Restaurants and Bars

Cambodia has always taken ingredients from other cultures to blend with its own, and food is no exception. When it comes to dining out, Phnom Penh is cosmopolitan, and almost every cuisine in the world is represented in a restaurant somewhere in this town.

Khmer food is, of course, the most abundant and qualities range from street-side to luxurious. Local street food is everywhere, but it might not always be compatible with foreign tastes. Grilled silkworms, roasted sparrows and bong dia cohen (duck embryos), all local delicacies, might only be for the adventurous traveler, but for a few thousand riel (less than USD1) for any item, the adventure costs very little.

More mainstream Khmer food is available in several restaurants around town. Amok (fish or meat steamed in leaves with coconut milk) and lok lak (grilled cubes of beef) are classic Khmer dishes that usually leave foreign diners wanting more. On the riverfront, Pon Lok is one of the most famous restaurants specializing in these dishes. The Hotel Cambodiana offers a Khmer buffet so diners can taste the full range of this unique cuisine with an accompanying performance of Khmer classical dance.

Once part of French Indochina, the Gallic influence still runs deep in Cambodia. French bread is sold at the markets by the basket load, and baguettes with pâte are a popular snack. For up-market dining, though, there are French restaurants to match the finest anywhere. Topaz, on Sotheros Boulevard, is widely regarded as one of the best restaurants in town. Less expensive but very atmospheric is Le Louisiane, with outdoor seating and attentive service. La Croisette is also an affordable but very appealing alternative.

The Tonle Sap, the river Phnom Penh is built along, is a center for international dining in the city. From near the Royal Palace, a succession of restaurants serving food from all over the world to accommodate every budget stretch for about two kilometers along the water front. Bali Cafe is, as the name suggests, primarily an Indonesian restaurant, but set on the first floor, the balcony makes it an ideal place to sit with a drink and watch the world go by even if you are not hungry. Almost next door is the Foreign Correspondents' Club, or FCC. Unlike FCC's in other countries, you do not have to be a journalist to come and enjoy the view from this stately French colonial building. Though, if there is a famous journalist, photographer or actor in town, you can bet on seeing them here sipping a happy-hour beer or snacking on international food including stuffed damper, pumpkin soup and Caesar salad at some point during their stay. Around the corner, real British hospitality, right down to the Scotch eggs and toad-in-the-hole, awaits you at the The Rising Sun.

Of course, the cuisines of neighboring nations feature prominently anywhere you go. In the restaurant strip on Sotheros Boulevard, Vietnam is represented with An Nam and Thailand is almost next-door at Chiang Mai. Up-market Chinese food can be found at the Intercontinental Hotel's Xiang Palace, which specializes in dim sum but offers a full range of Cantonese delicacies. The road to Central Market, as well, is paved with Chinese restaurants in what has become a regular diner's Chinatown. Indian food is available for all, too-from the USD2 Chi Cha Hotel to the Singaporean-owned East India Curry Restaurant to the stately Shiva Shakti, overlooking Independence Monument, where you might even find yourself dining with members of the Cambodian royal family! All three of these offer extensive vegetarian options and halal food.

There has been an explosion of international restaurants in Phnom Penh during recent years, so there are very few types of food one can't find here: Mexican food is offered at The Mex, Greek food at Athena Greek Bar and Restaurant, and even Mediterranean and Moroccan food at Riverhouse.

Whatever your predilections, little Phnom Penh can surely satisfy them with at least one option and usually a few, whatever your budget, however adventurous you are and wherever your home might be. So enjoy your meal or, as they say in Cambodia, Som Anh-cheunh pee-sa oy ch'ngang. The hardest part might be choosing what, exactly, that meal may be.