The courtyard style of the Kirarom Cafe is bright and airy, with pockets of private leather couch-lined tables and semi-private rooms which add a casualness to the place. A fake goldfish waterfall pond, rubber plants, karoake television and prolific beer posters add a very local touch without over-gaudifying the scene.

The server comes over to give me a menu and then stands by as I look it over. It is common in Khmer culture for servers to stand by as you ponder the menu. For westerners this can be off-putting. If you can speak some of the language you can ask them politely to give you a few minutes to look it over in private. Luckily, in this place, the servers use a walkie-talkie system to facilitate communication between the staff (and consequently/effectively enhance service). On this occassion my fine young Khmer waiter was summoned on the radio and quickly moved off t...