Two Lunch Reviews for Downtown: 1> Pnohm Penh (sorry if I got the spelling wrong) 1st avenue just above (east) of Smithfield (1st ave is between the Blvd. of the Allies and Fort Pitt Blvd making this quite near the smithfield bridge.) I went with a friend last week. She had Green Curry Noodles, which came in a large bowl, the bean sprouts looked very fresh, it looked great, she loved it, and the curry sauce tasted very good. I had N1 with beef. Sorry for the menu reference but I can't remember the Cambodian name. It was wide flat rice noodles, fried with a fragrant sauce, beef, and among other things very fresh green onions. Meals come with a soup (wonton, hot & sour, or a very tangy lemon grass soup that I had and liked) and a small spring roll. The left half of the menu is chinese, the right half Cambodian. Pricing is by type of meat. Beef and Pork dishes are something like 5.95, shrimp slightly higher. I've forgotten but I do know the two of us ate for less than $15 including tip and were well satisfied. 2> CJ's noodle house. 3rd avenue above (east of) grant street. Third is one way running toward grant street here. It's upstairs from the "Chop Suey House". This is the last remaining building in what was once Pittsburgh's thriving Chinatown area (or so I am told). Kind of an interesting place. It's a karaoke bar in the evening. They have the karaoke machines running during lunch but I've never seen anyone singing. Sometimes it's in chinese sometimes in English. I once also saw them running a film... The menu has several rice plates (fried or steamed rice with a stir fry), several fried noodle dishes (chow fun) and about 10 choices of the only thing I've ever eaten there. Soup Nooldes. I've had the Roast Pork with nooldles, the Pork with Chinese pickled vegetable and noodles, roast duck with nooldes, szechuan vegetables with noodles, and a couple of others. Quality has been somewhat variable but the last three times it's been pretty even. You get a pot of hot tea, a glass or water, and a big bowl of fragrant broth, noodles, generally some choi, greens, a peapod or two,carrots, depends on the soup and your meat selection. They have several vegetable options but I think the broth may all be chicken broth, you'd have to ask. On a cold day a nice hot bowl of soup noodles and tea is quite welcome. All prices for everything on the menu run between $4.25 and $6.00. Two weekends ago I ate at a fantastic place in Washington, DC called Ooodles Noodles. It's near the corner of 20th and K and I can't recommend it enough. CJ's noodle house doesn't compare with that so don't go there hoping to finally satisfy that oriental noodle craving you've had since your last visit to San Fran (or DC)... But it really is a nice option from some of the other Chinese places downtown. Jeff
Pittsburgh, PA