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Dining & Entertainment in Phnom Penh

 


Dining

Phnom Penh has a fair choice of eating and entertainment options. The best place to hang out in the evenings is down by the Mekong riverside with its long line of mid-priced restaurant-bars. There’s not much between them - prices, food and ambience are consistently good. The Garden Bar is a casual Mediterranean style spot and Wagon Wheel is a good US/German restaurant with a broad and satisfying menu. Visit this site for more information about restaurants in Phnom Phen.

A popular open front pub overlooking the Mekong with a traditional English menu is the Pink Elephant. It’s cheap and lively with regular live sports and sidewalk seating. The mass of waiting moto drivers, flower sellers and hungry gawping street children can be off-putting but it’s a good place for a pint while soaking up Phnom Penh.


Pizza There are several good pizza joints in the capital. Baggio’s Pizza is reliable and constantly full and Happy Herb’s is renowned for having the widest range of toppings.

Western Cuisine An old favourite is the dependable FCC. Prices are high but the mood, colonial décor and river views make for a good night out.

Khmer Food It’s not that easy to get Khmer food in Phnom Penh as the Khmer Rouge killed the country’s top chefs and wiped out most of the culinary culture. You can sample what’s left of it - a blend of Chinese and Thai - in Pon Lok restaurant on the riverfront. Authentic local eateries abound just across the Friendship Bridge. Cheap and lively, but watch your belly as unless you are a hardened traveller with an iron stomach you may get the ‘colly-wobbles’ rather rapidly, which could ruin your holiday.

Chinese Cuisine The best Chinese restaurant in town is the Xiang Palace in the Intercontinental.

Thai Food Not surprisingly there are some good Thai spots in town - the choice pick is presently Baan Thai


Japanese Dining There are a few Japanese restaurants, all are horribly overpriced and seem only to survive by drawing homesick Japanese. Nice enough but only worth it if you’re hell-bent on sushi.


Entertainment

Active? Culturally inclined? Just want to dance and drink your nights away? Phnom Penh has as diverse a selection of entertainment choices as any city in the region, although it all comes stamped with this laid back town's own inimitable style. Many events seem almost spontaneous, and the best way to find out what is on is by checking the listings on the back page of the English language Cambodia Daily each Friday.

Travelers interested in cultural entertainment can enjoy long, full days. Early risers can see Cambodia's world-famous classical dancers rehearse most mornings at the Royal University of Fine Arts between 7.30 and 9.30am. Almost all of the kingdom's dancers were culled during the Pol Pot regime, but enough survived to keep this beautiful legacy of Angkorian times alive. Sovanna Phum, located a little way out of town at 111 Street 360, stages occasional, highly recommended performances of Khmer shadow puppet theatre and Khmer circus. Productions of Khmer classical theater and circus are irregular and are best located by checking local magazines and newspapers. Combine dining with entertainment at the Sofitel Cambodiana Hotel, which offers traditional food and culture with its Khmer buffet dinner and traditional dance performance every Friday night.

There is culture of a more modern kind at the French Cultural Center, which sometimes hosts exhibitions, plays and other events and regularly screens a good range of French language movies, often with English subtitles. Other than that, there are almost no cinemas in Phnom Penh. Latest release foreign movies are often on television within days of release due to almost non-existent copyright laws, and Cambodia's film industry consists mainly of karaoke video makers. However, tourists wishing to see a Khmer movie on the big screen can do so in relative comfort at the newly reopened Vimeantip Cinema on Monivong Boulevard.

Live music outside of karaoke parlors is as hard to find as films. Sunday is jam day at the Globe Bar and Restaurant and any musician is welcome to join. The Elephant Bar at Hotel Le Royal along with a few of the larger hotels such as Monirom Villa and Royal Phnom Penh Hotel stage regular cabaret-style or sedate piano performances.

KickboxingThe armchair sports fan though can usually find a good seat in Phnom Penh. During soccer season, Cambodian National Soccer League games and occasionally internationals are held at various locations--often at the Old Stadium in the north of town--and teams with names such as National Police Red Donkeys tussle earnestly in the blazing sun. Other venues are listed in the Cambodia Daily. Kickboxing is held on Sundays at the TV5 studios. Cambodians are passionate about their kickboxing, which is very similar to Thailand's muay Thai, also believed to be a Khmer invention. Big crowds gather to watch local heroes, especially when they fight foreign contenders.

