Common Grounds Cafe

Julie Martinez opened Common Grounds Cafe on January 16th, 2008 as part of People For Care And Learning. The vision was to create a missional enterprise that would give poor and disadvantaged individuals in Siem Reap the chance to work. We believe that instead of handing out handouts, we should give people the opportunity to work in the hospitality and restaurant industry.

We have trained and provided jobs to dozens Cambodian youths over the past 11 years. We have been ecstatic to see them succeed in their careers. Some of them have worked at some of the best hotels and restaurants Cambodia offers.

In 2008, Dalath Loeut was hired as one of our initial 13 employees. He is from a poor family in the countryside of Battambang province and he had no previous job experience in the restaurant 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 the other side of the spectrum, providing hope to young people with similar backgrounds to himself.