Lately I\’ve been craving Mexican food and have made the rounds of the Sihanoukville restaurants to satisfy my craving. I\’ve made some great discoveries, which I\’ll share with you here.

Up on the Hill, the new owner of Sihanoukville\’s Corner Bar has added Tex-Mex dishes to his menu. I\’ve tried the nachos, the enchiladas and the tacos and they are all delicious. At $4.50 for three big tacos, they are the best value, but the nachos, while a little overpriced, are great with beer while you\’re waiting for your main course. The Corner Bar used to have the best pizza in town and still makes great pizzas, but the Tex-Mex is a welcome addition to their menu, since I go there a lot. They have 3 big screen TVs that get great reception, so I often go there to watch TV when the reception at my house is no good.

On Monday and Tuesday nights, Mick and Craigs, an Ochheuteal institution on the top of Mithona Road, has a five dollar Mexican special. For starters, you get a bowl of chile con carne and chips followed by a sizzling chicken fajita, tortillas and some sort of wrapped dish. It all tastes great and is very filling – definitely the bargain meal of the lot. If there is one criticism I have, it is that it\’s not spicey enough. That said, though, the fajita makes up for the lack of fresh salsa.

The nearby Reef Resort has what is probably the best Mexican food in town. It is also the most expensive, so only go there if you want a gourmet feast. They have a special for $7.50. I haven\’t tried it yet, but if their breakfast burritos are anything to go by, it\’s probably delicious. Everything about the Reef Resort is a little more upmarket than the rest of Mithona Road, Sihanoukville, but down Serendipity Road, two big hotels are being built that are going to be a couple of the best in town.

If there are any other Mexican restaurants in Sihanoukville, I haven\’t heard of them and I\’ve been here five years now. However, new restaurants and cafes are popping up all the time. It\’s a welcome change from all the cheap bars that were going up a few years ago. Happily, Sihanoukville (and all of Cambodia for that matter) is outgrowing its old \”Wild West\” image.

Mithona Road and Serendipity Road are the best examples of the changes happening here. The roads have been widened and Serendipity Road, which used to be just a dirt track, has been extensively widened and now even has street lights along its centre divider. There are footpaths on either side of the road and a collection of lovely shops, cafes and bars. Once exclusively for backpackers, Serendipity is becoming more upmarket and older couples and families frequently choose to stay in that part of town.

Sihanoukville is changing so fast, it\’s hard even for me to keep up with it and I live here. If you hear a lot of bad rumours about Sihanoukville, they\’re mostly years out of date. If you want reputable, current information about Sihanouk Ville or Cambodia in general, check out blogs written by locals, not backpacker blogs. Unfortunately, the backpackers love to tell tall tales and while it\’s true that bad things happen here, it\’s usually after midnight in the dark corners of the city. Isn\’t that where the bad stuff happens everywhere?

Rob Schneider has been living in Sihanoukville Cambodia since 2006. His blog, Sihanoukville Journal is one of the most authoritative and up-to-date you will find.

Rob Schneider has been living in Sihanoukville Cambodia since 2006. His blog, http://www.sihanoukville-cambodiajournal.com is one of the most authoritative and up-to-date you will find.

Author Bio: Rob Schneider has been living in Sihanoukville Cambodia since 2006. His blog, Sihanoukville Journal is one of the most authoritative and up-to-date you will find.

Category: Travel
Keywords: sihanoukville,cambodia,sihanoukville restaurants,sihanoukville accommodations