For those seeking fitness for themselves, there are fewer options. The Clark Hatch gym at the Hotel Inter-Continental Phnom Penh is probably the best equipped, or take a run in the Cambodian countryside by meeting the Phnom Penh Hash House Harriers. Another way to mix activity with sightseeing is to visit Alligator Ski Club on the Mekong River. Water or jet ski or just lounge in the floating bar and enjoy a weekend barbecue. More adventurous travelers can arrange a trip with Canoeing Cambodia River Tours or Adventure Canoes through Rising Sun Bar and Restaurant--anything from a short paddle near Wat Phnom to a marathon journey through the provinces.

For the homesick, the Western less-active favorites are all here. Bowlers should check out the Phnom Penh Bowling Club or Superbowl, which are both open until late. Prospective Formula One racers can try go-carting at Kambol F1 where budding anglers can also indulge at a pool out the back. The Walkabout Hotel hosts a pool competition every Tuesday night, but if you want to play with the locals, small pool halls of varying standards can be found down almost any street as the game is almost a national obsession.

The sedentary need not despair! River cruises are offered by several boats in various sizes and states of repair along the riverfront. Le Deauville II is the most luxurious, and often stops at small weaving villages along the way. These are great places to pick up a bargain if you are in the market for silk or traditional Khmer scarves. And if all this exercise (or just sitting and thinking about it) is just too much, Seeing Hands Massage, a co-operative of blind Khmer masseurs, practices the ancient art of Shiatsu massage.

Relaxation increases at the Foreign Correspondents Club, which has a happy hour between 5 and 7pm.
This is the most famous in a strip of bars and restaurants along the riverfront that make superb places to sit and enjoy drinks as the sun goes down. That is when things really start to swing. Khmers tend to go to numerous bia hois (outdoor beer stands) and karaoke halls, such as the ones clustered around the Monivong Boulevard end of Street 184. Hip young locals head to Manhattan's Nightclub, near the Holiday International Hotel, to boogie till daylight at what is probably the closest thing Phnom Penh has to a western disco. The expatriate crowd usually gravitates to one of a handful of bars and nightspots. Most famous are the Heart of Darkness, a tiny little hole-in-the-wall club with a dance floor, or Martini's Disco, which also features a food court and outdoor movie screen.

For insomniacs who choose not to disco, dawn's early light need not signal the end of the night. The Walkabout stays open all night as does Phnom Penh's only casino, Naga Floating Casino, located in a former ocean liner and easily spotted on the river.

With culture, sport and social activities all on offer, boredom at any hour is not an option in Phnom Penh.


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.


An Nam
Restaurant: Vietnamese
Emphasis on central Vietnamese cuisine. Perfectly air conditioned, nicely decorated indoor seating. Extensive menu in Vietnamese, French and English. Agreeable surroundings. Superior preparation and presentation. Moderately priced. French, English, Vietnamese spoken.
Visa/MC/JCB
#118SD, Sothearos (next to the Hong Kong Center)
7:00AM - 11:00PM
Tel: 023-212460


Anise Terrace
Restaurant: Southeast Asian
Stylish new hotel and restaurant in the BKK1 Street 278 area serving Cambodia, Vietnamese, Thai, Chinese and other Asian cuisines including Seafood Satay on Sugar cane and Braised Oxtail in Green Pepper Corns. Air-conditioned dining room, bar and terrace balconies seating overlooking the Street 278 scene.
Visa/MC
#2C, Street 278
6:00AM - 11:00PM
Tel: 023-222522



Billabong
Poolside Restaurant/Bar: Thai/International
Aptly billing itself as a ‘Boutique Haven.’ Very relaxed, open air, poolside restaurant and bar, serving excellent Thai and western food and offering weekend BBQs, all at reasonable prices. Freeform saltwater pool set in a private tropical garden. Great place for breakfast, lunch, dinner or to lounge away the afternoon poolside. Full bar. Cold beer. Good western breakfasts.
Visa
#5, Street 158
8:00AM - 11:00PM
Tel: 023-223703


Boddhi Tree Del Guesto

Cafe
Nice variety of salads, tapas, mezzes, sandwiches and baked pies. Teas, coffees, fruit juices and cocktails served in a sensitively restored colonial villa. Classical music and jazz ambiance. Indoor, balcony and patio garden seating. Reasonably priced.
#43, Street 95
7:00AM - 9:30PM
Tel: 016-865445
Web Site: www.boddhitree.com


Boddhi Tree Umma

Restaurant: International
Traditional Cambodian style wooden guesthouse with a restaurant/cafe that has developed a good reputation for good, healthy food. Fresh juice and wine bar. Very pleasant garden setting. Reasonable prices. Lunch delivery service.
#50, Street 113 (opposite Toul Sleng Museum)
7:00AM - 9:00PM
Tel: 012-565509
Web Site: www.boddhitree.com



 

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