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We are now open on Sundays for dinner from 5pm to 10pm! Come enjoy a nice dinner with us at Battambang Restaurant!
Mon-Thu. 11:00 a.m. - 9:30 p.m.
Fri. 11:00 a.m. - 10:00 p.m.
Sat. 11:00 a.m. - 3:00 p.m.
Sat. 5:00 p.m. - 10:00 p.m.
Sun. 5:00 p.m. - 10:00 p.m.
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I love this place! I first came here three weeks ago with my coworkers. I was a little hesitant as I did not know what to expect. It's a Cambodian restaurant and I had never had Cambodian food.
The place has off street parking, but there are many private lots nearby. The place itself is small, but always has customers. It's not a flashy upscale place. However, the people that work here are so nice. Service may be slow at times due to all the customers, but they never give you attitude.
Now for the food.... AWESOME! There were 6 of us so we all had a little of everything. You have got to try the Battambang Noodles. This is #70. It's kind of like Pad Thai, but better. Next is the Trob Trung Kor which is a baked eggplant stuffed with prawns and diced pork in a spicy lime sauce. This is #66. I'm not a big fan of eggplant, but I like this. For the appetizer, we had the sampler which had Imperial Rolls, Spring Rolls, Stuffed Chicken Wings and Crepe. All are good, but I really enjoyed the stuffed wings and the crepe. Last but not least and the main reason I came back twice in a week after my first bite.....#3 Sach Chrouck Aing. This is grilled pork marinated in lemon grass and spices and served with rice and pickled lime sauce along with a little salad. Very fulfilling. I am very picky when it comes to grilled pork, but this may be the best I have had. The two times I came back that first week, I brought guests with me and they all agree.
Need I say more? I love this place. Also, the lady that worked there remembered me from the first time and threw in some extra rice for my huge order of grilled pork. Portions are great so come hungry.
Super delicious!
I love the Somlaw Ktiss- sliced fresh pineapple in red lemon grass and coconut milk broth and sweet basil leaves. (add shrimp).
I plan on going there every time I have to visit the Coast Guard REC down the street. I hate going to the Coast Guard, but now it's not that bad, since I have discovered Battambang.
The staff is all very friendly, too.
In a recent blog entry, Michael Bauer asked for reader recommendations for Thai places. More than a few commented that Cambodian food is similar to Thai and plugged Battambang-which meant I had to try it.
The menu is full of dishes I've never heard of, and minus anything with eggplant, they all looked tasty.
My co-diner wanted a light dinner and opted for #27 Luk Luck an appetizer featuring broiled cubes of garlic steak over lettuce, onion and sliced tomato in a black pepper sauce. The plate was a generous serving of juicy steak pieces over fresh vegetables. The black pepper sauce was abundant, in fact, the dish was drenched. It was also delicious.
I had #74 Nhorm num banchuk, a vegetarian rice noodle & lettuce salad with cucumbers, shaved bell pepper and mung bean sprouts, topped with chopped mint and peanuts in a coconut-lime dressing. While very flavorful, it too was swimming in a puddle of dressing.
The duck leg curry (#46 Kari sach tair) was also a hit. Not too greasy, not too sweet. The menu said red curry, but it seemed more like a yellow curry, especially with the potatoes and carrots. I ordered it medium spicy, expecting that this would be pushing the envelope on my heat tolerance. Sadly no. Medium = quite mild.
The two of us barely made a dent in all the food, at least half the curry & rice came home. That meant no room for dessert. I saw mango sticky rice on the menu, and it's worth another trip, just for that.
In short: friendly service (could have used some help with the menu), very clean, nice colored saffron walls with pictures and plants to make it feel comfortable. The food was very flavorful and in good-sized portions. Great value for price. I'll definitely come back.
I've never had consciously had Cambodian food before, so I've got no frame of reference for attempting to review Battambang. As a complete novice who only stumbled in here with his friends after spending too much time at The Trappist across the street, here's what I know:
This food is not bad.
