Senmonorom
1671 Middlesex St, Lowell, MA
(978) 275-0024
Senmonorom Restaurant, located in Lowell, Massachusetts, is a simple, no frills place, serving mainly Cambodian cuisine. Their signature dish, the Cambodian Style Yao Hon (hot pot), prevails over their competition in the area. Senmonorom is the capital of Mondulkiri Province in Eastern Cambodia. The restaurant has been around for a while, and you can tell, with the simple but well-worn tables and chairs. Once seated, we got some hot tea and our menus.
We started off with the Fried Squid ($13.95), which came out first. Their squid reminded me of the Salt and Pepper style Cantonese Fried Squid, but their rendition uses a lighter and crispier batter coating, which does not taste greasy and has a lovely peppery flavor. It was one of the best we had ever tasted, and we quickly devoured it.
Next came the Cambodian Yao Hon (large size, $55), with the pot of broth coming out along with the other hot pot ingredients. Hot pot, or steamboat, has its origins in China, and is made by cooking foods, including meats, seafood, vegetables, and noodles, in a hot broth. It is similar to fondue (instead of using chocolate, oil, or cheese, a hot broth is used) – you can dip, swirl, or leave the food in, only to later fish it out, as the cooking method. We opted for the Ox Tail Broth ($5 surcharge), which included some lovely and tender pieces of tendon that melts in your mouth. The broth started out simple and clean, with a light beef flavor. You can customize or add more items to it if needed, but we found the regular items served were more than enough. You are given their own house made fermented dipping sauce (very strong and not for everyone). I passed on having it myself, as I am used to the more Chinese style dipping sauces. We had a plate of half yellow egg noodles and half white rice noodles. Then we had a plate filled with meatballs, squid, shrimp, meat, and tripe, along with a plate of bean curd skin. Finally, we had the heaping plate of fresh green vegetables and herbs including watercress, Thai basil, rice paddy leaf herb, and Morning Glory. The fish sauce used for dipping was very strong and not for the faint hearted. As with any hot pot, our favorite time is to have the broth at the end of the night, when all the cooked food flavors have melded and simmered together, to make a fabulously nuanced and tasty broth. It was the highlight for us, and we have had our fair share of hot pot too. We could see why the locals clamor for it.
The Mango Salad ($16.95) uses raw mango cut into slivers, topped with shrimp. This had a strong Thai influence on it, using sugar, lime juice, strong fish sauce, and some hot chilies added too. I found it piquant and spicier with each bite, but it was very addictive and delicious. It reminded me of the Papaya Salad, but I preferred this one to the Papaya Salad.
The three of us were very full after our delicious meal and very satisfied. If you are adventurous, enjoy strong flavors, and want to try a different hot pot experience, definitely go try Senmonorom the next time you are in Lowell.
