Lucky Burger, Phnom Penh

I absolutely cannot believe that in the weeks I've been here in Phnom Penh, I had not tried Lucky Burger, Cambodia's biggest local fast food chain. I'd always see the bright red logo with a burger on it every time I was out, but never got round to trying it out until now. Think of it this way: Lucky Burger is to Cambodia as Jollibee is to the Philippines, Lotteria to Vietnam, and McDonald's to the U.S.

Yep, it's that big of a thing here.

Lucky Burger is owned by the Lucky Market Group, which has over 15 supermarkets and fast food chains nationwide. The first store opened in 1995 and instantly captured the locals' interest, especially as they were the first to introduce fast food services in Cambodia. The branch we went to was the one at TK Avenue (which I wrote about here), right next to, what do you know, Lucky Supermarket.

The menu does resemble the one from Lotteria in Ho Chi Minh City, though it's not quite as extensive.

This ice-cream counter (that seems to be tied to the Lucky Market Group, I'm not sure) can be found at I think all Lucky Supermarket and Lucky Burger locations. I've yet to try the yummy flavours - I've particularly got my eye on the white chocolate and peanut butter flavours!

They also have a few baked goods here.

The whole place sort of gives off that KFC vibe for me, with the red and white (with a bit of yellow) colour scheme.

Teehee, not our order, but I did sneak a quick photo of someone else's tray while it was on the counter to give you an idea of what they've got to offer here. 

My mom and I both got a shrimp burger, and it tasted pretty darn good. Again, it reminded me a lot of the shrimp burgers you can get from Lotteria - it tastes pretty similar, so if you're craving it, Lucky Burger is a great alternative here in Cambodia. Or you know, Lotteria is a great alternative if you're in Ho Chi Minh City. Since we did opt to not get the full meal (sans drink and fries) the price of $1.90 did seem a bit much for just the burger itself. You're better off getting the full meal.
Lesson learned.

With no McDonald's or Burger King in sight, Lucky Burger seems like the next best thing for when you're craving some good old fast food here. It seems to be a cult favourite and part of their local cuisine, so it would almost be wrong to not check it out. With the number of branches popping up, there's no doubt that you'll probably find yourself at one.

As always,

Happy discovering!

Olympic Market, Phnom Penh

Having finally recovered from the tiring yet enjoyable weekend trip to Ho Chi Minh City last week, I was ready to continue discovering more of what Phnom Penh had to offer. After reading through a few travel websites, it seemed the like the next place to check out was Olympic Market.

Mind you, the exterior of the market may be quite rundown, but don't let that cloud your judgment of what the market can offer you.

Olympic Market was built in 1994, and is a large three-story complex housing numerous stalls selling hair accessories, shoes, a few home appliances and souvenirs. It's aptly named due to its proximity to the Olympic Stadium, only a few blocks away. You can find imports from Thailand, Vietnam and Korea here too. But this market is mainly known for the piles and piles of fabric - of all types and colours - that you can get here for really great prices, especially if bought in bulk.

According to my mom, the market used to mainly be a 'fabric haven' in the past, with most stalls selling mounds of fabric, but now those stalls have been pushed to one side of the market. Albeit a sizeable area, a larger portion of the market does mainly sell beauty products, clothes and accessories. And with the size of the place and depending on which side you enter from, it may be a bit of a challenge figuring out where those fabric stalls are. It certainly was for us.

St. 286, Olympic Commune, Chamkar Mon District

Olympic Market does make me think of it as a MBK(in Bangkok, Thailand) and Russian Market hybrid. (Hmm, I just had the funniest image in my head...don't mind me!)

Look at those ginourmous eggs!!! Ostrich eggs?

Stall after stall selling all kinds of hair accessories - ones with bling, ribbons, lace, etc. If you're into hair-styling, you'll definitely want to pay a visit here.

They also do sell quite a lot of handbags, shoes and accessories.

Alas, we stumbled across the area with all the fabric stalls!

My mom bought two Batik dresses from Indonesia for $7 each here - good price for the quality I must say! And my mom absolutely loves them.