We had the #66 eggplant/ground beef dish that people have been raving about. This was my favorite dish of the night. It's somehow sweet and savory, and curry-like without being curry. It was also a good sauce for rice, but I found myself needing their spicy red pepper flake sauce to "jack it up" a little bit. We also had the red curry, which wasn't much special (but still OK), and the house special noodles, which were like a milder version of singapore-curry noodles. All of it was good, solid, southeast asian food. But none of it led me to say "wow" either.
Solid, unique food, good prices, easy location, and surprisingly great service lead me to recommend this to anyone...who spends too much time at The Trappist across the street.
First time to a Cambodian restaurant and it's just ok. It's like weak Thai food. They don't know the meaning of spicy!
The place had people at 7pm on Fri, but wasn't full. We didn't have reservations and found a 2-top right away.
We ordered:
#29 Slarb Moarn Bourk $7.25- stuffed chicken wings, ground pork, roasted peanuts, bean threads, black fungus, lemon & spices. 2 stuffed wings. I tried one and thought it was tasty. How did they make this?
#88 Kary Trorb $8.25-baked eggplant simmered in red curry sauce. It was bland, bland, bland even though we said Spicy!
#94 Amouk Trei $11.25-thinly sliced filet of fish in a red lemon grass sauce, then steamed in banana leaves. It was pretty tasty - it had more flavor then the curry & B. used it to flavor the eggplant.
#20 Nhorm Yihoeur $8.25-quick boiled calamari, fresh mints, lettuce green bean, bell pepper & onion in spicy lime sauce dressing. This was NOT spicy. Calamari was fine, not too chewy.
One Tiger Beer $3.50 from Singapore. B. seemed to like it.
Subtotal $40.50 + $3.95 Beast tax = $44.45 before tip. Credit cards taken. Two Andes mint given with the bill.
If you like not spicy food then come here.
Tip: Use the green pepper in container on the table w/ the oil it gives a tiny bit of heat to the food. Eating the pepper might be way too hot though.
One unisex bathroom in the back on the right side.
Hrs:
Closed Sun
M-Th 11-9:30p
Fri-Sat 11-10p
Capacity 49pp
I went for lunch. I can't remember the name of my dish but even if I could, I wouldn't be able to spell it. Anyhow, it was some kind of grilled pork and a shrimp and vegetable skewer. The food was fresh, came out quickly, and tasted pretty good. The portions and prices were legit. Minus 1 star for getting no service the first 10 minutes after being seated.
Been here about 5 times now in the past two months. I think that speaks for itself !
Sweet staff, but they were sorely understaffed, so it was a bit slow (e.g. had to ask for a menu). The restaurant is clean, and the lunch servings large. The vegetarian selection is adequate, but the dish only OK. My friend's bbq meat definitely looked yummy. Alas for vegetarians. The crowd is generally professional. Prices are fair.
The service was nice - they have a huge selection of vegetarian options so that's a plus. Not sure what else to compare it to since I've never had Cambodian before but it's good for what it is but nothing too striking.
Cambodian food is an overlooked gem but fortunately there are some places to obtain it in northern California. Many restaurants make muddy sauces that drown the dish in one bland taste but this eatery deftly avoids that pitfall and offers generous portions with great flavor. It is impossible to go wrong ordering any of the noodle dishes but the real prize is in the grilled plates which have a delightful tang. Cambodian food is less reliant on spices then Thai but this restaurant will make sure to give you an excellent and filling meal.
The most authentic Cambodian menu I've seen and some of the warmest service, too. Maybe it's because the owner has a different style of cooking from my mama, but a lot of the dishes were new to me and some weren't exactly what I expected. Nonetheless, this is a great place to try Cambodian food if you can't get it homemade!
I've been coming here for years and love the food. When I have a craving for Southeast Asian but am tired of Thai (and want something lighter), I head here. It's great for lunch (love the combo plates) and dinner.
Tangy, flavorful infusion of ginger, fresh lime, lemongrass, tamarind and fish sauce in a lot of their dishes. Service is friendly, and the prices are reasonable for the quality and generous. This week, a dinner for two with 2 entrees (plenty) and 2 beers cost $38 including 20% tip.
I highly recommend their char-broiled sliced pork (or any of their bbq dishes) and Troub Trung Kor (baked eggplant stuffed with ground pork and shrimp, with lime sauce). Delicious!
