Where to eat in Kep: the crab market and beyond

Kep is a sleepy seaside retreat that people come to for one thing above all: crab. You could eat every meal here within sight of the water and never have the same dish twice, as long as that dish involves seafood. This guide covers the crab market, the restaurants clustered around it, and the few places that do something else well. Everything here, with photos and a map, is on the Kep directory.

The crab market

The famous crab market is a row of stalls right on the water where you pick your crab live and it comes back minutes later stir-fried with Kampot green pepper, eaten at plastic tables. Kimly is the best known and the busiest, with well over a thousand reviews. Holy Crab and Magic Crab are the other two names people send you to, both a step up in comfort from the plastic-table stalls without losing the point. The Crab Kitchen and So Kheang round out the row. The full set is on seafood restaurants in Kep.

Sit-down seafood away from the stalls

If you want a table and a view rather than the market bustle, Kep Sur Mer does a more polished seafood menu and rates highly. The Strand and Maelis are reliable for a longer lunch. Chankiri Kitchen & Bar is small and very well reviewed if you can get a spot.

When you have had enough crab

It happens. Italian Corner does pizza and pasta and is the go-to when someone in the group wants a break from seafood. Le Bout du Monde is a French kitchen attached to a hillside guesthouse, good for a quieter dinner. Captain Chim's covers cheap, dependable Khmer food. Arts Cafe and The Secret Bar are the spots for a coffee or a drink between meals.

How to plan it

Most people visit Kep as a day trip from Kampot, 30 to 40 minutes away, or stop on the way along the coast. Lunch at the crab market, a walk along the seafront, and sunset from a terrace is the whole itinerary. A generous seafood lunch runs about US$8 to US$15 a head, less if you stick to one dish and rice. Weekends and the December to February high season are busiest, so arrive early for a table by the water. The directory has the full list and the map.