59(^) EATINGYANGON
EATING
YANGON
EATING
infl uenced South Indian dishes such as an
insanely rich mutton curry, as well as meat-
free options including puris (puff y breads),
idli (rice ball in broth), various dosai and
banana-leaf thalis.
365 Café INTERNATIONAL, JAPANESE $$
(Map p 42 ; Ah Lan Paya Pagoda Rd; mains K3300-
7800; h24hr; aW) This stylish café, located
on the ground fl oor of the Thamada Hotel,
serves coff ee drinks (K2200 to K3150) and
a largely Japanese-infl uenced menu, with
a few Western and Chinese dishes thrown
in for good measure. Wi-fi is available at 15
hours for K5000.
Shwe Mei Tha Su MUSLIM BURMESE $
(Map p 46 ; 173 29th St; meals from K2000; hlunch
& dinner) Located next door to the more fa-
mous Danuphyu Daw Saw Yee, and lack-
ing a roman-script sign, this is the Muslim
version of the traditional Myanmar curry
house, where the sour soup is replaced with
a hearty dhal, the meat-based curries are
rich and spicy, and sides include pappadum
and a smoky balachaung.
Be Le CHINESE $$
(Junior Duck; Map p 42 ; Pansodan St Jetty; dishes
from K1200; hlunch & dinner) Virtually the only
place in town taking advantage of a river-
front location, this former ferry terminal
is one the best places in town to soak up a
view and some breezes. The Chinese food
isn’t amazing, but it’s decent, and most go
for the roast duck.
Ingyin New South India
Food Centre SOUTHERN INDIAN $
(Map p 46 ; Anawrahta Rd; mains from K600; hall
day) The cheery staff here do the crispiest
and tastiest dosai in central Yangon. It’s a
good place for a thali as well, and it has tea
and Indian sweets if you require dessert.
Aung Mingalar Shan Noodle
Restaurant SHAN $
(Map p 46 ; Bo Yar Nyunt St; mains from K1000;
hbreakfast & lunch) Aung Mingalar is an ex-
cellent place to indulge simultaneously in
people-watching and noodle sipping. It’s a
simple and fun restaurant with trendy city-
café overtones.
MA THANEGI: WRITER ON ALL THINGS MYANMAR
Myanmar cuisine does not use coconut, green chillies or sugar like in Thailand. It is nei-
ther as delicate as the steamed dishes of China nor as fi ercely hot as Sichuan cuisine. It
does not use as many aromatic spices as India.
Best Dishes
The salads we call athoke or let thoke, meaning a ‘mixture’ or ‘mixed with hand’. You must
also try the pickled tea leaves, eaten in a salad with roasted or deep-fried nuts and beans,
sesame, etc. The prepared tea-leaf pulp tastes like pesto, and can have lime or chillies
added to it for diff erent tastes.
Best Noodle Dish
I love all, but my favourite is the Delta region noodle mohinga, thin rice noodles eaten
with a thick fi sh broth cooked with lots of lemongrass and slices of the inner banana
stem for crunch. My favourite upcountry noodle is mondhi, the thick, soft rice noodles
eaten with a curry of chicken strips, onion oil, roasted chickpea powder, sliced fried fi sh
cakes and sliced raw onions.
Best Yangon Restaurants
For Burmese food, clean but not fancy, I like Feel Myanmar (p 58 ). For teahouses, Lucky
Seven (p 63 ) because it has a huge selection of snacks, one-dish meals and noodles.
Best Eating Tip
If you don’t like the oil in the curries, simply leave it in the bowl and don’t spoon it onto
your plate, just take the meat or fi sh. This is what we do; not all Myanmar people go for
oily food.