Itacate Mexican Restaurant

[hanno]

Itacate
6B street 302, Phnom Penh
Sunday to Wednesday 11:30 – 22:00
Thursday to Saturday: 11:30 – 23:00
Tel: 096 720 1270
Link: https://www.facebook.com/Itacate.phnompenh/

Food: 3/5
Service: 4/5
Value for money: 3.5/5
Ambience: 4/5
I had been here once before, and did not really want to come back after waiting 1.5 for average food, even though I was the only guest at the time. But as so many people keep on insisting that it is the best Mexican food in Phnom Penh, we went back for an encore.



When we arrived, the restaurant was packed with a big group, so we sat outside. The outside area is actually quite nice, especially with the moderate temperatures at the moment. A very friendly waitress was on us in a flash, and she would stay very attentive throughout our meal; a far cry from the non-existent service during my first visit.


The usual standard fare.

I started with a beer and was served a 0.5 litre draft beer at $3.00. Now, I have no problem drinking that amount, but I thought they should ask what size beer the guests want. The Missus and kids ordered Cucumber Aqua Fresca ($3.00) and Horchata ($3.00).



Food wise, we went for Chicken Mole ($11.00), Chicken Burrito ($11.00) and 6 different Tacos. Prices of the Tacos vary on how many are ordered, here they came to $3.00 a pop. Prices are +10% VAT, but I think that is still fairly reasonable.


The Burrito had too much of a weird dressing.

The first dish arrived after 30 minutes, which considering how busy the restaurant was, is more than OK. What was not OK was the last dish arriving 15 minutes later. Basically, the Missus had finished eating by the time the daughter got her food. I learned decades ago, when I was at hotel school, that you always feed the brats first. Unhappy kids = unhappy parents.


Carne Asada, Chicken, and Chorizo.

Anyway, we did all get our food eventually. My Tacos were lukewarm at best when they arrived. I had ordered “Carnitas”, “Che Che”, and “Al Pastor” and cannot say that any of them were in any way remarkable. They lacked seasoning and I ended up dousing them in chili sauce (which was very good) to give them any sort of flavour. Even a little coriander (cilantro) would have helped, not to mention some salt.


Carnitas, Che Che, and Al Pastor.

The daughter’s Burrito had some sort of weird dressing that overpowered all other flavours and, again, the seasoning could have been a little heartier. The one dish I really did not like was the Chicken Mole my girlfriend had. Whilst the meat was tender, somebody dropped a bucket of cinnamon into the sauce which absolutely killed all other flavours. A shame really, as it has the potential to be a really nice dish.


I love cinnamon, but it was used a little to liberally in the Chicken Mole.

None of us were really impressed. Not really bad, but not really good either. Finally, I did not like the smell from Churro cart parked out front, the oil smelled nasty. I guess we have to continue to wait for a decent Mexican restaurant.

[Jkcliche]

Oh damn - walked past the other day and had it on my list if places to hit… glad I read this before I actually did

[pissontheroof]

I have read advertisements for this
( same named place ) before in siem reap
But I have never tried it here
Now I’m glad i didn’t go - also chubby gonzo - also
seemed to have fizzled out - every body has bad words
here about BK but Burger King is definitely keeping
us alive -
I know I have tried some famous cambodian food
But none of them memorable- long live Burger King!
2nd to none -

[HaifongWangchuck]

The one in Krong Siem Reap is much better, and tastes like the sort of burritos one finds from California (i.e, no weird dressing, no usage of cumin, etc.) If not Mexico, and comes highly recommended.

(I agree about the weird dressing /chipotle sauce btw, I had that at the PP outfit too and it really threw the burrito off balance with too much oil)

[cabron]

I have read advertisements for this
( same named place ) before in siem reap
But I have never tried it here
Now I’m glad i didn’t go - also chubby gonzo - also
seemed to have fizzled out - every body has bad words
here about BK but Burger King is definitely keeping
us alive -
I know I have tried some famous cambodian food
But none of them memorable- long live Burger King!
2nd to none -

I'm missing the Burger King on Riverside between St.110 /St.118 and Viva the Mexican restaurant

[HaifongWangchuck]

What is the word on Maybe Later? I find some of their items (e.g their chips and breakfast burrito) to be really delicious, while their salsa and "auténtico" burritos suck and are imbalanced. Too much refried bean and rice, not enough cheese, guacamole and sour cream.


By the way: Is there any salsa in Cambodia that *doesn't* suck? I feel like no one wants to do the work and grow their anchos and guajillos or don't want the associated cost of importing them from Mexico, but it's always the one thing lacking from Cambodian-based Mexican restaurants that is glaringly apparent.

[Lost50]

Seems very over priced. It always enrages me how much tacos are sold for in Asia. Circa $3 for a dime sized taco which tend to be underwhelming tend to be the only consistency in Cambodia & indeed Vietnam.

[David Gordon]

Lactate - my dyslexic mind huh!

[total nutter]

Lactate - ym dycsxleic dmin !hhu

fytf

[Doc67]

This is just daft. For me, the whole point of a wrapped burrito is you can eat it with your hands without getting the filling on your hands and you add a little sour cream or guacamole per bite, if so desired. They have ruined the one redeeming feature of burrito by smothering it in multiple dressings just for aesthetic effect (another failure). I would have sent it back. It is akin to ordering a burger only to find the ketchup, mustard and melted cheese smeared all over the outside of the buns?

host gifs

@hanno I wouldn't try too hard to find great Mexican food. I tried Mexican food in Mexico and found most of it very disappointing. As a rule of thumb, when food is served with a multiple choice of chilli sauces, they are trying to mask the fact that the food lacks complex or even basic flavours.