SEATTLE — A Seattle restaurant just a few blocks west of Green Lake was included in a prestigious list from renowned national food magazine Bon Appétit.
In its "Best New Restaurants of 2024" list, Bon Appétit included Sophon, a Cambodian spot on Greenwood Avenue North in Seattle.
"The restaurant is named for chef Karuna Long’s mother, who survived the Khmer Rouge in Cambodia and fled to the US in 1980. His menu is rooted in traditional flavors but pulls influences from Seattle’s cultural and culinary bounty. Locally grown oyster mushrooms take a cue from the Japanese dish of karaage and are fried to an audible crunch and drizzled with a bright lemongrass aioli," reads part of Bon Appétit's summary of Sophon.
Long also owns the nearby cocktail bar Oliver's Twist. Sophon is named after Long's mother, according to its website.
Bon Appétit also highlighted the Kha sach chrouk, which is pork belly "braised in a sweet soy-coconut bath" that comes with microgreens on top along with daikon and quail eggs.
In addition to the food, Sophon featured the magazine's "Best Beverage Program." The mekong, which only can be ordered at the bar, was called "this year's best cocktail" by Bon Appétit and is served in a repurposed coconut cream can. Its ingredients include fish sauce and roasted peanuts with some others in a rum blend, per the website's menu.
Sophon wasn't the only Pacific Northwest restaurant to make the list, as Portland's Alpenrausch and Pasar also were among the 20 selected.
The restaurant is open Tuesday through Saturday, and more information can be found on its website.