One of the best curries I've had so far in the Bay Area, if not the best. Highly highly recommend. Desserts are also amazing. Very friendly staff too, and reasonable prices.
Good way to get some food in you before a nice evening of Belgian ales at the Trappist.
(2.5 stars)
Sigh. I really want to like this place, and perhaps we ordered badly both times we went, but for me, it's just ok.
The service was mostly friendly on a busy Friday night. (I say mostly because the gentleman server seemed very harried and didn't brook much hesitation. The woman was very friendly and chatty, so it was all balanced.)
The food was mostly unremarkable, tho fish sauce made everything better.
I'd go back if someone insisted on it, but not of my own volition.
My friend and I were looking for a place that neither of us had been to before. And since my visits home have been fewer and further between, I wanted something I wouldn't find back in LA. I remembered reading a long review about this place on CH and drooling over the pics. So I suggested this and off we went.
And then when we pulled up, and I realized..shit. I've been here before. Damn, where is my memory going?? Ah well. Inside we went. It was a cold day and the hostess let us sit in a prime location - directly under the heater and next to the window. We ordered right away since I already studied the menu on CH - Amok Trei (fish filet steamed in banana leaves) and the fried catfish w/ sweet and sour sauce.
The steamed fish was very light and smooth. I couldn't taste much of the coconut milk nor the hint of banana leaves, but it was still really good. The catfish though, YUM. It was perfectly crisp and not dry at all. The sauce was a little bland until I squeezed in a couple of limes. Mmm. It's not a special Cambodian dish or anything - in fact, you'll find this at many Thai/Viet/Malaysian restaurants. But that night, it hit the spot.
As did our meal at Battambang - it wasn't a particularly special place nor was it our first time dining at a new restaurant. But the food was delicious, the wait staff was warm and inviting, and we had a great time catching up - this meal totally hit the spot.
Efficient service, quiet atmosphere. We got the sampler appetizer (tiny fried rolls, spring rolls, crepe stuffed with ground meat and sprouts, stuffed chicken wing). Each item was delish. Battambang Noodle dish and Duck Leg Curry, the curry was the best. I would recommend adding some heat to it. Had fried banana and ice cream (amazing) and jack fruit custard (wonderful) for dessert. Would love to try the eggplant with lime juice next, and maybe fried fish.
Somewhere between three and four stars but the excellent lamb chops and the papaya salad gave it the extra star. On the other hand the barbecue pork dry and tough but the dishes that were sauted were find. Worth going to just for the lamb chops even though you may not think of that being Cambodian.
A rare gem in a worn out crown of lugubriousness that is Oakland.
My cambodian food virginity was takes away suddenly, tempestuously, effectively, and in a course of 120 minutes that felt like heaven.
Yes, such scandalous deed was committed by Mr/Ms. Battambang.
There's nothing like your first....esp when you've been Battambanged.
You know a place is great when you crave the food constantly =D
There are only a few Cambodian Restaurants, which is such as shame because it is a great cuisine.
(I'm on a mission to find more Cambodian Restaurants.)
This place deserves 4.5 stars.
I love this place, if you haven't tried Cambodian food you are…
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just had dinner here and i really enjoyed it. the service is great and unobtrusive and the dishes were well balanced. the sweet and sour fish broth, the amok (fish in coconut curry, served in a banana leaf bowl) were the highlights for me. apparently, there's some incredibly delicious cambodian sausage that's not on the menu but if you call ahead, she might make it for you. unfortunately, our host didn't call ahead but there's always next time.
and don't overlook the mango sticky rice. most places serve up the wrong breed of mango that isn't ripe at all but this places doesn't. which gives it mega plus points in my book.
So delicious but I think the price has gone up a little since the last time I was there. I really like the coconut milk with sweet potato and tofu in red curry. Nice portion and with green beans too! For lunch you can get an entree for $8 and it comes with your rice and a little bowl of soup. Good food and nice people.
My husband and I LOVE battambang...they have the best noodles, soup, appetizers, mung fish, and curry. If you like Thai food, then you will like Cambodian food- the flavors are similar.
