit cards accepted
Handicapped access
Mittapheap means friendship in Cambodian. If you come here you'll understand why this restaurant has that name. Inside this plain, spacious dining room near the General Electric plant in Lynn, the chefs make food that makes people happy.
Mittapheap is run by Hong Kim, a polite and soft-spoken man who grew up in Phnom Penh. A former billiard parlor owner, Kim arrived in Massachusetts four years ago and set out to learn English. In September, he bought Mittapheap.
There's nothing pretentious. Step inside, and you'll see colorful cloths sharing an altar with a Buddha. Within seconds you'll be seated by one of Kim's sisters, who also share in the cooking.
It's easy to get lost in the menu, which offers more than 100 dishes. If you come, remember that everything is made to order, and that means you won't be out the door in 15 minutes. All types of Asian fare are offered, but we asked for the Cambodian dishes. And, while we had the choice of dozens of meat dishes, we ordered vegetarian and were not disappointed.
The owners like to add spice to food, and that's why we chose the hot and sour soup ($1.75). Ever try a food that didn't smell great but had an amazing taste? That was the case with this soup. They dump a lot of pepper in this soup, thick with eggs, mushrooms, bamboo shoots, and tofu. It's guaranteed to clear your sinuses.
We sipped on fresh coconut smoothies ($3) and listened to Cambodian pop music as we awaited our entrees.
The tofu pad Thai ($5.25) was delicious and light on the soy sauce. Kim served a heaping plate of stir-fried rice noodles, topped with tofu, bean sprouts, scallions, and crushed peanuts.
We were startled by the superior quality of the sweet and sour fish ($14), and the spicy Thai fish ($15) that arrived. If you want something that you might not dare cook, try the full-grown tilapia deep-fried. There's a certain charm to the way they deliver the fish to you. After you order (you can choose either tilapia or flounder), Kim goes next door to an Asian grocery store and picks out the fish.
In New York or Boston, you'd pay up to three times as much for each dish and walk away happy.
The sweet and sour tilapia was topped with red peppers, onions, pineapple, and garlic. The spicy Thai tilapia was covered with garlic, peppers, onions and lime.
Sometimes, even after a good meal, you don't want to think about the food, the restaurant, or the conversation. The opposite is true of this place. It's not loaded with fine art or marble lobbies, and there's no fancy bar to stand around at while waiting for your table. It's about fine food and good people. And even after an enormous meal, you might even want to come back the next day.
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