AsiaLIFE

Why are there so many cafés in Phnom Penh? As coffee shops pop up on nearly every corner, Clive Graham-Ranger confronts the growing phenomenon. Photo by James Grant.

For many years, café society in Cambodia was mostly a French affair, consisting of a demitasse of coal black liquid and a croissant under a haze of Gauloise smoke.

The past few years have seen an explosion of outlets offering filtered Arabica and Robusta brews. Coffee shops are king and there’s likely to be an opening in your area soon.

A subtle change started taking place about five years ago, with the opening of Café Sentiment on Monivong Boulevard and its ensuing branches. The brainchild of renowned Cambodian chef and hotelier, Luu Meng, and his partners, the coffee shop was one of the first to cater to the current.

For many individuals, launching a café is a relatively inexpensive way of making money. Pick a trendy thoroughfare, offer comfy seating, roasty-toasty beans and the hiss and satisfying gurgle of an espresso machine. Add in some newspapers, maybe some televised sport or news, and good WiFi connections, and it’s easy to tap into a whole host of people willing to pay your prices.

If you presume the 30-plus outlets in the capital indicate that the coffee bubble is close to bursting, think again. A number of mighty multinational players headed by some successful entrepreneurs are homing in on coffee culture with a commercial vengeance.

In front by a country mile is The Blue Pumpkin, which recently attracted a rumoured multi-million dollar package injection of cash from Alain Dupuis, who has his financial fingers in many pies.

Started by Arnaud Curtat and his wife Sudarat Phaetkhim, the Pumpkin business has grown from a milkshake and sandwich shop on a Siem Reap side street into nearly a dozen outlets across the Cambodian landscape. The support from Dupuis has underpinned their ambition to satisfy the appetites of coffee culture bugs with designer white space and banquette lounging in eight coffee shops in Siem Reap and two in Phnom Penh at Monument Books and on Sisowath Quay. Plans are also in place to launch a third location at the international airport and a delivery and catering service in the capital.

Dupuis’s investment portfolio includes restaurants on two continents, and is also involved in the wine, compost, construction and aircraft industries. Approached by many suitors, Curtat chose Dupuis as the one who would allow him free rein in his plans for careful and considered expansion.

“There is a mutual trust with Alain and we will have a long relationship with him,” says Curtat. “At some point we had to expand, but we couldn’t do it on our own.”

Riding the fashionable wave is something Dupuis has had success in for many years. “Alain knows exactly what he wants and has many fresh ideas. I like that,” adds Curtat. “He knows better than me the market he is in, so I am very much in the background.”

Dupuis also has a share in the Café Symphony business, where the beans are roasted and ground upon order. Beans are fresh from the plantation, and another unique selling point is the selection of seven different blends personalised to customers’ tastes.

There seems to be no age or financial barrier to joining the coffee set. So what’s the appeal? What spurred the love affair between the paying public and the robust bean?

Just as Blue Pumpkin wants to fill the air with the aroma of fresh-roasted beans, the rapid growth of the coffee shop craze is also attributed to providing a gathering place in pleasant surroundings.

Chang Bunleang swapped the offer of a job at ANZ Royal Bank to join three friends and open Brown Coffee & Bakery on Street 214. “Our parents weren’t keen on the idea at first,” said the 24-year old, “but our success has changed their minds. We proved that there’s a huge demand for places to sit comfortably, meet with friends, chat with others on the internet and drink quality coffee.”

The trend has attracted the attention of acquisitive multinationals. Gloria Jean’s Coffees opened its franchise operation in the capital last year. Cambodia is the 39th country where the American company now offers hot, chilled, espresso, latte and mocha varieties. Java beans are from Down Under, and the air-conditioned comfort is a natural draw for meeters, greeters and WiFi-ers.

Too many to count? That’s the coffee revelation. Perhaps the froth on the cappuccino is the example of the recent takeover at Monument Books. Up until The Blue Pumpkin’s installation, the space offered a Java Café venue.