I really like their Slarb Moarn Bourk (stuffed chicken wing appetizer), the Trei Meis (coconut banana leaf wrapped fish), Trorb Trung Kor (baked eggplant in spicy lime sauce) and the battambang noodles. We get those 4 items very time we go....such a treasure in Oakland! We go here almost once every 2-3 weeks. And they also have wonderful service!
Aight...so tired of Dim Sum, not wanting Korean, my friend and I tried this place on a lark...
First off this place was immaculate clean. Even the bathroom. This is a major plus. Service was uber-friendly and attentive with only one minor lapse (taking care of a high maintenance family).
Now, I really wish I could say I am a fan of the food, but it just seemed like bland Thai food. The fresh spring rolls had an odd skin sort of wrapper that was more noodle than anything and instead of bean sprouts had alfalfa sprouts prompting WTF expressions on both our faces. Alfalfa...? What the...?
Betty's curry was bland. No spice or kick or pop. My noodle dish was alright...a version of pad thai minus any spicy kick.
So--if you are looking for a very clean place with decent service and don't like or tolerate a lot of spice this might be for you. I'd go back, but I am not rushing back.
omg, its the first time i tried it.. its the greatest place i've eaten in Oakland so far besides the Ikea Restaurant. LOL .. -__-" We ordered the five items in the back and then a beef curry.. the curry was sweet and tasty.
mm.. I want to go back. It tastes really great, good service, every heartwarming. And the people really know whats good and whats not.
The person I was with asked whats good here, the guy gave us his perspective.. how he couldn't chose for us because hes feeling chicken and we might not be feeling chicken.. cause we weren't feeling chicken. ahaha. Over all, i like the mint and the service and the FOOD.
Our extended family came here after my sister's graduation right before 3pm. Good thing we got here in time because it sure was worth it! This is traditional home style Cambodian food. Food-wise, the beef and chicken skewers were enough for me to keep coming back. They were marinated with lemongrass flavor. Eat lunch or dinner here to try these out. You will not be disappointed.
This is one of the Cambodian restaurants that I'd go to on a date. It has a quiet environment and the waiters are pretty helpful in recommendations and they provide good service. I don't recall what I ordered, but I remember coming out of this place with a smile in my tummy :o)
One of my favorite Cambodian joint to eat, not to mention the staff is friendly and attentive. The place is really clean and neat.
Battambang is one of the few (or perhaps only) restaurants in the Bay Area specializing in Cambodian cuisine. How cool is that.
While being somewhat similar to Thai, Cambodian food is supposedly milder, lighter and less intense in terms of herbs and spices used. (More like Vietnamese, perhaps?) And according to our waitress, the food at Battambang is even more so and well...more Americanized, if you will. After our first meal here, we knew exactly what she meant.
FOOD: With that disclaimer, we think the food here is delicious. The fresh salads (with lime sauce) are refreshing. The pickled vegetables on the side are sweet and crisp. The red curries are a little too mild and watery for us, but after adding in the hot sauce (found on each table), they can be adjusted well to our liking. The grilled meat dishes - either pork (Sach Chrouk Aing) or beef (Sach Ko Chomkak) - are great. Lastly, you can request your dishes to be made hotter, if that's what you want.
SETTING & SERVICE: Not the most pleasant place for dining, but clean enough. Slow, but friendly service.
SUM: 3.5 stars
I had never had Cambodian food before and was really pleasantly surprised by how good the meal was.
This place is funny in that it sits next to this huge sushi buffet Asian cuisine building that recently reopened. It also is wedged between another high rise. I never came in here because it looked a bit run down from the exterior.
Inside, it is cozy and comfortable. When my boyfriend and I arrived we were the only ones but soon enough the place really started to fill up.
I got the Tamarind Tofu dish which was really tasty and fresh: tofu, tomatoes, bell peppers grilled on skewers and in a nice light sauce.
All their deserts look amazing. We had a fried banana one that was perfect.
I plan on coming here again soon.
I have been twice to Battambang now. Both times the food has been wonderful and the people are really friendly. This last time, we had the stuffed chicken wings for an appetizer...tasty, of course. The best part was the pickled cabbage, carrots and ginger that came with it. The boyfriend loves pickled vegetables. Our entrees were the Battambang noodles and an excellent curry with beef, yams, peanuts...to die for.
