March 24th, 2006 | The lowdown by Gordon Candelin

Mith Samlahn/Friends Needs a New Home

Friends - the Restaurant is one of the most popular places to eat in Phnom Penh for a couple of reasons. One, the food is fantastic - a wide selection of western/asian tapas that are creative and delicious. They also make the best daiquiris in town.

The second reason Friends is so popular is because there isn't a better, more effective NGO in a country that is bursting with them. Mith Samlanh/Friends is haven for Phnom Penh's street kids, who number in the thousands. With drop in centers, vocational training programs (like the restaurant) and educational programs, Friends services 1,800 kids per DAY.

Unfortunately Friends is the latest victim in what has been a year rife with shady land deals, which have seen institutions such as the Royal University of Fine Arts razed to the ground to make way for more crappy business centers or hotels.

So what can be done about it? Unless you've got $3.5 million, not much. Friends is currently in the process of looking for a new location, but given the value of land in the city, you can bet it won't be in nearly as central a location as it is now.

This is as bad for the kids as it is for the thousands of tourists who visit the restaurant. The further away the new center is, the more difficult it will be for the most vulnerable children to get there, and will also place increased strain on Friends to provide transportation.

If you plan on visiting Phnom Penh in the next few months, check out Friends; you won't be disappointed. And who knows - maybe you'll know somebody who knows somebody who knows somebody who can come up with a few million and sort things out here.