Peephutpmei: A Cambodian Restaurant in Lowell

The entrance sign

    Something that everyone told me before coming to college was that I would find many opportunities to be exposed to a wide variety of cultures. As someone who came to school from a small, ethnically-limited  town in New York, I was especially intrigued by the promise of expanding my cultural boundaries. What I didn’t realize, however, was that culture can be learned about in very interesting and even subtle ways. For example, I never thought that going to a ethnic restaurant would be considered as engaging with a new culture; I guess a life of seeing Chinese buffet restaurants had numbed me to that idea. Recently, however, an experience with a foreign restaurant changed my mind about that idea. My recent visit to a Cambodian restaurant known as Peephuptmei has given me an insight into Lowell’s Cambodian culture (and given me some good food to boot).

    

A look at one of the ads

    I wasn’t really sure what to expect from the Cambodian restaurant, in all honesty. While my palate isn’t very diverse ethnically speaking, I’ve still had a taste of a good amount of foods from China. Ireland, Great Britain, and Spain. Even with this experience, I had never eaten any Cambodian food; I didn’t even have an idea of what it would taste like. I wasn’t expecting some kind of food that would taste completely different than anything I had ever had in my life, but at the same time, I wasn’t quite sure what other foods I had eaten in my life to compare it to. Because of this, my expectations for the Cambodian restaurant were rather flexible.

    

    My expectations became even more flexible when my friends and I arrived at Peephuptmei. The sign above the entrance had something written in Khmer (I’d assume it was the name of the restaurant). There were posters on the windows advertising multiple kinds of smoothies and even screenings of Cambodian films (again, all in Khmer). The interior of the restaurant was even more intriguing; many objects in the building were kind shade of pink or green. All of the cold drinks (except for the smoothies) were sold in a big refrigerator, the tables and chairs were arranged less like a normal restaurant and more like a communal space, what I would assume to be Cambodian pop played in the background, and the TV played what appeared to be scenes from some Cambodian version of American Idol. Suffice it to say, the atmosphere of the restaurant was certainly interesting, but at the same time, it was very inviting. The people who ran the restaurant were all very nice, and the restaurant as a whole was very clean. Based on these initial impressions, I was looking forward to the meal.

    

    When we finally got our meals, however, I was rather surprised to see how similarly they resembled and tasted like foods that I had seen and eaten before. Granted, that is in no way a criticism, but it made me realize how unrealistic the expectations that I had were. I shouldn’t have been expecting some incredibly different, otherworldly-looking food, I should have been expecting a good meal and inviting atmosphere; the tenets of a quality eating experience are always the same, no matter where you eat it and who made it. In that respect, the meal was quite delicious; I ordered Cambodian beef strips and white rice, and it was probably the best meal I had that week. The meat wasn’t too rough to eat off the stick it came on, and the rice tasted excellent as well. The other people that I went with ordered things like noodles mixed with vegetables and traditionally prepared soups, and their opinions of their meals was just as positive as mine. Later on in the meal, one of my friends received an avocado smoothie and another got a strawberry smoothie. While I tend not to like smoothies very much (they can be too sweet for my tastes), I was quite surprised by their tastes. They both managed to be very refreshing without being too watery and sugary, all while maintaining the taste of whatever they were trying to imitate. All together, it was a very pleasant dining experience.

    

    Overall, I would certainly recommend Peephuptmei to anyone in Lowell looking to expand their minds when it comes to food and dining experiences. The food was great, the surroundings were intriguing, and it makes you want to come back for more. I know I will certainly be visiting the restaurant again in the future.