Common Grounds Cafe

On January 16th 2008, Common Grounds Cafe was opened by Julie Martinez as part of our parent organization People For Care And Learning (PCL), with the vision of creating a missional business that gives poor and disadvantaged people in Siem Reap a working chance. Instead of giving handouts we believe in giving opportunity through providing on the job vocational training in the restaurant and hospitality industry.

Over the past 11 years we have provided training and jobs to dozens of Cambodian young people, and we have ecstatically cheered them on watching many of them go on to successful careers, some of them working in some of the top hotels and restaurants Cambodia has to offer.

Dalath Loeut, one of the 13 initial employees, was hired in 2008. He comes from a poor rural family in Battambang Province and had no prior job experience in the industry. He began working for us as a waiter and, through hard work and dedication, he worked his way up to take on more and greater responsibility. In 2015, Dalath became the manager of Common Grounds, and today he carries out all of our day-to-day operations. He is now on a different side of the spectrum and providing hope to youth with similar backgrounds as himself.