Bong

New York has almost no Cambodian restaurants, which makes this one feel like a small miracle. Chef Chakriya Un and her partner ran the pop-up Kreung Cambodia before turning a former burrito counter on a quiet Crown Heights block into a tiny room with lime-green walls, an open kitchen, about seven tables and music loud enough to call a house party. Bong is the Khmer word for an older sibling, and the place has that kind of warmth.

Khmer cooking leans sour and bright, and the menu follows: clams in a tamarind broth that begs for rice, a melon and cucumber salad with crisp grilled pork jowl, corn under thick coconut milk sharpened with fish sauce. The crispy whole fish comes with lettuce for wrapping and two dipping sauces; Mama Kim's lobster, named for the chef's mother, is smothered in ginger. Order more than you think, and order rice.