Street 172 is one of the most iconic in Phnom Penh and has a reputation for having the good, bad and ugly all in one very small street. Is it worth going here and are there are any hidden gems? The answer is yes and yes. Here is the Street 172 Guide.
What the Street 172
Street 172 is a road quite near the riverside and the lazy bars of Phnom Penh, but also half way towards TTP, Basaac Lane and dare I say the posh part of Phnom Penh.
And this perfectly exemplified by the fact that Street 172 has a real mix of all of the above. There are great restaurants here, great bars, but also drugs, girly bars and a fair bit of sleaze.
The same can indeed be said of the clients of 172, who also very much cover a wide array of different types of people.
You can see the map position here.
Pub Street 172
Now long gone the north of Street 172 used to have the so called Pub Street. This went from being OK, so suffering through Covid to finally being for all intents little more than a haven for drug dealers and “freelancers”.
It has now been knocked down almost and is slated for renovation. Watch this space.
Best Bars of Street 172
One mostly comes to Street 172 for the bars, which can be split into three genres. The good bars, which charge around $1.50 for a beer and have a normal clientele. Girly bars, which are what they seem, as well as cheap cheap bars and restaurants, which while they have cheap food.
The best bar on Street 172 is without doubt also the best place to watch football, namely the Big Easy (link), whom I have already written about. They have regular quizzes, live music and are popular with tourists. This ensures an eclectic crowd aided by the wonderful staff of the bar.
After this would be what was once known as Sundance, this bar is now known as Nacho Bell, utilizing the logo of Taco Bell. This was and is famously the best place to get Taco Bell in Phnom Penh – or at least the best knock off.
The Parrot Bar and Guesthouse is another new entry that is pretty good too, while the are a number of other fairly decent places too, but also a bunch of ones that are so cheap they maybe attract the wrong crowd.
Alas Dirty Old Sailor is now gone, meaning one has to look for other places to purchase “green”.
And the worst bars on Street 172? Any of the girly bars are probably best avoided here, with many of the restaurants that are great value also being some of the doggiest bars.
Cheap food on 172 Street
One of the best things about this street though I the amazing value food that you can get. Formerly this included “McDonalds” at The Vine, but also “Subway” at Molly’s, yet despite these going this street is still the best value western food in Cambodia.
This is predominantly found at the top of the street and in particular at Golden Home guesthouse where a roast dinner is less than $5 and a local steak under $5.
And it does not stop there with all manor of restaurants offering toasted sandwiches for $1.75, eggs Benedict for $1.50, vodka sits for a buck and it being hard to find even a Long Island Iced Tea for more than $3.
There is also more than just western food here, with them offering not just Indian, but also potentially the best Ethiopian food in the capital.
So, that is the guide to Street 172 Phnom Penh and perhaps not to be my last entry onto this list! I will though summarize things a little – in Phnom Penh we say you have Riverside Drinkers and TTP Drinkers, rarely do we meet, but if we do it is on 172….