Nov 7

Nov 7 Spotlight: Lula Mae

Lula Mae is a fairly new restaurant located in Clinton Hill, Brooklyn opening its doors in 2022. The Executive Chef and Co-owner, Dan San introduces the food scene with his take on contemporary Cambodian cuisine. If you are not familiar with Cambodian cuisine, the dishes are complex, deep, pungent, and flavourful. There is a balance of salty, sweet, bitter and sour. Cambodian cooking uses a lot of aromatics such as lemongrass, kaffir lime leaves, turmeric and galangal. As well, kroeung which is a Cambodian marinade and spice paste used frequently for curry, soups and marinating.

The restaurant has been making a name for itself and I was excited to visit it with my family. When viewing the menu, I was happy to see a great selection of shareable plates with familiar Cambodian dishes such as Boch La Hong (Papaya Salad) and Plea Sach Ko (Beef Carpaccio).

Chef Dan San’s take on Cambodian cuisine with a modern twist is done with perfection. Every dish was a star on its own! The great use of fresh ingredients and aromatics. The dishes had a balance of sweet, salty and sour. This is what Cambodian cooking is all about.

If I had to share my favourites, it had to be the Sweet Petite Oysters, Plea Sach Ko, Stir-Fried Morning Glory and 50-50 Fried Chicken. The Koh Kong sauce with fried shallots on oysters were divine. I can eat a dozen more oysters with that sauce! Don’t get me started on the Plea Sach Ko. My mouth is watering with the mention of it. I love the use of lemongrass, cilantro, chili oil and peanuts to accent the thinly sliced tenderloin. You are Khmer when you can taste the essence of prahok (fermented fish paste) in the dish. It is pungent. It is bold. I was stuffed to the brim but I could not pass on the 50-50 fried chicken. I’m glad I didn’t because it was so juicy and flavourful. The chicken was good on its own but dipping it with the lime pepper dressing made it even tastier.

What a great dining experience at Lula Mae from start to finish. I am rooting for Lula Mae to thrive and to make its mark in the restaurant scene.

What we ordered: Sweet Petite Oysters, Boch La Hong (Papaya Salad), Plea Sach Ko (Beef Carpaccio, 50-50 Fried Chicken, Stir-Fried Morning Glory, and Lort Cha Noodles.

Website: www.lulamaenyc.com

Instagram: @lulamaenyc