Chan Thon Andy Phoung opened Taste With Andy at the end of 2020. Pandemic timing that should have been a disaster and somehow wasn't. The menu pulls from his family's Khmer cooking — Cambodian, the heritage thread — and runs out across the Thai and Vietnamese traditions his family also moved through. His credo, repeated to the journalist who came around early: how you cook is more important than what you cook. It's the line on the sign at 45 Cork Street East.
Mom's Chicken Curry sits at the center of the menu. Coconut broth, chicken, taro, yam, slow-simmered. The kind of dish that's a family recipe before it's anything else. Around it: Drunken Noodles with basil and bell peppers on broad rice noodles. Beef Khao Soi with red curry and kaffir lime. A Khmer Burger that runs as a weekly special — ground beef with lemongrass and honey, the Cambodian thread surfacing through the weekly rotation. Steak larb with sticky rice. Squash custard for dessert.
Andy's family is Cambodian. The Khmer thread runs through the menu — surfaces clearest in the weekly specials (Khmer Burger, steak larb with sticky rice, squash custard for dessert) and in the chili paste he makes himself. Most Southeast Asian menus in southern Ontario don't carry the Khmer thread at all.
Thirteen dollars on the menu. Andy makes it himself — chili, garlic, white onion, no preservatives — with a portioning guide built right into the menu description. The kind of choice a chef makes when they cooked at home before they cooked for the public.
Chan Thon Andy Phoung opened at the end of 2020 — pandemic timing that should have been a disaster and somehow wasn't. The menu is built on family recipes; the credo is on the sign; downtown Guelph's east-side regulars and students made it the fixture it is.
Taste With Andy delivers value through generous portions, bento combos, and Southeast Asian dishes that often leave room for leftovers. The appeal is everyday abundance rather than stripped-down cheapness.
Curious diners should pay attention to the Cambodian thread and the specials. Mom's Chicken Curry, Khmer Burger, drunken noodles, pho, and Andy's chili paste give the menu more personality than a standard Thai-Vietnamese lineup.
The cultural pull comes from Andy Phoung's family recipes and Khmer heritage. Cambodian, Thai, and Vietnamese dishes share the menu, with the house chili paste and Mom's Chicken Curry making the story personal.
Taste With Andy works well off-premise because the menu is built around dishes that hold up: curries, noodles, pho, bento combos, skewers, and spring rolls. It is convenient without losing the homestyle feel.
Families can make the menu work because the room is casual, the portions are generous, and the flavours can stay familiar. Bento combos, noodles, curry, rice, and skewers give mixed-age groups simple entry points.
Share the nuances of your visit to Taste With Andy in Guelph — the standout dishes, the room, the service.
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