A Little Bit About a Lot of Things

I was invited to brunch at the Elephant Walk in the South End with the Blog and Tweet Boston group. Executive Chef Nadsa de Monteiro came out to greet us and told us about the her family and the restaurant. She told us that her father was a diplomat and when they had to leave Cambodia, when the Khmer Rouge took over, her mother, at age 45, with no experience, opened a restaurant in France. They moved to the US in the early 90’s and proceeded to open three restaurants. The restaurant is a family business with Nadsa running the South End location and her brother in law running the Cambridge location. The Brookline location recently closed, so I am glad I had the chance to check out the South End location. There is definitely a different vibe here – laid back atmosphere with exposed brick walls and windows that open out to the street.

My favorite thing here are the Rouleaux, filled with ground pork and noodles, they are served with greens and fresh herbs. The dipping sauce tuk trey — traditionally made with prahok, or fermented fish sauce, along with lime, garlic, and peanuts — lends distinctive Cambodian flavor to the dish.

Loclac Frites à la Cambodgienne ($15) Beef tenderloin caramelized in black pepper, garlic and mushroom soy are served with homemade French fries and dressed baby greens. Think of this as the Cambodian version of steak frites! The meat is so tender and flavorful, making it another one of my favorites.

Pain Perdu au Sirop d’Erable au Cidre ($11) French toasts with brioche, Wood’s Cider Mills cinnamon cider maple syrup and fresh fruit. Personally I would have liked the syrup on the side, but the dish was delicious. The syrup’s flavor made this French toast stand out.

MeeSiem ($10) Rice noodles in a sauce of salted soy beans, tofu, PT Farm pork belly, garlic, chilies, pickles shallot; Chinese chive, bean sprouts, red bell pepper, omelet garnish. When we ordered this, I couldn’t imagine what an omelet garnish would look like, so I was pleasantly surprised. This was a really nice dish, it felt light and crisp.

Of course I had no room after brunch, but had to have dessert! The crepe special was delicious – it was filled with ice cream!

My personal favorite is the Le Pèché au Chocolat ($8.50) A rich creamy chocolate truffle cake perfectly paired with raspberry coulis. Hit me with anything raspberry coulis and I am in love – this dessert is decadent, the cake is dense so the raspberry pairs with it nicely.

Disclaimer: The Elephant Walk invited me to be their guest for brunch and provided me with a complimentary meal. All opinions are my own.

Elephant Walk

1415 Washington Street, Boston, MA

http://elephantwalk.com/

Tags: brunch, casual dining, gluten free, restaurant, south end, vegan, vegetarian