Everything Random

I’ll be honest — I didn’t plan either of these. That’s kind of how it goes in Phnom Penh. You think you’re just walking somewhere, and then food happens.

Backyard Cafe

So the first thing you notice about Backyard Cafe is that it doesn’t really try to get your attention. No big signage, no flashy facade. You kind of just… find it. And when you do, you walk into this open courtyard situation that feels like someone’s very cool aunt decided to turn her garden into a café. Plants everywhere, mismatched chairs, that kind of lived-in clutter that you can’t fake no matter how hard you try. It’s relaxed in the best way.

The space itself is old — you can feel it in the high ceilings and the wide wooden beams. String lights, old window frames used as decor, walls that have clearly heard a lot of conversations. It doesn’t feel designed. Very charming.

The food matches the vibe — no fuss, just good. Solid breakfast plates, generous sandwiches, smoothies that are actually thick and not watered down (a bigger deal than it sounds). I went for the Panfried Seabass and paired it with Naughty but Nice, a concoction of almond, dates, banana, vanilla, among other things. The meal made me genuinely happy even if my interviewee for that day did not show up. It’s the kind of place you come back to not because it’s the best meal you’ve ever had, but because it just always hits right.

Kravanh

Kravanh is a completely different energy. Where Backyard feels like kicking your shoes off, Kravanh feels like you actually remembered to wash your face before going out. This is recommended by my then-student, now-friend Joel. So I decided to go.

The interior is of earth colors, soft lighting that gets really golden in the early evening. Little touches everywhere — hand-painted ceramics, low flower arrangements — that feel genuinely Cambodian rather than touristy-Cambodian. Someone put real thought into this place. You can tell. It makes you want to slow down and actually look around before you even pick up the menu.

And then the food. Kravanh does Khmer cuisine, and it does it seriously. I went for their variation of the fish amok, as I had one a day before. This time, the snail amok— fresh water snail steamed in banana leaf, fragrant with lemongrass and galangal and kaffir lime, the kind of dish that reminds you Cambodian food has been around for centuries and knows what it’s doing. I also ordered Somlor Machu Prey, a soup of organic beef with lemongrass and lime leaves and fresh turmeric. Very tasty. As if I have not eaten enough, I also ordered stuffed crab – crab shell stuffed with a generous helping of crab meat spiced to perfection.

Everything comes out unhurried, which at first makes you check your phone, but then you realize — no, this is just how it should be. By the time you’re done eating, you’re not in a rush anymore either. Funny how that works.

Both spots are worth your time. Different moods, different menus, same result — you leave happy. Phnom Penh keeps doing that to me.