RIP Pub Street Phnom Penh

It really was not all that long ago that Pub Street Phnom Penh, AKA Golden Sorya Mall, was not a bad place to go. OK, so it was never classy and always drew a “freelancer crowd”, but it was certainly less sleazy than the riverside.

Alas, things do change, particularly with regards to the hospitality industry and Covid-19. As things stand there is probably no better sign of the negative effects the pandemic has had on the bar scene in the capital than on Pub Street. 

What did Pub Street Phnom Penh look like in the old days?

Located at the top of Street 172, this has never been what one might call the classy part of town, but there have always been a few good bars here, not to mention decent restaurants – many of which have also now closed.

To read about Street 172 click here.

In the old days, it did exactly what it said on the tin, or rather at its entrance: “Pub Street”. Inside the covered area and at its front were sectioned-off areas where people made their bars, with imaginative names like “Obama Bar” and the ”G-Pub”, all supplemented by a few bars on the street opposite, as well as the infamous and now reopened Pontoon Club. 

These bars though, were generally not Street 130 type deals. Guys or gals could go in unhindered and while there were so-called freelancers around it was a much more mixed crowd than the riverside. 

And then along came Covid-19! Initially, the place sauntered on as Cambodia stayed largely immune to the pandemic, with signs of relative life until the end of 2020, even as the odd bar started to close down. The real hammer blow though was the February 20th incident which if you believe the stories at least, was caused by some high-end call girls being jetted into the country.

As we might all remember, what followed were curfews, lockdowns, and the real killer blow, the alcohol ban. Now of course while we might remember that teacup sales blossomed during this period, not all places could turn themselves into tea joints. 

Pub Street Phnom Penh and the grand reopening 

By the time Phnom Penh had reopened to patrons and we started to go and explore our surroundings it was quite sad to see the carnage that the pandemic had left. Favourites such as the Jungle Cat had closed, but nowhere looked more like a post-apocalyptic nightmare than Golden Sorya Mall and Pub Street Phnom Penh.

The weirdest thing though, is it still lived. It had taken a severe, severe beating. It was on life support and it looked like it needed to be put out of its misery, but alive to a degree it was. 

Nowadays you will see elderly gentlemen frequenting the few bars at the entrance of the street from morning till night. The inside is basically empty and has a decidedly dangerous feel to it.

There are though still some signs of life in the back alleys, with an African bar usually filled with an eclectic crowd, as well as the Sandwich Shop on the corner providing sustenance to the few loyal patrons and local workers that frequent the area.

So, as things stand, Pub Street is currently best avoided. Whether it will ever become a place worthy of patronage again currently looks doubtful, although when the hordes of tourists do finally return, who knows.

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