I found this place when Cambodiana in Berkeley closed. I have to say, Battambang is definitely as good (makes me wonder if the owners are the same) and they even make the trout dish that I loved at Cambodiana.
I went there for the first time today with my co-workers today and was pretty impressed. I ordered vegetarian spinach noodles in coconut curry broth and the dish was amazing. The veggies were fresh and crisp, the noodles still had an al dente bite and not soggy, and the broth had complex flavors because of all the different herbs and spices in it, not to mention it smelled great! Service was prompt and the place was clean, and we all got what we ordered at the same time (a challenge for many small Asian restaurants). Many of my co-workers ordered luncheon specials and their portions were huge. So it's also great value!
The atmosphere of the restaurant was good. The service, though they seemed a little overwhelmed (it looked like they had a big catering job and quite a few to-go orders so table service was just a little bit slow at first), was cheerful and personable.
We ordered the beef (Sach Ko Chamkak) lunch and the eggplant stuffed with ground pork and shrimp (Trorb Trung Kor).
Presentation was good and the food was served hot. The lunch special included a basic, but tasty cabbage vegetable soup.
Overall it was good. I found the ground pork had a slightly smoky taste (did they use liquid smoke?) but otherwise a very mild tasting dish. The beef was a bit more savory and was quite tasty.
I'd go again if I was in the neighborhood to try the other dishes.
(I've posted the menu, bus. card, and photos of our dishes in the photo section)
Ok, so I've only tried ONE thing on the menu, the #6 lunch special. Kari Moarn. It's quite delicious, and I have yet to try other items on the menu, but I can't stray away from #6!
Thanks to the Yelper who suggested it below, claiming that it's the only thing you get.
I actually tried other items like their fried rice and some other dishes at a catered company training, and it was all good. I just wish I knew the names of the other dishes. One was realllly good and I loved it. I know it had chicken and green beans, but it wasn't kari moarn.
I crave this place from time to time and I'm glad it's only 2 blocks away from where I work.
FYI, you have to spend $10+ in order to charge your order on a card.
Though we went here for a joyous occasion, I'd have to say that the food was not nearly as joyous as I was hoping. We had a lot of dishes that all did not have a lot of flavour. Also, the dish sizes were all a little small. The one thing that we did eat that tasted really good was the Ginger cake that our roommate brought. Yes they were nice enough to hold the cake in the back and not eat it, but they were no match for the homemade cake. Anyway, we also were able to take part in the wonderful service. It was one of those things. Sometimes it was good, sometimes bad. We got our drinks really quickly, but we ordered our food really slowly. But we got the food really quickly. Anyway, what else about this place, the have one unisex washroom which comes complete with industrial wash basin and regular washroom sink and a toilet with a candle for when a patron makes the stinky.
All in all our experience was mediocre at best. The saving grace of this place is that if you do have to go here for dinner, you can finish off your night by walking over to the Trappist on 8th st.
I would have never thought of finding a delightful dessert at a Cambodian restaurant. Well... the deep fried banana with two scoops of vanilla ice cream at Battambang Restaurant was stupendous! The warm, golden banana and the cold, velvety vanilla ice cream made for a very blissful tasting dessert. What a way to end a night out with wonderful friends!
So I just read Max V's review of this place and according to him all the veggie dishes have fish sauce in it. TELL ME IT'S NOT TRUE! I was so excited after eating here because I wanted to go straight home and give it a wonderful review. I guess I should do some more research before I give it 1 STAR for lying to me right?
Well, my rating for Battambang stands at 3 stars for now.
I have spent a great deal of time in Cambodia and have eaten at many Cambodian restaurants in California. I have to admit that there is generally a reason there is not a Cambodian restaurant on every corner. For most Americans it is an "acquired" taste and most of us end up eating either Thai or Vietnamese. Also unless you speak Khmer most Cambodian restaurants are very difficult for the average American to order in and most are less than helpful.
