Siem Reap Lockdown is Over, But Dine-In Still Suspended

The Siem Reap lockdown is over! The lockdown which had lasted two weeks will not be extended and the red zones have been lifted, in a move that can hopefully be seen as Cambodia beginning on the path back to normality. But that doesn’t mean you can immediately go out and enjoy my favourite vegetarian food and restaurants. The Siem Reap Tourism Department has announced that anyone wishing to serve dine-in must submit a form, and present themselves for an inspection, where the ministry will rate you based on how well you follow the guidelines. Are these guidelines part of the ‘steps taken towards safe reopening’ and will that change Siem Reap’s dining scene?

Guidelines for everyone – including delivery drivers

The full document, available from the Provincial Hall contains 58 easy-to-follow pictures across 6 key areas:

• Guidelines for Customers
• Guidelines for Employees
• Disinfection and Sanitation
• Restaurant Management
• Delivery Services
• Restaurant Configuration and Set-up

At first glance, most of these guidelines should be followed anyway – employees should be washing hands frequently and before handling food, and raw and ready-to-eat food should be kept separate. Some guidelines are also clearly focused on reducing the spread of Covid-19, such as installing hand sanitiser stations and encouraging social distancing, and ensuring employees are vaccinated. Others, such as employees avoiding chit-chatting at work and shifting the staff meal schedule, have a less clear connection.

Siem Reap Lockdown is Over – Rules for reopening restaurants

Before any restaurant can open for dine-in, an inspection will be carried out by the Tourism Department. From speaking with restaurant owners, it seems each district, split by sangkat, has its own inspection teams. Everyone is following the same regulations and guidelines, so one would expect adherence and enforcement to be the same across Siem Reap, but it may mean differences in the time it takes for your favourite restaurant to be inspected and opened. L’Annexe Fine Dining was able to get a visit nearly immediately and is open for dine-in again right now but as of the time of writing, most establishments seem to be expecting visits at the end of the week, just after the Pchum Benh public holiday.

No set Pass or Fail Guidelines

At the time of writing this, it isn’t clear how many of the requirements an establishment needs to satisfy to be given the green light for opening. Presumably not all, as I have yet to see or hear of anyone putting up transparent dividers, and it would be unfeasible for every establishment to offer outside or well-ventilated dining. Restaurants like Khema and cafes like Footprints simply do not have the outdoor space for that. But then again, the choice of wording – ‘if possible,’ ‘guidelines’ and ‘ranking’ suggest that these are simply best practices and not a rigorous pass-or-fail test.

Will this Permanently change Dining in Temple Town?

As with all things, there is a period of confusion and adjustment when new procedures are implemented. Until more restaurants have been inspected and the results of inspection released we don’t know whether this will have any long term effects.

From my point of view, while some guidelines, such as the discouragement of buffets, are likely to persist well beyond the immediate future, many restrictions will be relaxed in time as confidence grows that Cambodia’s impressive mass vaccination drive will keep Covid-19 at bay. Certainly, I can’t imagine international tourism restarting if indoor, air-conditioned restaurants are not operating!

One thing is certain though, just because red zones across Cambodia have been done away with does not mean we have gone back to the old, pre-Covid days. And for those of us in Siem Reap who were eagerly awaiting the chance to return to our favourite restaurants…well, we will just have to wait a little longer. Keep an eye out on my personal blog or here on Khmer Nights for updates.

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