Am I in Cambodia or France? – Ox Club Phnom Penh, Cambodia

On a recent trip to Cambodia, our last stop was the capital Phnom Penh, and I wanted a nice restaurant to celebrate my daughter’s birthday. I chose the OX Club. Ox Club is an extremely opulent restaurant that reminds me of something straight out of Paris. The attention to detail in the design is outstanding. Its also on the Discovery List of the World’s 50 Best. They have three tasting menu options:

We went for the middle option which started with a welcome drink, some bread, and three types of butter. I was already impressed by the restaurant itself, and this just provided added relief that this would be a good choice.

After came some amuse. The presentation blew me away and if you told me I was in New York or Paris, I would believe you. One of the amuse had some uni on it, and the other, lobster.

After this, there was some hamachi:

Next, my favorite dish of the night, the foie gras. Usually I prefer a small portion of foie gras as the richness is too much in large quantities. However, this serving was large, and I never got sick of eating it.

Unfortunately, the meal went downhill from this point. The next dish, a pasta type lamb was just average with the pasta being very soggy, and the lamb just average in taste.

The next dish was very disappointing. It was listed as an Australian wagyu but I am doubtful about this. The beef was not marbled at all like a wagyu should be, even from Australia which I have had many times before. I asked the server about this and he assured me it was wagyu. The steak was very average.

Next, a palate cleanser and a chestnut tiramisu which was not very good. I don’t know why restaurants insist on making desserts with chestnut, its not an amazing ingredient.

The meal ended with some petit fours. I am including a video to show the elegance of the place. The petit fours themselves, were mediocre.

Overall, the ambiance of the restaurant is amazing. Truly first class. The service was equally VERY good. The food while beautifully presented, ranged from mediocre to disappointing to very good. I should mention that for my daughter’s birthday, they decorated the table beautifully:

I have mixed feelings about whether I would recommend Ox Club. If you want a break from Cambodian food, and are celebrating something, it could be a good choice due to the ambiance. However, some of the dishes, and the potential mix up with the steaks leaves me in doubt. I would not return.