A country with a stormy history, decades of oppression from the British and then ruled over by the military, has reduced Myanmar to one of the least developed countries in the world. However, the recent change in regime to a democracy is slowly bringing Burma back into the fold of world activities, and Burmese cuisine is being appreciated the world over.
So what is this cuisine all about? With strong influences
from its Chinese, Thai and Indian counterparts, Burmese food is distinctly
different in the sense that this cuisine emphasizes or savory/salty and pungent
flavors (and less on sweet/sour combinations). The food at Burma Burma truly
recognizes this, and despite the absence of non-vegetarian on the menu, has
captured the essence of Burmese cuisine.
Ambience:
Located at the heart of Indira Nagar on the bustling 12th
Main road, this elegant place definitely stands out from its neighbors. A chic
entrance and valet parking ensure a smooth check-in and as you enter this
place, the beautiful interiors leave you pleasantly surprised.
A lovely open-drinks counter (non-alcoholic), well spread
out tables, lovely traditional Burmese art adorning the walls, and my favorite
place here, a nook in one corner with an eclectic collection of curios which
fascinated me, the interiors here were
pretty impressive. The lovely Black-N-White Menu card, and a glass teapot
complete with tea-leaves(and ready to serve after pouring in hot water) round
up the ambience here.
F&B:
While we were looking over the menu, we decided to order
the house-blend Tea here, which would accompany us throughout the meal, and is
a big part of Burmese culture too.
Beverages
House-Blend Tea: White
Tea infused with orange and lavender, this tea is prepared right in front of
you, and is a sight to behold.
Seabuckthorn Mary:
Seabuckthorn juice, kaffir lime, a few spices and some fizz make up this
delightful non-alcoholic drink, a perfect summer beverage.
Starters:
Samosa Soup:
This was a delightful surprise, and not as Indian as it sounds. Crispy, mini
samosas in a tangy-spicy, oriental style soup, I loved this soup.
Lotus Step Crisps:
We had the above soup along with these. Lotus Stem Crisps sprinkled with paprika
and dried curry leaves seasoning. A superb Burmese snack to get your taste buds
tingling for the next course.
Grilled Mock Meat
Skewers: This was an interesting dish, and while mock meat was exactly as
it sounds, the textures did make it weird to eat.
Thoke Sampler: Another essential
component of Burmese cuisine are its Thoke
or Salads made from almost anything they have available. This sampler had 3
varieties as below:
- Tea Leaf Salad: Fermented Tea leaves, fried garlic, sesame seeds and few other ingredients, this one is an acquired taste.
- Raw Mango Salad: This one has a more familiar taste with raw mango, chili, peanuts and onion
- Crispy Wheat Flakes Salad: Crunchy wheat flakes, baby sunflower leaves, veggies in a tamarind chili dressing. My favorite from the lot.
Mopi Salai: Rice and sesame dumplings (crispy) topped with
a super tangy papaya salad. This delightful was served in an appe pan, these were unlike any dumpling
I have ever had.
Mains:
BURMA-BURMA “OH NO
KHOWSUEY”: Khowsuey, a dish which
stars the brilliant combination of simple and contrasting ingredients that come
together to give you a spicy, tangy, slightly-sweet and creamy noodle soup.
This D-I-Y Khowsuey has 6 additional
condiments served separately to give you flavor control. While I did
miss the seafood in this one, it was a good dish nonetheless.
Black Sticky Rice
and Stir Fry Mushroom Trio: We were in the mood to have some ‘shrooms and
this combination worked really well. The Black Sticky rice was moist, and
served with pickled veggies and and buttered chick peas. This would have worked
as a standalone dish, but it went brilliantly with the stir-fry triad of
mushrooms that we had ordered.
Desserts:
We were least prepared for the
extravagant desserts that we served to us, and it was really a surprise to have
such exotic desserts here.
Smoky Avocado Ice Cream with Honey Caviar: A beautifully presented
dessert with dry ice creating a lovely smoky effect, the avocado ice-cream was
incredibly delicious. The honey caviar went well with this and added a nice
texture to this dessert.
Durian Ice-Cream: Having heard a lot about this fruit (Durian is
the world’s smelliest fruit), I was interested to try this one. While
presentation was beautiful, being served in a coconut shell, the ice-cream had
a shocking taste. Shockingly good or bad, it would depend on your taste-buds. I
found it to be ok, and a bit of an acquired taste.
Burma Bomb: This one came highly recommended from the staff, and it
was as pretty as a sculpture. A lovely chocolate dome filled with chocolate cake
and mousse, and a salted caramel base and served with vanilla ice-cream. One of
the most beautiful desserts I have photographed.
Verdict: Without a doubt, the
best places to have Burmese cuisine in Bangalore, and if you haven’t tried this
cuisine before, rest assured that the servers will help you out to match the
dishes with your expectations. Highly recommended!
Food Quotient: 5/5
Ambience Quotient: 5/5
Service Quotient: 4.5/5
Unclichéd Quotient: 5/5
Unclichéd Quotient: 5/5