Well my Cambodian niece is visiting my wife and I, so we decided to take her to San Francisco. We spent the day doing the tourist thing and tried to go to Chinatown to eat but the traffic was bad. We decided to head back to Sacramento. I checked my GPS unit, just over the Bay Bridge, and started looking for a restaurant to eat at. I saw the name Battambang and decided we should check it out. Boy am I glad we did. The food was really good. The service was excellent. Most of the customers were not Cambodian but the waitress was excellent at explaining things to them.
I would highly recommend this place to anyone who wants to try Cambodian food without having to worry feeling out of place. This place is far and away better than any other Cambodian restaurants I have eaten at in the States. It is slightly upscale and would be a great place to take a date. Good selection of beer and wine. My Cambodian wife and niece both thought the food was great. The only thing I did not like was the durin custard my niece ordered for desert. She and my wife loved it but durin is an acquired taste that I am not that fond of. Still an excellent experience that I hope to try again the next time I am near the Bay Area.
Tried Battambang with a friend tonight, neither of us was particularly impressed.
We started with a papaya salad, which was fine but we both felt lacked heat. (guess we should have specified spicy, we're both so used to getting SEAsian dishes that way by default nowadays I suppose it skipped our minds, but on the other hand, the waitstaff didn't ask us either)
For entrees we had: #48, halibut, vegetables and basil in red curry. Curry was completely devoid of heat, and pretty devoid of flavor, too. The fish seemed a bit less than fresh to me... #52, bamboo shoots and other vegetables in red lemongrass sauce with chicken. No heat here either. Didn't taste the lemongrass. Couldn't tell what distinguished this sauce from the bland red curry of #48... and #84, mixed vegetables and tofu in garlic sauce. Nothing special here, it was fine but lacked zest. (which seems to be the overall theme of the meal)
Didn't love or hate anything. Service was fine, they refilled our tea several times, but I felt as far as the food went, whoever was in the kitchen just wasn't even trying. I'll be generous and say that maybe we ordered the wrong things, but based on what I had and the endemic lack of flavor, (as well as the prices being a bit on the high side for this type of food) this wouldn't be on my radar of places to try again.
I had my Cambodian food cherry popped tonight and like many firsts, it wasn't the greatest experience nor was it the most disappointing. Not exactly knowing what do expect, I wasn't sure how close to Thai food Cambodian food would be, since that was really the only comparison I had available.
We ended up ordering the Somlaw Ktiss, Kari Dong Kchei, Trorb Trung Kor and Battambang Noodles. The somlaw ktiss soup was tasty, but did remind me of a watered down curry sauce. Unfortunately, the next course after the soup was the kari dong kchei, which appeared like the the undiluted form of the soup plus the addition of green beans and yams. It was tasty but the flavor profile was so similar to the soup that they were nearly indistinguishable. The pork and eggplant dish was surprisingly smokey and actually far smokier than really anyone at the table expected. i actually kind of like the smokiness of the dish, though I can see how it might be a little too overpowering a flavor for someone else. The last dish was a noodle dish and the first thing that came to mind of pad thai. It was very similar to pad thai but with more sauce and it seemed to be both more savory and sweeter than any pad thai that I've had before. I'm still not sure how much I like it, but it certainly wasn't bad.
The staff were pretty quick as the dishes came out in a very efficient manner. The servers were friendly and appeared for the most part to be very capable people The prices were mostly resonable, as a dinner for 4 only ran about a $60 tab and that was including a few beers. I want to check out a few more Cambodian places before I make my final decision on this place, but I wouldn't object to trying this place again.
Surprisingly fresh-tasting seafood soups!
Somlaw Machou Pangrors - It is made of fillet of fish, jumbo prawns, fresh pineapple, tomato, lemon grass and spices in a clear sweet & sour tamarind broth.
This dish has big chucks of fresh white fish and tastes light and refreshing. The sweet pineapple, "sour" tomato, refreshing lemongrass create an explosion of flavors!
I loved my soup, so did my meat-loving fiance. However, the ambiance, service, and the meat dishes we ordered were just average.
Neighborhood: Oakland Chinatown
Category: Cambodian
Neighborhood: Lower Hills
Category: Cambodian
Neighborhood: Oakland Chinatown
Category: Vietnamese
Neighborhood: Old Oakland
Category: Mexican
Neighborhood: Downtown Oakland
Category: Sushi Bars
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