SIEM REAP PUB GUIDE, Ex-pats feel free to edit! Options

[Kalakala]

Say what you will, there is no denying that the heart and soul of any vibrant town is its decent watering holes, so when considering Cambodia and Siem Reap as a travel destination the Pub Street area needs to be of prime importance. That being said here's a bit of a low down on the joints available and my own personal rating of them. For someone not familiar with this part of town, it's pretty much in the middle of it and the road that runs down it is closed nightly for pedestrian-only foot traffic. It really makes of a colorful and fun place to be! Just grab a tuk-tuk and say "Pub Street" and it's that easy!

Here's a few place's you might want to stop by:

BANANA LEAF - Very decent and well stocked bar with the "Master of Mixology" Tony mixing up libations. Ask for the White Russian. Bar seating as well as outdoor tables. When you need to use the restroom, you'll walk behind the bar to get there which is quite unusual. Once in a while open-air live music is to be had there. Wi-Fi available

TEMPLE CLUB - A bit on the darker side as it's a little dimly lit to give extra drama to the Khmer temple feel and the Angkor Thom-like carvings and pictures, the Temple is an interesting place. The Temple Shooter is highly recommended. You'll feel it all the way down to your toes. Most well drinks are $1.50 and less. Angkor drafts are $.75. Wi-Fi available. Outdoor seating available.

RED PIANO - A two story affair with a prime location, it's nice to go upstairs and sit at the rail and watch the world of Pub Street go by below you as you enjoy a cold beverage. Home of the Tomb Raider cocktail as Angie Jolie seems to favor the place which is evident from her pictures everywhere. Don't actually look for a piano there, you won't find one. At least I didn't. Then again, maybe 3 or 4 Tomb Raiders had something to do with that. It's a good summer drink as it's heavy on the citrus side and a bit sweet served in a snifter. If I have one critisism the staff is a bit snooty. Decent food.

FUNKY MONKEY - If there is one place begging for new ownership it's the Monkey. Like the Red Piano, it has a prime location with upper floor seating, but the whole place is simply out-of-touch with where it is. It makes a stab at an American-retro thing but misses the mark badly. It's practically empty, at least it is whenever I'm there. You might fare better that I did though. Worth a try but remember what I told you. If you're considering going into the bar business, have the money and want a bar on Pub Street, this is the one. The place is crying out for a new owner!

THE WAREHOUSE - Again, prime location with a two-story set-up. Good drinks, but nothing really stands out about the place. Your basic watering hole, nothing fancy except the location.

IN TOUCH - A personal favorite, or was until recently when the house band shook up their personnel. Great Long Island Ice Tea's and B-52's. Comfy motif and atmosphere. Helpful and friendly staff. Normally fairly packed with a jumping vibe. Good joint.

ANGOR WHAT? - Laid back vibe with jumping music. Hipster crowd, one pool table. Cocktails by the bucket. A bit on the American psychadelic 60's side, Angkor What? is a fun place to be sure. Well known and a small local legend, at least in it's own mind. Buy a t-shirt, you'll thank me later.

LE TIGRE DE PAPIER - French for "The Paper Tiger", a snug and comfy joint that spills into the street with outdoor seating. Wood fired pizza with a kitchen you walk through to get to the back of the place. Good staff, decent drinks. A definite stop duriing a pub crawl.

MOLLY MALONE'S - Ah, sweet Molly. As authentic an Irish Pub as you'll find in Camboland and run by Teery, a French ex-pat and outgoing guy. You'll normally find him just to one side of "Bullshitter's Corner", which is a brass plaque mounted in the top of the bar. Rich walnut-looking woodworking throughout just like you expect of a good Irish Bar, Molly's is like an old pair of jeans, it just feels right. Competant bar staff, the bacon-cheeseburger is pretty darn good, but order it "well done" is my advice. Outdoor seating, but I personally like the bar. Of course they serve Guiness, what were you thinking???

