Villa 5
Street 228, Phnom Penh
Monday to Sunday from 11:30 to 14:00 and 17:30 to 23:00
Tel: 095 357 357
Menu: https://bio.site/villa5cuisine

Food: 5/5
Service: 5/5
Value for money: 5/5
Ambience: 5/5

I tread carefully when I read that a restaurant is offering “fusion” food as I have been disappointed in the past. Some restaurants seem to think that randomly throwing together a couple of different cuisines makes for a great meal. But on a recent walk back from Cousin Burger, I came by this restaurant and both the venue and the menu enticed me to give it a shot.



We got there at lunch time, and it was empty when I arrived. There are actually two rooms surrounding a garden, as well as a bar, but it appeared that only one of the rooms was open when. As we arrived at the gate, we were immediately greeted by a very friendly waitress that showed us to the restaurant.



The restaurant itself is tastefully decorated and we chose to sit by the window overlooking the garden. We were promptly offered both the main menu as well as the daily menu, together with an ice-cold face towel. The waitress, probably the supervisor or restaurant manager, spoke excellent English and was quick to make recommendations.



The regular menu is quite extensive, and the daily menu is actually a choice of five starters, five main courses, and three desserts. Choosing 2 items sets you back $18 and 3 courses are $25; these prices are exclusive of 5% service charge. The daily menu includes either a soft drink and either coffee or tea.



For the wine drinkers there is a small, but good, selection of wines, from an Argentinian Malbec at $45 all the way to a Saint Emilion from Chateau Pavie at a cool $799. Wine by the glass is 7 – 8 Dollars whilst beers are $4.50 to $8.00. We stuck to water, having to work and all that.

I chose the daily menu with three courses and my friend the 2-course option (though it would end up being the 3-course menus as well). We also ordered our coffees, as the waitress asked for it. Turns out we got a whole 1.5-liter bottle of water. We also received a selection of quite tasty breads along with Maître d’hôtel butter, a nice touch. Staff were super attentive, almost too much so. My glass did not run out of water or ice once. Music was pleasant and thank God it wasn’t “Jingle Bells” or some similar crap.


Villa 5 Caesar Salad

I had ordered the Villa 5 Caesar salad, and it was beautiful, both in presentation and taste. There is only so much you can do with a Caesar salad as it is a standard recipe, but the Pancetta they used was very tasty, sliced so thin you could see through it, it combined perfectly with the other ingredients. The Parmesan was obviously not your pre-grated variety, it was freshly shaved cheese. I was worried that I would walk away hungry when I saw the portion, but that worry turned out to be unfounded by the time I had has my dessert.


"Trei Giet" Watermelon.

My friend ordered the “Trei Giet” watermelon, compressed watermelon with spicy garlic dressing, dried fish, and rice cracker. I am not usually a big fan of dried fish or rice cracker, but here, they pulled it off just right. Almost all the dishes came with edible flowers grown in their own garden. They don’t add much in the way of flavor, but it just looks nice. As they say in German: “das Auge isst mit” or the eye eat as well.


Grilled Pork Tenderloin.

My main course was a grilled pork tenderloin with white wine and pineapple sauce, pineapple salsa, and grilled eggplant. The meat was perfectly cooked, and the salsa was very good. Now, I am not a big eggplant fan, but the way they prepared the eggplant I’d be ready to eat eggplant every day. Creamy and extremely tasty, but then everything I had was seasoned just right.


Grilled Mackerel.

The other main course was grilled mackerel with tomato tartare and paprika cream cheese. Just like everything so far, it was seasoned perfectly, and the different flavors combined very well. Umami, but achieved without the use of MSG.


Tiramisu.

I had by now decided that this was one of the best three restaurants I have visited in Phnom Penh this year, but the final hurdle would be the desserts. We had ordered Tiramisu and Raw Cheesecake and Passion Fruit Cremeux. The Tiramisu came with coffee gel and hazelnut gelato (ice cream for you and me), unusual way to serve but really good. However, it paled next to the cheesecake. One of the best cheesecakes I have had, not just in Phnom Penh, but anywhere! I would come back for the cheesecake alone.


That Cheesecake!!!!

An almost perfect meal with the exception of my Cappuccino. It was a little weak and could have done with a more generous amount of coffee. My friend did say that her double espesso was good though.

A very, very enjoyable meal and the food and service make the $25 price tag a steal in my opinion.

The food looks mouthwatering and the place very beautiful, thanks for your review @hanno .

I'm just curious why those muppets think that adding a 5% service charge is a good idea. Either you don't and price it in, or you add something substantial like 10% plus. I genuinely don't get it, but it can't be a smart thing to do.

A very well written review. Thank you; will have to give it a try.

S/F

B

Doc67 wrote: ↑Sat Dec 09, 2023 1:39 pm Another excellent review. At first glance the menu looked limited and pricy, but the photos show the skill and effort that has gone into those creations, particularly the cheesecake.

And with a perfect score of 5 5 5 5 it's been added to my culinary bucket list.

This is just the daily menu, they do have quite an extensive menu. And yes, pricey but good value for money. I'd rather have great food for $25 than shite food for $5.