Orussey Market
It’s so dark and gloomy inside with small pockets of lights, feels like a cyberpunk mall
This one is not for the faint of heart. Unlike the other markets I have listed so far in Phnom Penh, Orussey Market is notorious for being a labyrinth. And honestly, that is exactly what makes it feel so authentic. If you are looking for fabric, especially Cambodian silk, this is one of the best places to come. But Orussey is not only a fabric market. It feels like a dense, chaotic, almost cinematic urban maze where you can find literally almost anything.
It is packed, hot, noisy, and overwhelming in the best and worst ways. The air is thick with the smell of fermented fish, dried squid, fresh fabric, incense, street food, and motorbike exhaust. It is not curated, polished, or tourist-friendly. It is a market that feels fully alive, and maybe a little impossible to understand at first. But if you want raw and real this is the place to come.
The food is also a major part of the experience, although, to be fair, some of the best food is not inside the market itself, but around it.
I have two recommendations.
The first is Ha Hov, a beef and jerky-beef barbecue venue known for its fermented fish sauce, or teuk prahok. It is the kind of place where the flavors are strong, local, and unapologetic.
The second is a nighttime pizza stand that appears in front of the market from around 6 p.m. to midnight. A man sells different types of handmade pizza from a portable oven, with his whole family working around him. I highly suggest going there and getting the calzone. They are genuinely some of the best.
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