Peace Craft Cafe, Phnom Penh

I'm not going to lie - I'm a sucker for cafes. The notion of having coffee, eating light meals, chilling out and people watching is glorious. And of course, where better to do those things AND have the time (and personal space) to write?

There's an idea of where to find me. Just a matter of figuring out which one to go to.

So when during mass they announced that there was a solidarity discount sale at a cafe not far from where we go to church, my mom and I found ourselves at Peace Craft Cafe the very next day. 

No. 14, St. 392, Boeung Keng Kang, Phnom Penh

Peace Craft Cafe is a social space where you can eat, chill out and buy hand-made crafts made by the artisans from Banteay Prieb. Banteay Prieb (translated: Center of the Dove) is a training center for the physically disabled in Cambodia, founded in 1991 by the Jesuit Refuge Service. 

The cafe sells a variety of sculpted items that are a mix of traditional Cambodian and religious designs, as well as bags, wallets and aprons.

The two-day solidarity discount sale was organised to fund the project 'A Roof for Barong'. 25% of the profits would go to providing better shelters during the rainy season for the villagers of Barong, in the province of Prey Veng, just north of Phnom Penh.

The front of the cafe serves as the boutique, but all throughout the cafe they've got various displays. Why not sip your coffee while admiring that gorgeous blouse from the corner of your eye, begging you to take it home with you?

 Hand-made Ipad cases lining the wall ($15 each)

 Wooden trinkets and small sculptures - crosses, hearts with a dove in the center, etc. ($3 for the trinkets) It's no surprise that a majority of the wooden trinkets feature a dove.

 This definitely caught my eye - a Khmer inspired nativity set ($300). How unique is that?

You can check out their online catalogue here.

Price-wise? A little pricey (I'm talking about the sculptures here). Better to catch their stuff on sale though - my mom got her two figures for more than half off for both. Let's say, one of the figures from that nativity set above is originally about $60.  But hey, these are one-of-a-kind, hand-made crafts by disabled local artisans. So it's pretty worth it.

Now, let's talk food.

You can also buy a variety of jams/preserves at the cafe counter

How cute is the menu? I swear, the little things...

So food-wise, their menu isn't that large. There are more drink options than food, probably three or less in terms of types of sandwiches, salads, etc. So deciding what you want is an easier task, perhaps easier than deciding what handicraft you want to take home with you (teehee!) 

Nevertheless, since it was our merienda (snack) time, we went for carrot cake and I got myself an iced caramel latte. According to my mom, the carrot cake is pretty well-known here, so why not? Also, it was either that or a brownie, and I wasn't exactly up for anything chocolate (big shocker!)

How good does that carrot cake look? Are you drooling yet? Because it is definitely drool-worthy. Light and fluffy. Moist and warm. Not too sweet and just the right amount of carrots. The price is good too, $1.50 per slice. Urgh, if you're ever in Phnom Penh, try it. If you're not a fan, this may just convert you. 

Oh, and I wasn't lying about the whole 'cafe is a social place' part. There were a number of foreigners lounging around, eating, chatting and typing away on their computers. Heck, I whipped out my handy-dandy notebook and started planning out this blog entry. The ambience at Peace Craft Cafe just sets the perfect writing mood.

If you're ever having a mental block here in Phnom Penh and need to de-stress, I suggest coming here. Looking for unique and affordable handicrafts? Come here. If you just want to chill - come here. I tell you, Craft Peace Cafe is a must visit for anyone passing through Phnom Penh.

Happy discovering!