New Leaf Book Cafe, Siem Reap

​The New Leaf Book Cafe in Siem Reap is a relaxing place to eat, catch up with friends, or find an intriguing book to sink your nose into.
The cafe incorporates sustainably sourced, high quality food; a bookshop and an event space, all in one.
New Leaf is not far from pub street, but as the name suggests, the locale is very quiet, open and natural.

Co-founders Georgina Hemingway and Ian Croft established a sustainable space that provides many NGOs with funding and support, and invests in local educational programmes. The restaurant and bookshop supports the local economy, creates jobs, raises funds and awareness for NGOs, promotes education in Siem Reap, and provides training and career development for its staff.

The Restaurant

The cuisine is top quality and very well presented. TRY THE FISH AMOK, a Cambodian specialty which comes lovingly served in three small vine-leaf dishes placed in a wooden boat (see image below!) The ingredients are all locally sourced, often from social enterprises, and waste is recycled as much as possible. 

The menu is mainly Khmer dishes, but also has a selection of international dishes. Drinks include healthy smoothies, delicious cocktails, and wine. Coffee and beer is Cambodian only. There are many vegetarian options on the menu, and the restaurant is open for breakfast, lunch and dinner. ​

​All the furniture and restaurant necessities are locally sourced or recycled. The interior is beautifully decorated to create a peaceful and relaxing place to SIT AND SIP A COFFEE, and the wooden furnishings are designed for a natural feel. The building itself feels old-world, as it is a French-colonial style, three-storey house.

The Bookshop

The bookshop includes over 3,000 books, donated by people from all over the world. Browse through new and second hand volumes, including old classics, fiction books, travel, history, politics and so on. Gift cards, note pads and artworks are for sale, and all the shops' profits go to local charities and social enterprises. If you are passing through Siem Reap, you are welcome to DROP OFF BOOKS you are no longer reading. Any subject in any language is gratefully accepted.

The in-house library includes NGO, aid and social books that can be read at the cafe or rented. The book donation programme includes over 1,000 books donated to rural schools and libraries, and counting! They also have a Khmer books lending library.
Any schools in need of books are welcome to get in touch. 

​Culture and Movies

New Leaf promotes local culture and social projects. GO TO MUSIC NIGHTS, held in the event space upstairs. The tranquil space overlooks Wat Preah Prom Rath, and can be used for fundraisers, exhibits, workshops and classes. NGOs can use it for free, and it can be hired for private functions, with the fees going directly to one of the partner organisations. Exhibits are only for Cambodian artists or those that focus on Cambodian themes.

Visit for the MOVIE NIGHT every Monday, and watch a variety of educational films. Some excellent movies shown recently include ''The Day the 60s Died'', which is a short feature about the students of Kent State, USA, who were shot dead in 1970, during protests against the US army's invasion of Cambodia. Last week was the incredible BBC documentary ''Jungle in Atlantis'', about the history of Angkor, how the civilisation managed to grow so gigantic, and what led to its decline. ​

Support New Leaf

Statistics
- Siem Reap Province is one of the poorest in Cambodia, with only 33% of girls and 46% of boys completing primary education.
- Only 5-9% of children complete secondary education.
- 50% are so malnourished they suffer from stunted growth. 

New Leaf helps Siem Reap's children by:
- Giving 100% of their profits to educational projects in Siem Reap, and holding fundraising events.
- Donating English children's books and lending Khmer books to local schools.
- Providing free or discounted office space and a free event space to NGOs. 

New Leaf helps local people by:
- Hosting educational events and screenings about local and global issues.
- Sourcing everything locally and responsibly, from furniture to beer.
- Training staff in English and IT, and ensuring they have fair benefits, such as holiday pay, leave for volunteering (7 days paid leave per year),
    health insurance, and a staff money saving scheme.  

Organisations New Leaf supports:
- Women's Resource Centre, which empowers women by providing health, education, counselling, parent and work skills training.
- Build Your Future Today Centre, which gives economic and intellectual tools to Cambodian people to overcome poverty and attain stability.
- Anjali House provides refuge, care and education to under-privileged children to ensure they don't end up begging on the streets.
- Cambodian Children House of Peace is a residential home for children, providing them with all the tools needed to grow and develop into proper citizens. 

Visit New Leaf and support the first non-profit restaurant of its kind in Siem Reap.
For a map and contact info please see their website: http://newleafbook.org/ ​