Battambang has a surprising range of great eateries. These are our favorite Battambang restaurants.

Jaan Bai

If you only have time for one meal in Battambang, let it be eaten at Jaan Bai. Jaan Bai (“rice bowl” in Khmer) is an excellent social-enterprise restaurant run by respected Cambodian children’s charity CCT. They provide training and employment for young people in their program. They also serve up a mean bowl of curry. Jaan Bai’s menu features modern Khmer dishes made from local, seasonal produce and lots of tasty vegetarian options–try the spectacular potato, corn, and tomato curry. The perfectly crafted cocktails with an Asian twist are not to be missed.

Open Tuesday to Sunday, 11 a.m. to 10:30 p.m.
Street 2, Battambang
T: +855(0)53 65 00 106
cambodianchildrenstrust.org/jaan-bai

Riceholic

This small Japanese restaurant, which offers excellent, healthful food with ample vegan and vegetarian options, is definitely worth a visit. The menu is small, mainly ramen, rice bowls, and small plate “tapas.” There’s also a menu of daily specials, including sushi and sashimi. Everything on the menu is delicious, and even more so when you learn about the probiotic qualities that come from koji. Koji has been used in Japan for centuries to make miso, sake, and soy sauce. At Riceholic all dishes have a koji fermentation element, which adds delicious umami, but also vitamins and other health benefits. The result is chicken kaarage (fried chicken) that is more tender than you’d ever think possible. Small plates start at $3.75 and mains at $6.75, and are more than worth the price.

Open daily, 11:30 a.m. to 2:30 p.m. for lunch and 6 to 10 p.m. for dinner
Street 2.5, Battambang
T: +855(0)87 483 731
facebook.com/Riceholic168

Battambang Town Restaurant

If you’re looking to try a range of homestyle Cambodian dishes in a low-key environment, look no further. Battambang Town Restaurant is a large, breezy restaurant packed with sturdy wooden tables and offers an extensive picture menu of classic Cambodian dishes, with several types of whole fish (served on fish-shaped platters) and soups (served in steaming tureens with charcoal to keep them hot). Everything is reasonably priced and made just the way your Cambodian grandma would make it.

Open daily, 6 a.m. to 8 p.m.
Street 121, Battambang [map]
T: +855(0)77 547 766

Choco L’Art Cafe

Open for breakfast, lunch, and dinner, this art cafe owned by a French-Khmer couple is renowned for homemade breads and French-inspired desserts made with high-quality ingredients. The simple menu features sandwiches, omelets, and crepes, but even if you can’t fit in a meal, it’s worth coming over just for dessert and a drink. The chocolate mousse gets great reviews and is always on the menu, as is their special chocolate hazelnut cake, plus daily dessert specials, all of which are sure to satisfy even the most discerning sweet tooth.

Open daily,  8 a.m. to 10:30 p.m.
Street 117, Battambang [map]
T: +855(0)10 661 617

Kinyei

Combination coffee shop, art gallery, and co-working space, Kinyei serves what one local expat declares is the country’s best coffee. We don’t feel qualified to be the judge of that, but the shop, which is run by the team from Feel Good in Phnom Penh, is definitely the best in Battambang. Plus, the breakfasts are good and the cakes are tasty. Kinyei is also home to Soksabike Tours, and you can rent a bicycle there for $2 per day. In addition, Kinyei is a space for social entrepreneurship that provides support for small social ventures, innovative products, and creativity. It’s a cool little place to hang out, do some work, and meet locals who are doing interesting things.

Open daily, 7 a.m. to 7 p.m.
Street 1.5, Battambang
T: +855(0)17 860 003
facebook.com/kinyei

La Casa

Known for having some of the best pizza in Battambang, La Casa is a slightly upmarket Italian restaurant (by Battambang standards), but without the pretense of some of the town’s other higher-end restaurants. Just opposite the Royal Hotel on Road 115 (near Psar Nath), La Casa offers a large selection of pasta and pizza dishes in a relaxing street-side setting. Dishes average between $7 and $10 and expats rave about the shrimp.

Open Tuesday to Sunday, 11 a.m. to 3 p.m. and 5 p.m. to 11 p.m.
Road 115, Battambang
T: +855(0)81 610 177
lacasabattambang.com

Lan Chov Khorko Miteanh/Chinese Noodle Dumpling

This family-run noodle house may not have a lot in the way of ambiance, but they serve a mean bowl of noodles, which they make fresh every day. The menu is small and inexpensive, featuring an array of hand-pulled noodles served dry or in soup, yummy homemade dumplings, and fried rice. Most dishes are 5,000 or 6,000 riel ($1.25 or $1.50) and are so good you might want to order more than one.

Open daily for lunch and dinner.
Street 2, Battambang
T:+855(0)92 589 639

Riverside Balcony

Any expat in Battambang will tell you, the pizza at Riverside Balcony is top notch, and with its riverside setting is a favorite spot for enjoying a sundowner. They have a menu of gastropub-style bar snacks, in addition to daily specials and gourmet pizzas starting at $5, with creative toppings on delicious thin crust bases, ranging from the usual margarita and Hawaiian to more unique offerings.

Open Tuesday through Sunday, 4 to 11 p.m.
Road No. 1, No. 465, Battambang
T: +855(0)10 337 7862
facebook.com/theriversidebalconybar

Madison Corner

Madison Corner and Madison Bar are run by Patrice, one of Battambang’s French residents, who opened the first Western restaurant in town, and seems to know everyone who lives there. The inexpensive menu at Madison Corner has a variety of burgers, sandwiches, and Khmer dishes. They’re open for breakfast, lunch and dinner and you’ll often find what feels like all of the French speakers in town out front, practicing conversing in their native tongue.

