Sophon
Sophon was a Khmer restaurant and bar on Greenwood Avenue North in Seattle's Phinney Ridge neighborhood. It was open from 2024 to 2026.[1][2] Karuna Long founded and owned it.[1] Its menu offered traditional and contemporary Khmer dishes drawn from his family's heritage, and the restaurant said its food told the story of his great-grandmother and family.[3] In its first year Bon Appétit named it one of the 20 best new restaurants in the United States.[1]
History
Sophon opened in February 2024.[1] That year Eater Seattle named it best new bar, and in 2025 it was a semifinalist for the James Beard Award for best new bar in America.[1][4][5] Around June 2025 it hosted a James Beard Foundation event on Khmer cuisine and culture.[2]
Sophon closed in June 2026.[1][2][1][4]
Food
Dinner was a tasting menu served as family-style courses.[6] Dishes included p'set ang, spicy grilled trumpet mushrooms; sach chrouk, caramelized pork belly with star anise; kroeung chicken thighs; blue oyster mushrooms marinated in fermented bean curd; pork belly braised in tamari and coconut milk; and pan-fried mackerel over vermicelli soaked in kroeung curry.[6] Steak came with tuk prahok, a sauce made with fermented fish paste, and the menu also had fried chicken and fried mushrooms.[6]
The bar worked Khmer flavors such as Kampot pepper, toasted rice and guava into its cocktails. The Mekong blended rum, coconut cream, ripe and green mango and an orgeat of roasted peanuts and fish sauce, and the Khlang mixed brie-washed rye, nocino, sweet vermouth and a tincture of delicata squash.[6]
See also
Sources
References
- ↑ 1.0 1.1 1.2 1.3 1.4 1.5 1.6 The Seattle Times, Sophon closure (June 2026)
- ↑ 2.0 2.1 2.2 The Stranger, Sophon appears to be shuttered (June 2026)
- ↑ Sophon, website
- ↑ 4.0 4.1 KIRO 7, James Beard-nominated Phinney Ridge restaurant shutters (June 2026)
- ↑ Wikipedia, Sophon (restaurant)
- ↑ 6.0 6.1 6.2 6.3 Postcard, Sophon (2024)