The Shack

The Shack is a bar in Kampot, Cambodia — one of 276 places to eat and drink we map across the province, and part of a wider dataset of 718 mapped locations in Kampot. In Khmer it would be described as បារនៅកំពត. It sits at 10.64528, 104.16911, which is the coordinate any Cambodian tuk-tuk or PassApp driver can be shown directly if the name is unfamiliar to them.

As a place to eat, it serves both residents and visitors passing through Kampot. It has no official website, so opening hours and prices are best confirmed by phone or by asking locally on the day — small businesses in Cambodia change hours seasonally and close for family events and festivals.

The easiest way to find The Shack is by nearby landmarks. It lies roughly 200 m south-east of Gecko Village, and about 200 m south-east of Meraki Kampot, with Champa Lodge a further 300 m east. Drivers in Kampot usually navigate by these anchors rather than street numbers, so naming the closest one gets you there faster than an address.

From the centre of Kampot, a tuk-tuk or PassApp ride is the standard way to arrive; short in-town trips generally cost US$1 to US$3, and longer provincial runs are worth agreeing in advance. Rented motorbikes are widely available from guesthouses, and self-driving is realistic on sealed roads in the dry season — less so between June and October, when heavy afternoon rain floods side streets and unpaved approaches. The "Get directions" link on this page opens the exact coordinates in Google Maps for turn-by-turn navigation.

The Shack is listed as a bar on the Cambodia Today map, which in practice means table service or counter ordering with a short printed or wall-mounted menu. Prices at neighbourhood bar spots in Kampot typically run from about US$1.50 to US$4 for a rice or noodle dish and US$1 to US$3 for iced coffee, fruit shakes or a bottle of beer. Air-conditioned cafés and restaurants aimed at visitors sit at the upper end, roadside and market kitchens well below it.

Expect Khmer staples — bai sach chrouk in the morning, kuy teav noodle soup, lok lak, amok and fried rice through the day — with Western breakfasts and Thai or Vietnamese dishes appearing wherever there is a steady foreign crowd. Cash is king: bring small US dollar notes and expect change in riel, and assume card payment is not available unless the venue is part of a chain. Most kitchens open between 6am and 8am and start closing from 8pm, earlier in smaller towns.

The Shack is not isolated: our map records 8 other mapped locations within a short ride, including Gecko Village (guest house, 200 m south-east), Meraki Kampot (guest house, 200 m south-east), Champa Lodge (guest house, 300 m east), Wat Teuk Vil (place of worship, 400 m south). Pairing a visit here with one or two of those makes a more efficient half-day, especially if you are paying a driver by the trip rather than by the hour.