In Siem Reap, Jaya Catering & Events creates dining and event experiences that bring Cambodian food, culture, and place together. Its work ranges from temple gala dinners and rice-field events to village meals, sunset cocktails, weddings, private dining, and corporate gatherings.
What distinguishes Jaya is its ability to deliver these experiences with the consistency expected of a professional events company. The team manages food, service, logistics, and event production while adapting each experience to its setting. Jaya describes its approach as combining Cambodian culture with contemporary hospitality, with the aim of creating experiences guests remember beyond the meal itself.
The company also contributes to Siem Reap’s local hospitality economy. It employs around 30 permanent staff, brings in trained part-time workers for larger events, and works with Cambodian partners for services such as performance, lighting, and sound. Its supply chain is largely local as well: Jaya works through suppliers who source from designated Cambodian farms, with only a small share of vegetables needing to be imported when they are not available locally.
The Jaya Catering & Events Origin Story
Jaya was founded in 2014 by Chrek Kimpho, Long Bora, and Soeun Sorn, bringing together decades of hospitality experience in a business of their own.
For Kimpho, the idea grew from more than 30 years working in Cambodia’s hotel industry. He wanted to create a Cambodian company known for quality food, strong service, and experiences that reflected the country’s culture rather than simply providing conventional catering.
From the beginning, Jaya built its offer around the full experience. Food is only one part of the event. Setting, service, entertainment, lighting, and logistics all come together to shape the occasion. Over time, that approach expanded into the company’s temple dinners, rice-field events, village meals, sunset receptions, weddings, and private celebrations.
The business has also retained much of the team that helped build it. Kimpho shared that members of Jaya’s management team have remained with the company since its early years, giving the business a level of continuity that is especially valuable when managing complex events across temporary venues.
How Jaya Catering & Events Is Making A Positive Impact
Jaya’s impact extends well beyond the events themselves. The company employs around 30 permanent staff and brings in trained part-time workers for larger gatherings, creating additional income and hospitality experience for local workers. It also works with Cambodian partners for performance, lighting, sound, and other event services, helping more local businesses benefit from each event.
Much of Jaya’s food is sourced within Cambodia as well. The company works with suppliers who purchase from local farms and estimates that only 5–10% of vegetables need to be imported when they are not available domestically. Jaya also works to reduce plastic use and offers vegetarian, vegan, and pork-free menus when requested.
Jaya is also expanding into local weddings, school catering, and café services to create more activity during Siem Reap’s quieter green season. That gives the business a steadier year-round base while supporting more consistent work for its team.
Why the UnTours Foundation Invested in Jaya Catering & Events
The UnTours Foundation invested in Jaya Catering & Events through the Reset Tourism Fund, in partnership with TUI Care Foundation, because it is a Cambodian-owned business using local hospitality expertise to create culturally rooted visitor experiences while supporting employment and local supply chains.
Jaya has built its business around Cambodian food, service, and settings while creating work for staff, part-time hospitality workers, and local event partners. At the same time, the company is intentionally developing new revenue streams that can make the business more resilient outside the tourism high season.
Our investment supports that next stage of growth, including Jaya’s expansion into school catering and café services alongside its established events business. These activities are designed to create steadier year-round income while allowing the company to continue investing in the people and partners behind its dining experiences.
Jaya also completed TUI Care Foundation’s T89 Investment Readiness program. Together with TUI Care Foundation, we are supporting the company as it strengthens its resilience and expands the locally rooted hospitality business it has built over more than a decade.
How You Can Support Jaya Catering & Events
If you are planning a trip, celebration, or event in Siem Reap, Jaya offers experiences ranging from village meals and sunset cocktails to weddings, private dinners, and larger gala events.
Tour operators and destination planners can also support Jaya by incorporating its experiences into Cambodia itineraries, helping more visitors experience the destination through Cambodian-owned food and hospitality businesses.
