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44 AUGUST 2017 / TRAVELANDLEISUREASIA.COM
family only purchased their farm a
couple of years ago after returning to
Cambodia, following the civil war
that ripped the country apart and
scattered its citizens around the
world. “Kampot pepper is a really
interesting product, because
[cultivation] knowledge nearly
disappeared in the dark period, and
there’s really a lot of knowledge in
Cambodia,” David says. Atelier hopes
to seamlessly blend the new with the
old, a trend that’s becoming de
rigueur in Kampot.
+ Next door to Café Espresso I meet
Kunthear Mov, who moved from her
hometown in nearby Takeo province
in 2008. She co-founded ethical
clothing label Dorsu (dorsu.org;
clothing US$25–$60) after spending
four years working in one of
Cambodia’s many garment factories.
“We can employ people in fair
conditions so women don’t have to
work just any job,” Mov says. She now
oversees a team of 16 who produce
the label’s classic, comfortable
clothing lines that are sold both
online and at a reduced rate from
their Kampot showroom.THE STAY
+ This creative vibe is increasingly
attracting people from all over the
world, Denise Ruygrok tells me at
Rikitikitavi (rikitikitavi-kampot.
com; doubles from US$48), my
accommodation for two nights in
Kampot. Along with her husband, she
opened the comfortable, Asian-
influenced hotel in a converted rice
ba r n t he sa me yea r t h at Epic A r ts
sprang up. “It was love at first sight.
There was nothing then,” she says.
“The atmosphere is the same, but so
much has changed: there are paved
roads now, restaurants, hotels,
shops. Kampot has progressed.” I
t a ke i n t h at prog ress a s I st rol l one
last time along the riverbank before
departing for Phnom Penh. Pepper-
infused ice cream in hand, I muse
over how classic Kampot and its
evolving charms now manage to
mingle in such sweet combination.Cambodian architect Antoine
Meinnel and run by his brother,
David. Set up to showcase the famed
Kampot pepper grown on their
family’s plantation, every element of
the space has been meticulously
thought out, from the mosaic
patterned floor tiles to the soft-
leather menu covers. The pepper
culture started around the 13th
century, in the Angkorian era,
according to the writings of Chinese
emissary Zhou Daguan; the MeinnelFROM TOP: All the
clothing at Dorsu is
made at the shop’s
in-house studio;
Ellen Tirant (left)
and Kunthear Mov of
Dorsu; the Meinnel
family’s Kampot
pepper; inside their
shop/eatery Atelier.