Drinks and ice
❃ Drinks and ice
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សុំកាហ្វេទឹកដោះគោទឹកកកមួយ
[ som kaphe teuk doh ko teuk kok muoy ] -
I want an iced coffee with milk
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សុំកាហ្វេខ្មៅអត់ស្ករមួយ
[ som kaphe khmav ot skor muoy ] -
One black coffee, no sugar
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សុំទឹកបរិសុទ្ធមួយដប
[ som teuk borisot muoy dop ] -
Give me a bottle of water
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សុំទឹកធម្មតាមួយកែវ
[ som teuk thommada muoy kaev ] -
Give me a glass of tap/filtered water
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សុំទឹកកកបន្តិច
[ som teuk kok bantech ] -
Can I have some ice?
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សុំអត់ទឹកកកទេ
[ som ot teuk kok te ] -
No ice, please
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តើទឹកកកនេះធ្វើពីទឹកស្អាតទេ?
[ tae teuk kok nih thveu pi teuk s'at te? ] -
Is this ice made from clean water?
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សុំស្រាបៀរមួយកែវ
[ som sra bier muoy kaev ] -
One draft beer, please
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សុំស្រាបៀរអង្គរពីរកំប៉ុង
[ som sra bier Angkor pir kompong ] -
Two cans of Angkor beer
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សុំស្រាបៀរមួយថូ
[ som sra bier muoy tho ] -
A jug/pitcher of beer, please
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ជល់កែវ!
[ chol kaev! ] -
Cheers!
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សុំទឹកដូងស្រស់មួយ
[ som teuk doung sros muoy ] -
Fresh coconut water, please
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សុំទឹកក្រឡុកមួយ
[ som teuk krolok muoy ] -
Fruit shake (smoothie), please
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សូមកុំដាក់ផ្អែមពេក
[ som kom dak ph'aem pek ] -
Can you make it not too sweet?
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តើមានទុយោទេ?
[ tae mean toyo te? ] -
Do you have a straw?
In a tropical climate like Cambodia, staying hydrated is a full-time job, but local drinking habits can induce severe culture shock for Westerners. The golden rule of Cambodian beverages is: everything is served with ice (Teuk kok ទឹកកក). We mean *everything*. Iced coffee is heavily brewed and mixed with generous amounts of sweet condensed milk, poured over a giant cup of crushed ice — Som kaphe teuk doh ko teuk kok muoy (សុំកាហ្វេទឹកដោះគោទឹកកកមួយ). But the real surprise comes in the evening. In Cambodia, beer is almost universally consumed poured over chunks of ice in a glass! If you order a draft beer — Som sra bier muoy kaev (សុំស្រាបៀរមួយកែវ) — the server will likely bring you a bucket of ice and continuously top up your glass. If you prefer your beer or water without ice (as is standard in Europe), you must explicitly state "No ice, please" — Som ot teuk kok te (សុំអត់ទឹកកកទេ). However, don't worry too much about hygiene; modern cylindrical ice cubes with a hole in the middle are made from purified water in factories. Drinking is also a communal affair. Cambodians rarely take a sip of beer alone; it is customary to raise your glass, look at your friends, and shout Chol kaev! (ជល់កែវ!) which means "Cheers!" every single time you drink. Adapting to the sweet, icy coffees and the lively, ice-filled beer culture is the fastest way to integrate into Cambodian social life.
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