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Welcome to Chanrey Tree Co., Ltd.

A collection of Siem Reap’s most authentic and luxurious hospitality brands, from two fine dining restaurants, one elegant lounge, a sophisticated boutique resort to our two tranquil day spas.

With more than 300 staff, we are a leader in Cambodia’s blossoming tourism and hospitality sectors that offer experience and a genuine commitment to stellar service.

Located in lush and easy-to-access pockets of this tropical city, each of our establishments offers the very best in personalised service, top-notch comfort and high quality local products.

Inspired by the magnificent Angkorian temples that sit on our doorstep, the design of each of our properties beautifully blends the old with the new. Through our exquisite collection of antiques, we nod to our ancient ancestors of the Khmer Empire, yet through our striking collection of modern paintings and sophisticated architecture, we provide a platform for the country’s exciting, young contemporary artists.

Our company is named after the impressive and very old rain tree that provides shade to our signature restaurant Chanrey Tree, which specialises in delicious, traditional Cambodian countryside cuisine. In Cambodia, the Chanrey Tree is a symbol of the connection we have with our ancient ancestors’ spirits, and of Buddhist concepts of reincarnation and the circle of life.

Experience something truly extraordinary and truly Cambodian with Chanrey Tree Co., Ltd.

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About

Chanrey Tree Co., Ltd. is a Cambodian hospitality company that encompasses a series of fine restaurants, spas and a resort in the magical city of Siem Reap. While each establishment boasts its own timeless and thoughtful concept, a common philosophy is threaded through each: authentic luxury. Each of our businesses are united by a commitment to ensuring our guests have the most incredible and truly Cambodian experiences whilst visiting this very special country.

Siem Reap is one of the world’s most alluring and intoxicating travel destinations. It is home to the famous, crumbling monument Angkor Wat – a Unesco World Heritage Site – and the Angkor Archaeological Park’s thousands of other fascinating and sacred ruins, and attracts around 2 million tourists each year. But there’s even more to Siem Reap than our captivating temple ruins. There are numerous natural wonders to explore, from the floating fishing villages on Southeast Asia’s biggest lake to enchanting waterfalls and spectacular rural landscape of rippling green rice fields and swaying palm trees. Cultural attractions also abound, from artisan workshops and enchanting Apsara dance shows to shopping, spa and eating adventures. We believe it is our mission to provide a window to these sites and experiences. It is our dream to be the very best in our field.

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Our Philosophy

To us, “authentic luxury” means crafting and curating a suite of meaningful experiences and products that provide our guests an immersive deep dive into Cambodian culture in swish, luxurious surrounds. At our elegant and secluded Sokkhak Boutique Resort, find 12 spacious suites laced around tropical gardens and a lovely saltwater pool. The design of our suites blend the tenets of traditional Khmer design (Angkor inspired sculptures and antiques) with a contemporary zen feel (slate and wood décor, huge bathrooms replete with rain showers and baths; cloud-soft beds and stylish lounge rooms). Yet in these sumptuous surrounds, guests can also experience authentic Cambodia through out guided trips to secret, lesser-known temple ruins; our local foodie and shopping tours; through our Cambodian breakfast menu (try our pan-fried ginger and banana wrapped in bacon) or cooking classes and chats with our chefs and mixologists; and even through the resort’s architecture itself – a lovingly restored old wooden Khmer home that peeks over Sokkhak Resort’s high walls.

At our popular Chanrey Tree – Khmer Cuisine, you’ll find a sleek dining space in a leafy and lush courtyard setting where you can feast on Cambodian countryside classics such as a honey and rice brandy-marinated roast chicken, and wedges of crispy rice crackers with prahok ktish – a Cambodian delicacy of fermented fish, pork and thinly sliced river fish that’s braised with coconut. You won’t find these dishes in too many of Siem Reap’s tourism-geared restaurants –the recipes were gleaned from our chefs’ numerous research trips to far-flung towns around the country. Next door is our stylish French fusion restaurant Sokkhak River, an ode to our country’s past as a French colony and the culinary legacy this left behind.  More recently Sokkhak River Lounge joined our group. This stunning, three-story building includes a café on the ground floor, an impressive wine bar on the middle level and the crown jewel – a lush, stylish and spacious rooftop cocktail bar with sweeping views of Siem Reap river, golden pagodas and Siem Reap town.