HONORABLE MENTIONS: Okay, so you enjoy the finer things in life, eh? I have just the place, pretencious as hell. The bar at Hotel De La Paix is right up your alley. Bar stools are replaced with expensive beds (some hung from the ceiling) to stretch out and lounge on while enjoying a cigar and cognac. The whole place is an Art Deco wet dream. For sure, it's probably the most beautiful hotel on Sivantha Blvd, and the booze choice will keep even the most jaded of wealthy drunkards happy. I really dig the place personally as I'm almost as pretencious as it is. The bar at the Deadfish Tower might possibly have the coldest draft on tap in town. Ka-Poon, the morning barkeep at the Somadevi Hotel bar makes a GREAT double-shot Stoli Bloody Mary from scratch, the perfect start for a day of temple stomping. The upstairs bar at The Red Orchid is a rather interesting in-the-round affair with a bar-pit that does not scrimp on the Bombay Blue Sapphire when you get a G&T. Nice seating booths hanging over the sidewalk below overlooking the Siem Reap river. Swing by after 9:00 p.m. and the Korean tourist hordes have left. You'll need a good stiff drink after listening to a couple minutes of their ear-splitting karaoke screeching, trust me. No wonder it's a good bar!

FOR ALL YOU LOCAL EXPATS - Feel free to toss in your $.02 on this thread. I only hit the main ones, the ones we all know. You might have some little gem of a place you know of...share!

[maipenrai]

Thanks for that. I expect to be there in about two months and I think this info will be very useful.

Cheers

MPR

[HWinPP]

I'd say that was a fairly good choice of the most popular places.

Starting from the top of the list, my opinions:

Banana Leaf, good for a kick- off. Sit right by the street, get your appetite going. Food comes from 'Amok' or 'Champey' restaurant, all three, including Khmer BBQ belong to the same French owner.

Temple Club, to me more of a disco, the backpacker crowd drinks, dances and shoots pool here, loud, very loud.

Red Piano, more a restaurant living off its reputation, surly to rude staff, I only went if I had guests and they had to have a picture taken in front of a sign.

Funky Monkey, caters to a different crowd now. It used to be beside Shadow of Angkor on the river until they made life a living hell for Mack and Trixi. It used to be a good place to eat and catch up on gossip, now it's a bit like a louder version of the Red Piano. Don't know if Mack and Trixi are still involved, bring ear plugs.

The Warehouse, I've not been back since my last visit in August 2008 just before I moved to PP. I was there with a group of local expats saying my 'goodbyes', one of them wanted to show me something on his laptop. The manager refused to give us the password for the supposedly 'free' wifi (don't know if G remembers), no thank you, fucker.

In Touch, quietish place with ok Thai food, eat yes, drink no.

Angkor What? Still thumping, one of the originals, good for starting before it gets crowded and too loud.

Paper Tiger, good for a pizza, I think it's open 24 hours, Jean Luc, the Corsican owner is affable, good to talk to and he has the Paper Tiger GH. Book exchange and big TV, more a restaurant than a bar.

Molly Malone's, I like! Thiery keeps the staff on its toes, always a good crowd there, good food with the best English breakfast in town. GH attached.

Here my choice of true bars, some with in- house food:

The Giddy Gecko, one lane north of Pub Street, owned by an American called Matt, get your sheesha fix here. There's always a small group of expats here, drinking, smoking, shooting the breeze.

Zanzibar, dark, simple hole in the wall place, in the old location on Sivutha, around the corner from Molly Malone's.

X- Bar, a roof top bar, good views up Sivatha and down Pub Street, above the supermarket opposite MM, managed and owned by Scott and Carlo, this is the place for late, late drinks. They have food.

Sidney- Aqua Bar& Grill, drawing point is the pool and occasional classical music. Owner John will talk with you about anything under the sun. Come on a Sunday and enjoy the BBQ buffet, I think he might have a couple of chalets set up now. Drawback is that it's on the old road to the bus station, keep a watch out for his sign. The best place to do nothing and slowly get drunk in Siem Reap.

The Island Bar, at the SR Night Market, a circular bar with bar stools and tables around it, I liked it for meeting up, having some drinks then leaving before it got too quiet. Drawing point for me is the Iranian restaurant just behind it, good, quite authentic dishes.

Lastly Two Dragons, the place I felt most comfortable for a day time or morning beer. Grab a paper after Gordon has taken care of the breakfast crowd and enjoy! Best Thai food in town, especially if the mother in law is there.

Anybody been to Picasso yet? Owned by Thilo who also owned/owns the William Tells in PP and SR.

[Kalakala]

Good add-on HW. One place that I haven't tried out yet but looks interesting and inviting is the Nest right on Sivatha Blvd, same side of the street as De La Paix and about three blocks down. Need to check it out on my next trip just for my own education.

[Viet_Reg]

Thanks guys. Most helpful for my impending visit. I have drunk or 'been drunk' at a few of the places above, but not all, so looking forward t adding some new names to my list!