I wasn't kidding about them offering all sorts of fabrics here - printed, plain, silk, cotton, lace... the list goes on! It's a fashion designer/tailor's heaven!

Clean, wide spaces to walk through, and quite organized if I must say.

Aha, 'genie pants' galore!

Hats for everyone!

The outside of the market serves as an eating area, with a large number of counters that you can sit by and order some local cuisine. As we were there at around nine in the morning, most of the seats were occupied by locals grabbing some coffee and breakfast. You can also buy a few vegetables and fruits along here.

I'd definitely recommend you check out Olympic Market if you're interested in buying all sorts of fabric to bring home and make into fancy dresses or suits. I know I had fun just taking photos of them and walking through those stalls. But to be honest, having already visited Russian Market and Central Market, Olympic was a bit a of a let-down for me. That may be why I wasn't as thrilled here, having already seen what those other markets had to offer. Or perhaps I was having an off-day, or the heat was getting to me, I don't know.

This may call for another visit to see if that changes my mind.

Happy discovering!

Aeon Mall, Phnom Penh - Take Two!

A few days after Aeon Mall's grand opening on June 30, my parents and I decided to check it out once again after Mass to fully see what the place had to offer. You can check out my initial thoughts from a few days back when we first visited after Aeon's soft opening here.

I definitely wasn't disappointed. 

And I swear, it felt like half of Phnom Penh's population was there that night! It was insane - no joke. It was already traffic getting there from Mass, and parking was a bit of a struggle. It took me ages to take decent photos as there were people everywhere, especially at the World Dining food court on the second floor, next to the department store.

One side of the food court is a designated Japanese cuisine area, so you've got a whole range of restaurants to pick from, such as Yoshinoya, Copin and Nicky Japan. The other side of the food court houses Korean restaurants, Vietnamese cuisine, desserts and such. Aeon Mall does also have tons of other restaurants scattered around the place, such as Pepper Lunch, Lobster Bay and the Pizza Company. They really do have something for everyone.

We tried out Nicky Japan, Fukuoka's Hamburg steak restaurant. I got the combo with the chicken teriyaki and (I think it was) a tuna burger (about $6). Tasted really great, especially with the sauce! I had no problem finishing off my greens with that sauce - I wonder what's in it? I'd definitely recommend you try it out if you're a fan of Japanese cuisine.

Both my parents went with the chicken teriyaki bento box. Two (err, well four really) thumbs up! According to my mom, the chicken teriyaki at Nicky Japan tasted much better than the one from Yoshinoya (they got a side order).

A few Japanese shops here and there...

The Penshoppe branch here also had a huge opening ceremony, with brand endorser Marco Maurier making a special appearance. Sadly, we didn't get to see him as we found out about it after the whole shindig went down. Oh well...

They do seem to have more restaurants and coffee shops than actual stores, based on my observations. It may just be that not everything has opened yet. But then again, the people here really do love their food, so it's understandable.

Also took a quick look at their cinema here, and I am definitely pleased. I mean, the entrance looks like a freaking hotel lobby! Such class. Definitely one of the more fancy ones I've seen. I'm so looking forward to catching a movie here before I leave.

On the other side of the cinema is the bowling alley, which was actually smaller than I had expected. But nonetheless, looks like a lot of fun! The guys playing seemed to be having the time of their life, I didn't want to intrude and start taking a few snaps.

Sorry for the lack of photos (hence the short post), but I was a bit overwhelmed and in a rush that it totally slipped my mind to take my camera out and take a few more shots. Oh well, guess you'll just have to check it out for yourself.

All in all, I'm definitely loving Aeon Mall! I admit, I was a tad bit apprehensive at first in my original post, but hey, I can change my mind! They've got so much to offer, and I'm sure anyone who visits will be pleased. Sure, it may look like every other large-scale shopping mall in the Philippines or the U.S. (price-wise, the products sold are also quite similar), but by Cambodian standards, it's so up there, I don't know how anything else will top it. Pop by if you've got the time!

Happy discovering!