Meanwhile, our tranquil day spas – including the impressive new Sokkhak Spa Riverside – are sanctuaries of serenity, where high quality techniques are blended with spa products that use an abundance of beautiful essential oils and herbs produced here in Cambodia. Unveiled in November 2017, our newest spa is our biggest project yet and features feature interconnecting ‘moats’ modelled on Angkor Wat’s famous irrigation network, a waterfall, soaring ceilings, an impressive temple-like façade, a boutique, 17 treatment rooms an array of therapeutic treatments.

Our family of more than 350 hospitality and tourism professionals are connected through our belief that providing the very best service is a lifestyle. Learn more about our story here.

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The Story

Our founder, Soann Kann is a self-made Cambodian entrepreneur with an inspiring life story. In a five-year period, he has opened two high-end restaurants, two successful, large spas, a stylish boutique resort and an elegant River Lounge.

Kann’s fearless approach to business can be traced back to his childhood. He grew up through a civil war with his parents and five siblings in a poor farming village around 18km from Siem Reap. “We often did not have enough rice to eat. I worked from a very young age, selling food at markets. To survive, my mum would do different kinds of business, depending on what she could grow or what was in demand. I learned from her the importance of being adaptable,” he says.

Once a teenager, Kann moved to the city to work at a local restaurant, becoming the breadwinner of the family. When the Sofitel opened in 2000, he joined their F&B team as a food runner. As tourism blossomed, so did Kann’s career – he moved up into various management roles at high-end hotels. Six years later, he met the owner of the Bodia spa chain, at that time still in construction. He interviewed for the general manager position three days later and got the job, later travelling to Bangkok to complete a diploma in massage therapy at the Chiva Som Academy. Working alongside Bodia’s owners, he soaked up their expertise in finance and marketing. “I learned confidence, and that I too could be an influencer,” he says. Kann left Bodia to pursue his own dreams in 2012 and opened the original Sokkhak Spa that year.

Six months later, he had opened his first restaurant Chanrey Tree on the banks of the Siem Reap river. Kann is passionate about unique and lesser-known Cambodian ingredients and flavours and built the Chanrey Tree menu around recipes and notes he’d taken when eating at local markets and friend’s homes across the country – not to mention those he’d cooked and sold as a child. “I knew there was a market for authentic Khmer family cooking but with a refined twist. Back then [when he opened] nobody did that. If you went to a Cambodian restaurant you could always still order a bowl of chips or a pizza with your amok. You can’t at mine,” he says.

“I wanted all of my dishes to tell a story – where they are from, how they evolved, the people behind them. I think in business this is so important, that your product or service somehow tells a story. It’s how you connect with consumers.”

Kann is also an art aficionado and a big champion of Cambodia’s new generation of creatives. His design ethos is, in many ways, a tribute to Angkor and the might of the ancient Khmer empire. “One of the bonuses of operating as a business here is the rich visual and historical inspiration we can draw on. We already have it all here, right down the road, and despite losing a lot of culture through the war [it’s estimated 90% of Cambodia’s artists were killed throughout Pol Pot’s ultra-Maoist Khmer Rouge regime between 1975-79], I believe design will always be in our blood,” he says.

But it’s the beguiling blend of the exquisite artistry of his ancient Angkorian ancestors with a more contemporary Cambodian design that sets Kann’s businesses apart. Sokkhak Boutique resort, for instance, is scattered with antique vessels and intricate old woodcarvings as well as colourful abstract art by Savann Thav, a French-Cambodian painter. At Chanrey Tree, diners are welcomed by Buddha sculptures and shrines as well as pop art paintings of ’60s pop stars.  “I believe it is important to support our new generation of artists. As long as the work fits with my taste, I will buy it –whether old or new,” Kann adds.

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