[Kalakala]

Something I'm going to do one of these days...I'll start at one of the red "PUB STREET" signs and hit every bar on both side of the street until I get to the other end. The plan is during one of these excursions, I'll have the same drink at each bar. One time through, it'll be Long Island Ice Tea's, another time Margarita's, another time the "House Shooter", etc. That way I can list the best "WHATEVER" in Siem Reap.

Now THAT'LL be a great PUB GUIDE!!!

Actually, I think I'll use the guide that we're making on this thread!

[maryb]

Good idea ,Hw still goes to SR sometimes,maybe he cn organise pub crawls,being a lone lady i would hate to find myself alone and cpmpletely blasted at the end of the street,maybe a label would be in order,sort od return to Two Dragons if found

[HWinPP]

Has anybody hear of or been at 'Four Faces'?
A friend of mine told me about it last night. A new bar in Siem Reap, between Le Malreaux and Maharadja somewhere.

[Viet_Reg]

No..........., but being the generous soul I am, I am happy to try it out for you in 3 weeks time!!!

[maryb]

I notic you don,t mention the Linga br,is it still going?

[HWinPP]

Linga Bar is still there, Mary. No worries. A bit 'arty farty' for my taste.

Hey, MPR, you are coming to PP aren't you? I'll be away from 1st to 8th October, in Saigon and the Delta but am free after that.

[maryb]

HW looks like I will only be able to grab three weeks before christmas,have never been to Vietnam,is it worth a look,specially Bobby Chins restaurant in Hanoi

[HWinPP]

I've never been to Bobby Chin's in Hanoi so I can't comment.

Are you sure you want to gioo up north in December? It's as cold as Spain! Stay in and explore the south. All within easy reach of PP.

[Viet_Reg]

I've been to Bobby Chin's, but a long time ago when it was in its early days. It's lovely. I'm a big Hanoi fan, but sadly won't be heading there this particular trip.

[maryb]

Cold as Spain,At the moment Spain is hotter than BKK,so a bit of cold doesn,t bother me .I like to make a focus for a visit,and Bobby Chin,s seems fabulous,a real foodie I am.I could probably get a reasonable price on Air Asia from BKK
Don,t want to take up my precious limited time when Cambodia is calling

[HWinPP]

Ok, if Hanoi is on the to do list here's my recco:

Bangkok- Hanoi- Bangkok on Air Asia. Use 10 days to have a look around the north, Halong Bay, Sapa, Ninh Bin.

Spend the next 11 days in Cambodia

Open a thread on the VN branch for VN questions.

[peaceofangkor]

I do appreciate the pub guide and would like put my few cents worth

Red Piano does serve consistently good food with decent service I like the upstairs bar area and have never had any problems with the staff.

The Funky Munkey has gone downhill recently they have done a great job of the pub quizzes and friendly atmosphere is the main reason for me going there. Otherwise it’s a drab dowdy run down place which is in need of a good clean up and decoration. Food can be good with huge portions.

Dead Fish Tower has also become run down and a lot of the interesting junk which made the place so atmospheric was removed in the last renovation. Service is terrible; always has been in my experience with food orders a lottery; you might even get served before you fall asleep at the table waiting! Its ann eccentric place nonetheless which is probably the main reason to go there.

Picasso Bar .I love the social ambiance and style . my first reaction to the tunnel like bar was to ask when the next train is arriving. I suggested to Thilo that he put a model railway track around the bar to deliver dinks on. My only criticism is the cigarette smoke which can be very off putting at times.

In Touch doesn’t grab me as a bar; but the house band appear to have a musical ability far beyond the banal crap they play. Having said that; competent musicians playing crap is better than carp musicians murdering good songs.

The Sports Bar was a depressingly dark hole; but my last look was when the place was undergoing renovation. It looks bright and airy; must try it sometime now its open.
The Island Bar in the Night Market is among my favourites I just don't get there often enough!

Rosy Guest House Bar is worth a mention even thought is bit out of the centre . Its been improved last year and is a nice place to hang out. Food is good; however the sound system could be better.

[HWinPP]

...

Rosy Guest House Bar is worth a mention even thought is bit out of the centre . Its been improved last year and is a nice place to hang out. Food is good; however the sound system could be better.

Agree with Rosy Bar as well.

Have you beento 'Four Faces', Dave?

[peaceofangkor]

Agree with Rosy Bar as well.

Have you beento 'Four Faces', Dave?

Not yet; but I met Owner Eric De Vries in PP a while ago and always planned to go there. I just cannot recall where it is?

[HWinPP]

Opposite or near Maharadja, the Indian restaurant, just down from Le Malreaux.