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The food from the “land of million Pagoda” , Mynamar or the erstwhile Burma is unarguably the most under-rated Asian cuisine. Its culinary treasures are relatively unknown to most of us , primarily due to isolation from rest of the world under decades of military dictatorship.

The rich, predominately savoury flavors, dominate the Burmese food and like all other cuisines, it is also reflective of its regional and ethnic cooking styles. The Salads are extensively used in the meals and the mains are usually served with loads of accompaniments.

The newly opened Burma Burma in Bangalore is regarded as the city’s best way to experience bit of Burma albeit with a vegetarian twist. A dream project of childhood friends, Chirag Chhajer and Ankit Gupta ,whose Burmese roots inspired this concept of providing taste of Burma in Food, Culture and Happiness to its customers.

Located in the posh by-lane of Indiaranagar , the interiors here are reminiscent of Burmese art and culture. The pagoda shaped hanging lamps , the Burmese style teak wood colonial era furniture , the vivid display of Burmese dolls and Buddhist art among others, truly reflect the essence of Myanmar in the outlet.

MENU

Their menu aims at showcasing the relatively unknown cuisine from neighbouring Mynmaar and is an attempt to present the recipes from the Ankit Gupta’s Burmese roots.

I was here with few of my friends to try their select prefix all vegetarian menu , shown below.

(Below : Amuse Bouche of the day)

Samuza Hincho – Popular Burmese Street food , the samosa soup is a tangy carrot and cabbage soup with the samosa. Must try here.

(Above: Samuza Hincho or the Samosa Soup)

As mentioned earlier , the Burmese cuisine has some interesting salads and the Lephet thoke or Tea Leaf Salad was a revelation for me.Prepared with fermented tea leaves , it is certainly one of the most popular Burmese salad. Also it is highly versatile as it can be had as a meal, snack or appetizer. Often it is a regarded as stimulant by the locals populace.

Above : The two salads , Tayat Thi Thoke (left) & Lephet thoke (right)

Payan Boo Palata (above) or the creamed corn Parantha is prepared by cooking the creamy corn mash in coconut milk , spices and brown onions and served with flaky paranthas. It was an acquired taste for me. Buns are part of the Asian cuisine and Burmese food is no exception. The crunchy tofu steamed buns shown below , has the right kind of flavours and crunch inside to please my palate.

No Burmese meal is complete without the mention of the Khao Suey , the Noodles in a Coconut Curried Sauce dish.The Myanmar’s favourite is also the Burma Burma’s “Signature dish one bowl meal of coconut milk stirred lemongrass, tamarind and diced asian vegetables , it is served with tray of DIY toppings”A complete meal in itself , it is said to have its origins in the mountainous Shan State of Burma.

The dessert , Tagu Pyi An is a Sago cooked with Burmese palm jaggery-thanya topped with coconut custard.

THE TEA MENU

Burma Burma is not only known for great food but also for its exquisite tea menu. I was told that their Each tea and herb is expertly selected and artfully composed to offer a taste that is exceptional.

The tea culture in Burma is highly evolved and has been their drink as early as 10th century BC. The tea plant , Camelia sinensis, with its origin in Southeast Asia , produces white, green, oolong, pu-erh, and black tea all from the same genus.