Taj Mahal (Restaurant)

The best part about living in Siem Reap is that you are able to enjoy a diverse selection of cuisine and surprisingly they tend to be pretty descent and cheap. 

Taj Mahal is rather on the expensive side but a huge thali is still $5. The spiciness is just right (since Cambodians tend to not like their food too spicy and I usually like mine stronger) and authentic; my co-worker who's lived in an ashram in India for 3 months says it is so I take her word for it! The restaurant is run by a Singaporean Indian guy who has lived in Cambodia for many years which also give the place another star.

Ladies Night

One of the best things about Cambodia is that alcohol is cheap. And I mean dirt cheap. A draft Angkor beer is $0.50 and even in expensive bars a cocktail is under $5. As tourists flock to bars after a long hot day of touring Angkor Wat, it's a lucrative business. 

 

To keep up with the competition, many bars have various events and Happy Hours. In midweek many of the bars have Ladies Night in which we took advantage of at the Sonia Moria Hotel. Alcohol half off until 7pm plus a glass of free sparkling champagne. Can't say no to that!

 

The bar is on the rooftop of the hotel with a jacuzzi on the other side. Plus the staff there are sweet and attentative. Highly recommended for some serious girl talk over a few drinks. It's still low season so it's a shame that there weren't many customers there.

 

 

 

Swanky Thursdays

As long term volunteers, my colleagues and I are always on a tight budget. But for once we decided to treat ourselves to go have a drink at the swanky  Heritage  for their live Jazz Nights and Happy Hour.   

 

 

 

We all joked that this was the most comfortable, air-conditionned space we've been in since we arrived in Siem Reap - but it's quite true. The atmosphere is classic but not too uptight and it seems like a place where local business owner expats and NGO workers get together for networking. Plus, who can say no to free live jazz music?



 

 

 

Khmer Margarita: Margarita infused with local spices such as tumeric, lemongrass, chili, and silantro. Strong and punchy! 

 

Cocktails range from $3-$3.50 which is quite expensive for me considering an average glass of beer at a local bar is about $0.75 and my daily lunch allowance is $1.50. But the atmosphere and ambviance does definitely make up for it. Most importantly, the alcohol is strong so it's cost efficient!  
 

End note: I reread this post before I published it and started to chortle at myself. I cannot believe that in Tokyo I used to pay about 1,500 yen ($18) for a cocktail at a nice hotel bar. It's a bit funny how things can quickly change in a span of about 2 months!

 

 

 

 



Restaurant Review: Old House Restaurant

To all of you looking forward for me to write about reviews on Siem Reap restaurants, let me warn you that there will not be many so this is quite rare!

 

Currently my food budget is under $5/day (I will have a future post on how I survive). While that is sufficient enough for me to survive here, I'm in a pretty destitute situation. So unfortunately I would not be able to give you much information on the nice places to eat around here (I live off of food stands, semi-home cooked meals, and very local eateries so I am happy to give you an abundance of posts on those!).

Nevertheless when Dring visited me, he kindly offered to take me out to dinner so we went to Old House Restaurant which is an expat and tourist favorite.

 

The food is very reasonably priced but has great service and a nice cozy ambiance. We both ordered the 3-course meal. The course comes with an appetizer, main course, and dessert it's only $6!

 

 

 

The restaurant has a Zen-like t 

Appetizer: Papaya Salad.. my favorite!

 

Main course: Amok and Curry (I think)

The food is fresh and local and the portions are just right. The papaya salad is especially nice with the right amount of spices and herbs.

I don't have any pictures of dessert since we both devoured it and didn't realize it until it was too late. But we had the mango with sticky rice and fried banana and needless to say, they were good as well!


The venue is located just behind Pub Street so it's quiet enough to enjoy the meal, but it's definitely accessible to go out for a few rounds of drinking post-meal ;)

Address: Hospital St, Siem Reap, Cambodia

Phone:+855 12 493 948

TGIF

After four years of partying hard in college plus six more years of partying harder in Tokyo, I swore to myself that I will not be doing any more damage to my liver. And especially not in an expat party crazy town like Siem Reap. But Fridays will always be an exception.. :)  Don't worry I limited myself to only a few beers!

75 cent beer anyone?

There's quite a few good live bands in town. This and beer and foosball is all I need for a chill Friday night.