Carambola

WENDY AND TOM DINE OUT

The Elephant Walk family of restaurants, founded in 1991 in Somerville, Massachusetts, are now a family of three. Two called The Elephant Walk are located on Beacon Street in Boston and on Massachusetts Avenue in Cambridge and the third is Carambola. The Elephant Walk serves complete menus of both Cambodian and French Cuisine that include both traditional and original dishes created by their chefs, the mother-daughter team of Longtime and Ands de Montessori.

Our problem with this restaurant is that we are not sure how Cambodian food is supposed to taste! We have rated it on how it appealed to us. We will have to visit more places with Cambodian cuisine so that we are better versed in this area.

Carambola has a simple, but pleasing interior. Meals are appealing to the eye and are served in large white bowls or on square blue and white patterned plates. Service was excellent and our wait person was helpful and attentive. We thoroughly enjoyed our meals but did not feel that we had had enough food. Perhaps this is because none of us eat rice. Had we enjoyed the ample supply that was served, we would probably have felt more satisfied. We could, of course, also have ordered an appetizer.

For pictures of the restaurant and menus: http://carambola.com

RESTAURANT:

CARAMBOLA

663 Main Street, Waltham, MA

DATE:

July, 2003

MEAL:

Dinner

BREAD:

SALAD:

APPETIZER:

ENTREE:

Bo Bong ($11.50) Very Good - Chilled rice noodles topped with lemongrass and peanut-encrusted beef, fresh cucumber, beansprouts, lettuce, mint, basil and crushed peanuts; topped with sliced spring rolls and dressed with tuk trey. The person who ordered this thought the Spring Rolls would be more like a Chinese Spring Roll and did not care for the chewier Cambodian style rolls.

Vegetable Curry ($10.25) Excellent -The house curry with zucchini, eggplant, baby bok choy, green tomatoes, butternut squash, green beans and cherry tomatoes. A nice sweet curry.

Saiko Ang Kroeung ($14.25) Excellent -Wood-grilled skewers of sirloin, marinated with peanuts, and encrusted with lemongrass, garlic and shallots. Served with our roasted red pepper pickles. A nice mix and slightly spicy and peanuty. The sirloin was tender.

DESSERT:

OTHER:

Parking in a large municipal lot behind the restaurant

Dress is casual

Open for lunch Monday - Friday from 11:30 a.m. to 2:30 p.m.

Open for dinner every night from 5 p.m.

OVERALL:

A-
All we can say is we liked everything we tasted and the service was excellent and friendly.

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RESTAURANT:	CARAMBOLA
	663 Main Street, Waltham, MA
DATE:	July, 2003
MEAL:	Dinner
BREAD:

SALAD:
APPETIZER:
ENTREE:	Bo Bong ($11.50) Very Good - Chilled rice noodles topped with lemongrass and peanut-encrusted beef, fresh cucumber, beansprouts, lettuce, mint, basil and crushed peanuts; topped with sliced spring rolls and dressed with tuk trey. The person who ordered this thought the Spring Rolls would be more like a Chinese Spring Roll and did not care for the chewier Cambodian style rolls.
	Vegetable Curry ($10.25) Excellent -The house curry with zucchini, eggplant, baby bok choy, green tomatoes, butternut squash, green beans and cherry tomatoes. A nice sweet curry.
	Saiko Ang Kroeung ($14.25) Excellent -Wood-grilled skewers of sirloin, marinated with peanuts, and encrusted with lemongrass, garlic and shallots. Served with our roasted red pepper pickles. A nice mix and slightly spicy and peanuty. The sirloin was tender.
DESSERT:
OTHER:	Parking in a large municipal lot behind the restaurant
	Dress is casual
	Open for lunch Monday - Friday from 11:30 a.m. to 2:30 p.m.
	Open for dinner every night from 5 p.m.

OVERALL:	A- All we can say is we liked everything we tasted and the service was excellent and friendly.