As a regular visitor to the capital over the years, we have followed the development of Phnom Penh with a watchful eye. First visiting in 1999, it was still a fairly sketchy place. The roads were broken, there were virtually no streetlights, and the streets could feel dangerous after dark. I remember travelers being told to take only just enough money for the night, no watches, valuables or jewelry, but always to come home with a few dollars left in case we were stopped and asked for a “donation” to stay safe.
For those who braved a night out in Phnom Penh, there were a handful of restaurants and bars: some left over from the UNTAC days, others newly opened to welcome the fresh wave of foreign visitors who came to Cambodia to explore this wonderfully “raw and real” destination. I remember that a night out in 1999 often started with sunset drinks at what became an institution: the FCC (The Foreign Correspondents Club – now being renovated by the Avani group since COVID) overlooking the river and frequented by a slightly sketchy collection of expats – journalists, teachers, NGO workers, and a gaggle of characters whom one could only imagine what they were up to. From there, we would brave a walk up the riverside to Sharky’s for a game of pool, some Tex-Mex and a few beers.
Years later, as a tour leader, I would take my more adventurous guests there. It was a heady mix of live rock ’n’ roll, heavy alcohol consumption, pool playing, and a clientele that was largely male, entertained by a bevy of girls – Cambodians on one side, Vietnamese on the other. There was always a thick smoke filling the establishment and their drink special was served out of a recycled mortar casing. One client once said, “This is just like being in a scene from a Vietnam War flick, like Apocalypse Now or Full Metal Jacket.” Then it was time to move on to Heart of Darkness, a hole-in-the-wall bar that just about had room for a pool table, although one would regularly bash an elbow on the wall when trying to take a shot. Again, many years later, I took a youthful group there for a final night boogie, only for the night to be cut short by a rich kid’s body guard firing shots into the air for god knows what reason. The lights were switched on, everyone was told to leave, and they were closed for about a week. The last stop was Martini’s, the only mixed nightclub where tourists, expats and locals would all come together. Inside, there were food stands, movies playing on huge screens, and a dance room with some of the best music I had heard anywhere in Asia: rare 70s funk, Cambodian numbers from the golden era of the 1960s, dub, reggae and hard rock.
Fast-forward 25 years or so and the city has changed beyond recognition. With the dozens of skyscrapers that have adorned Phnom Penh’s skyline over the past decade has come a new era of creativity and sophistication in the capital. The old Phnom Penh is still there if you know where to look in the low-rise shopfronts, the ochre walls of old colonial buildings, the slow-moving rivers, the evening food stalls, the cyclos and tuk tuks, the markets, the temples and the slightly chaotic energy that still gives the city its edge. But the mood has changed. Phnom Penh is no longer simply a rough-and-ready stopover for backpackers, journalists and development workers. It has become a city with a growing sense of confidence, and nowhere is this more obvious than after dark. Today, a night out in the capital can begin with sunset on the river rather than a warning about which streets to avoid. Guests might board a private boat on the Tonle Sap and Mekong as the city begins to glow, with the Royal Palace catching the last light and the skyline rising behind it.
From there, the evening might continue high above the city at one of the rooftop bars that now define the new Phnom Penh. Sora, at the top of the Rosewood, is the most obvious example: a polished sky bar with sweeping views across the capital, a whisky library, beautifully made cocktails and the kind of atmosphere that would not feel out of place in Bangkok, Singapore or Hong Kong. Looking out from that height, it is hard to believe this is the same city I first knew in 1999, when streetlights were scarce and an evening walk required a certain amount of nerve. But what makes Phnom Penh interesting is that the new sophistication has not completely smoothed away the city’s character. You can move from a candlelit dinner in a restored colonial building to a lively laneway bar, from a river cruise to a tuk tuk food tour, from a gin tasting to a late-night wander along the riverside.
The restaurant scene has also changed dramatically. Today, Phnom Penh has restaurants with ambition, atmosphere and a stronger sense of place with a fine dining scene too, from elegant hotel restaurants to more intimate independent venues, and a growing interest in provenance, Cambodian produce and seasonal cooking. Places like Pi Sa speak to a more contemporary Cambodian dining scene, where local ingredients, market produce and Khmer flavours are treated with confidence and care. Le Manolis, meanwhile, brings the old French Quarter back to life in a restored colonial setting, with food, wine, music and cocktails that feel connected to the city’s layered past. The nightlife scene has followed the same path. Seekers Gin is a perfect example of the new Phnom Penh: creative, local, stylish and rooted in the region. A gin tasting there is not simply a stop for a drink, but a window into Cambodian botanicals, small-batch production and the younger entrepreneurial energy that is reshaping the city.
For those who want to explore the city at street level, evening food tours by Vespa or tuk tuk are now among the best ways to experience Phnom Penh after dark. Instead of simply dropping visitors at a restaurant, these tours move through local neighbourhoods, markets, backstreets and family-run food stops. The air is warm, the streets are alive, the grills are smoking, and every stop reveals another layer of the capital’s appetite. Kouprey Adventures has curated our own Vespa tour that really captures the energy of this frenetic city.
There is also a growing interest in Phnom Penh by night as a heritage experience. The old city, especially around Wat Phnom, Post Office Square, the riverfront and the French Quarter, becomes wonderfully atmospheric after dark. The grand old buildings, some restored and some still fading beautifully, seem to hold the stories of another Phnom Penh. Led by an inspired Phnom Penh expat, these streets can be just as evocative as any bar or restaurant.
Even the riverside has begun to change again. On Friday and Saturday evenings, parts of the riverside come alive with families, walkers, food sellers, young couples, visitors and locals enjoying the city in a more open, relaxed way. It is not polished in the way Singapore is polished and thank goodness for that. It still feels Cambodian: warm, social, slightly improvised and full of life.
Bassac Lane, where Kouprey Adventures Vespa tour concludes, represents another face of our modern capital. It has become one of the city’s best-known areas for cocktails, small bars and casual dining. While not grand, it is eclectic with dozens of funky little bars, and its frequented by locals, expats and tourists alike. A great place to continue or finish the night.
Penh nightlife once felt like something you survived, or at least something you approached with caution. Today, it can be curated. It can be elegant. It can be sensual, atmospheric and deeply enjoyable. Yet the best of it still retains the city’s original charge.
A well-planned evening in Phnom Penh now has a natural flow: sunset on the river – a boat trip through the history of the city by it’s architecture, cocktails above the skyline, dinner in a restored heritage building with a contemporary Cambodian restaurant, a guided drive through the illuminated colonial quarter, then a final drink in Bassac Lane finishing with a gentle wander along the riverfront. For more adventurous guests, the same evening might be built around a Vespa food tour, a Seekers gin tasting, or a tuk tuk foodie journey through local eating spots.
This is the new Phnom Penh after dark. Not slick for the sake of being slick and not yet polished into blandness. It is a capital still carrying its scars and shadows, but now with better infrastructure, great food, innovative drinks and a much stronger sense of itself. The smoky bars of the 1990s have become part of the city’s mythology. In their place is a more confident, creative and sophisticated evening scene – one that still feels close to the heart, but no longer quite so close to the edge.
