Chef Luu Meng / Co-founder, Academy of Culinary Arts Cambodia:

You have to make food that people will savour – so even several months later, they’ll still remember the taste. 

That’s Luu Meng – the chef whose dedication to authentic taste helped Cambodia rediscover its lost “Khmer flavour”.  

His passion has won government recognition and inspired new dishes loved across the country, though it was not without challenges.

Chef Luu Meng / Co-founder, Academy of Culinary Arts Cambodia:

I was told because I look Chinese, I couldn’t cook Cambodian food.

But back then there was no established local cuisine. You couldn’t find one Cambodian recipe book; they were all burned to ashes.

Cambodia has 26 provinces, and every one that I visited had their own recipes.

It started a process of trial and error because that was all we could do.

Soon after, the government recognised our dishes as the standard for Cambodian cuisine.

Currently, Luu has more than ten restaurants covering Cantonese dim sum, Cambodian and French specialities.

His restaurants also serve a newly researched and developed style of Cantonese dim sum.

Luu later co-founded Cambodia’s first culinary academy, bringing in instructors from all around the world.

The academy trains over 200 students yearly – some fully funded – and top graduates go on to intern in global cities like Dubai, Switzerland and Hong Kong.

Cheavie / Student, Academy of Culinary Arts Cambodia:

He always comes and helps us, gives some tips, gives [us] some ideas, and also teaching his skilled experience as well.

Patientsa / Student, Academy of Culinary Arts Cambodia:

He helps us a lot, he gives out internships to overseas and in many places that [are] really great for us and a good opportunity for us too.

Chef Luu Meng / Co-founder, Academy of Culinary Arts Cambodia:

We spend over a million US dollars every year, but we only earn a hundred thousand.

We’re not doing this for profit. We want the younger generation to learn about cooking and hospitality so we will have more skilled workers across our industries.  Cambodia needs at least 3,000 skilled and trained cooks every year, so in fact, we need more culinary schools.
 

For Luu Meng, whose family has lived in Cambodia for three generations, cooking is more than a craft – it’s a calling.

His greatest wish is to see each generation grow up with good food, good lives, and a hopeful future.