March 25th, 2006 | The lowdown by Gordon Candelin

Shiva Shakti Restaurant.

If you have some time and money to spend while in Phnom Penh, and even better, you've hooked up with someone on your travels and you're looking to impress them, bring them to Shiva Shakti.

A stones throw away from the Independence Monument, Shiva Shakti is probably the most accesible fine dining experience in the city.

A beautiful dining room sets the atmosphere, and drinking ice cold water out of heavy copper cups doesn't hurt. Everything about this place is well thought out and well-designed. The only negative is that the dining room is very small, with tables very close to each other. If you are looking for intimate as well as posh, you might want to look elsewhere. It can get very noisy.

The food is good too, though in my opinion not as good as Flavors of India. They do make an excellent Malai Kofta (vegetable balls in a creamy sauce) and the food always looks as great as the rest of the restaurant.

Shiva Shakti is more expensive than other Indian restaurants in town, but you get what you pay for. Good food, and an excellent ambiance.