Who doesn't like to eat and drink? Not us! Here at Raintree, we take our eating game seriously. Nothing beats treating ourselves to a fantastic meal after a long day of hustle, but also eating can be so much more than just filling our stomachs. Mealtimes can be the one time in a day where we get to relax, spend some quality time with our family, and even create lifelong edible memories. This is why we have so much appreciation for the people who work behind the scenes to make the most magical eating experiences possible - especially in our local community.

*Left to right: Chef Nak - author of Nhum, Sok Kimsan - Exec Chef at Sombok, Gnean Eden - Restaurant & Beverage Manager at Rosewood Phnom Penh*

We recently discovered some of the most pioneering women that are setting the standard in Cambodia’s food and beverage industry. Being a female leader in the service sector is tough work as it is (check out our friend Tory Stewart’s non-profit initiative Hospitality Speaks for reports), but with the industry being so compromised by Covid, we wanted to highlight some of their incredible stories and ambitions.

Kimsan: Passing on knowledge across generations in the kitchen

Kimsan is an executive chef spearheading two different restaurants with all-women teams in Phnom Penh and Siem Reap, two cities in Cambodia that she believes are bursting with culture and energy. Before going to school to study culinary science, Kimsan had her head start in the kitchen when she tagged along with her mum, the village chef. She catered to all different types of events across Kampot, their hometown. This experience primarily anchored her to want to continue learning about Khmer cuisine - so much so that she spent countless hours researching forgotten recipes in the national archives and even later were trained by His Majesty King Norodom Sihanouk’s cooking staff.

Acknowledging the sacred nature of this knowledge, Kimsan and her chef partner (whose namesake is also Kimsan!) are more determined than ever to pass on what they’ve learnt to their teams.

"Throughout my career, I've developed over 100 unique recipes and explored even more of historical ones. There's no point in keeping them to myself. So, I’m doing my best to pass on as much knowledge to the next generation of cooks in Cambodia as possible."

What’s even more amazing, is their new restaurant menu features iconic Khmer dishes like ‘នំបញ្ចុក - num banhchok’ that are vegetarian and even vegan! Phnom Penh friends, find the Kimsan twins in their newest outlet Sombok Restaurant just a few minutes tuktuk from Raintree on riverside.

Eden: Raising the bar with award-winning sommelier skills

Not even a drop of alcohol had touched Eden’s lips when she was 20, but at 21 years old she took home the #1 trophy in the inaugural Cambodian Sommelier Competition, before heading to Singapore to represent Cambodia on the international stage.

“One of the many things I love most about my job is seeing how my customer lights up because of my recommendation. Finding the right wine for the right meal to create the right moment for my customers – it’s a fun and exciting job because no two days are the same.”

Formerly a President of the Cambodian Sommelier Association and now a Restaurant and Beverage Manager at five-star hotel Rosewood Phnom Penh, she has had quite the professional journey. Starting out as a waitress over a decade ago in Phnom Penh, Eden developed her interest in wine by flipping through the stack of lifestyle and culinary magazines in the hotel during her breaks. Her team quickly noticed her flair for wine and precise palette, as she trained to become a certified sommelier.

Since being recognised in the industry, Eden has been working with budding sommeliers in hopes to pass on her knowledge as much as possible - in Khmer. “Most of what I learnt, I learnt it in English. I hope to make the journey of becoming a sommelier easier for those who want to become one in Cambodia. We don’t really have schools that teach this skill here, so I hope to be the bridge that closes that gap.”

Catch Eden or her wine lists at Rosewood Phnom Penh for some of the best pairing recommendations at their dining collection, just opposite Raintree.

Chef Nak: Bringing Cambodian cuisine to the world

Few people in Cambodia have had the pleasure to taste the food from celebrated chef and author Nak, but also what we might not know is what inspired her to go into food and drink in the first place.

“My journey began when I traveled to the U.S. in 2010. I saw cuisine from our neighbours everywhere - Thailand, Vietnam, Singapore - but none from Cambodia. I wondered why this was, when our cuisine is just as good.”

In 2017, Chef Nak decided she wanted to make a career out of celebrating Khmer cuisine. In cooking, she saw an opportunity to create a special kind of history for her country - one that differed from the dominant narratives and ways of telling stories. “As a Cambodian, I know that we do not have a tradition of writing things down in the kitchen. I believe that cooking is an art form that tells stories about who we are, how we eat, and how we live. In Cambodia, food is far more than just filling our bellies. It has been our medicine for thousands of years.”

Chef Nak’s first cookbook, Nhum (meaning ‘eat’ in Khmer), was created to share the art of Cambodian home-cooked food both across the country and around the world. She filled it with recipes that she had collected since childhood, from crispy shrimp cakes with world-renowned kampot peppers and lime dipping sauce (កំពឹសចៀន) to duck lemongrass sour soup with palm fruit (សម្លម្ជូរត្នោតសាច់ទា).

Nhum cookbook was published in 2019, and featured at our very own Christmas @ Raintree festival that year. Since then, the book has reached kitchens in over 40 countries, helping not just to protect and preserve Cambodian cuisine, but also to put it on the map.

Amongst other things, Chef Nak is currently writing her second cookbook. Follow her on Facebook to be the first to know once it’s out.

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Team Raintree is always excited to celebrate people doing great work. Given how closely intertwined food and drink are to culture and community, this feature feels extra special as we look ahead to this upcoming Khmer New Year. In spite of the Covid craziness and travel restrictions, we hope everyone gets to spend some quality time with friends and family. Whether it’s sampling Sombok dishes for a takeaway meal or taking a recipe from Nhum with the family, we wish everyone a safe and wonderful time, and a sense of home and togetherness.