83 Street 2.5, Battambang
T: +855(0)53 65 021 89
facebook.com/madisoncorner

Vintage

Vintage is constantly evolving, and so is their interestingly unique and eclectic menu. The offerings include a small selection of simple sushi rolls, and Western and Cambodian dishes. A personal favorite is the sharing platter with a selection of meats and cheeses, which goes well with the broad selection of wines available by glass and bottle. Vintage is a relaxing place to wind down in the late afternoon or evening, and ideally located on Road 2.5 for watching the world go by with a glass of wine. And if you decide to stay for dinner, all the better. Both their Western and Asian dishes are very nice, if a bit more expensive (averaging $3 to $9) than some of the other places in town. Be reassured that the portions are large and the quality is good, so the price is worth it.

Open daily, 9 a.m. to 11 p.m.
Road 2.5, Battambang
Tel: +855(0)92 335 400
facebook.com/Vintage

Cafe Eden

Cafe Eden offers large portions of American-style dishes, from Philly cheesesteaks to Texas toothpicks (beer-battered fried onions and peppers with jalapeno ranch dip). “I’m American,” the owner told me, summing up her credo for the cafe. “I want free water with refills and a choice of salad dressings.” And you’ll get just that, plus great service and lots of sauces on the side. Eden is run by a Christian missionary group with the profits going back into staff training and local services. They also have a small boutique on site that sells hand-crafted products and T-shirts. Open for breakfast, lunch, and dinner, with happy hour from 3 p.m. to 7 p.m. every day.

Open daily, except Tuesdays, 7:30 a.m. to 9 p.m.
Street 1, on the riverside, Battambang
T: +855(0)77 534 840
cafeedencambodia.com

Pomme

Rising from the ashes of the former Pomme d’Amour, the current Pomme really has nothing to do with its predecessor, other than the name. The new incarnation is a backpacker joint (there’s a hostel upstairs), as is reflected in the menu, which features an array of mostly Western fare. That includes a build-your-own burger or hot dog, salads, a baked potato menu, and a nightly grill as well as daily specials.

Open daily, 7:30 a.m. to 11 p.m.
61/63 Street 2.5, Battambang [map]
T: +855(0)69 233 620
facebook.com/Pommebattambang

Battambang vegetarian favorites

Bonlai ’Til I Die

Bonlai means “vegetables” in Khmer and, as you might guess, the owner, a former chef from acclaimed Battambang restaurant Jaan Bai, is a die-hard veggie eater. When we visited, there was as yet no sign up and no staff, and the chef-owner was running the place as a one-man operation serving up vegan pizzas. All of which led us to not expect much from the place. How wrong we were!

We tried the potato-and-caramelized-onion pizza with roast garlic and arugula on a tomato base, and it was so delicious we didn’t even notice the lack of cheese. There are seven types of pizza on offer, and each costs $6 for a hearty pie.

66 Street 2.5, Battambang [map]
T: +855(0)95 426 853

Vegetarian Foods Restaurant

This little hole in the wall is tucked away near Monorom Garden, and if you blink you might miss it. Not very glamorous, Vegetarian Foods Restaurant seems to appeal to locals and the more adventurous vegetarians in Battambang. The menu features an array of mostly Chinese-style vegetarian food, much of it made with soy faux-meat products. Dishes are inexpensive, costing between 4,000 and 5,000 riel ($1 to $1.25 USD). They also make their own fresh soy milk every day in several flavors.

Open daily, 6:30 a.m. to 8 p.m.
506 La He Street, between Street 101 and NH5, Battambang
T: +855(0)12 501 408; +855(0)92 335 252

Monorom Garden

This clean, well-decorated vegetarian restaurant that has been in town for many years, though they recently renovated and changed their name from Mercy House to the much more appealing Monorom Garden. The vegetarian menu is mostly Asian-inspired cuisine, with Korean and Japanese dishes such as stone-pot meals and teppanyaki, alongside more traditional Cambodian specialties like basil fried rice and a vegetarian lok lak.

Open daily, 7:30 a.m. to 8 p.m.
La.A Street opposite of Asia Hotel, Battambang
T: +855(0)12 243 402

Battambang street food

Pork and rice lady

This may not be the very best bai sach chrouk you encounter in Cambodia, but it’s worth a visit if only to sample the smoky, chili-flecked green mango salad that comes along with the chopped grilled pork, fried egg, and standard pickled cucumbers and carrots. The friendly proprietor sets up shop in the morning outside of her house on Street 2.5 and doesn’t speak a word of English, but responds bemusedly to the basic point-and-smile approach. If this stall doesn’t work for you, there are a few more streetside eateries just around the block. Bai sach chrouk with all the fixings goes for about 5000 riel.

Street 2.5 just north of Street 121

Street-side Khmer noodle soup

The best place to get a traditional Cambodian breakfast in Battambang is an informal stall set just back from the road serving Khmer noodle soup, known as kuy tiev. You’ll find this gem on Road 207 towards the President Hotel, just past Dewey University. It would be hard to find if it wasn’t so popular — there’s usually a sea of motos parked around the gateway there to slurp up the tasty vegetable, noodle, and pork broth soup. A bowl is only $0.75 but be sure to get there early as they close up mid-morning.

Open for breakfast
Street 207, just past Dewey University, Battambang

Banh chao

There is an ongoing debate about whether this dish originated in Cambodia or Vietnam, but if you’re in Cambodia it’s best to stick to that side! The traditional bean sprout, vegetable and meat filled egg crepe is available at a multitude of restaurants along road 159D (towards the railway line) for just 3,000 riel ($0.75). There are several restaurants serving banh chao all in traditional wooden houses overlooking the river with great views and also offering a unique cultural experience. The one below, in a green building, is my favorite.

Street 159D northwest of Street 302, Battambang
T: +855(0)97 796 9865

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