A Thingyan (New Year) feast
Restaurant: Burma Burma
Reviewer: Aalok Wadhwa | 19th June 2018 | Reviewer Rating (Out of 5) 4.00

Please note: This review was done on an invitation from the restaurant to taste their food, and no bill was presented to the author. While the author assures you of objectivity, the review may be influenced by the personalized attention the author got.

Burma Burma, the authentic Burmese restaurant and Tea Room, is celebrating the Burmese New Year at their Delhi-NCR outlets from June 5 – 24, 2018. Celebrated over a period of four to five days that culminate in the New Year, the Thingyan Festival is a Buddhist festival that is celebrated widely in Burma. The menu from the Thingyan Festival features authentic taste and cooking from Burma prepared from treasured family recipes. I am here at the invitation of the restaurant to taste out the special Thingyan dishes.

Myanmar is a country made up of many ethnicities, and each of them has its own special dishes and styles of cooking – and no place better to taste this diversity than at Burma Burma. Some common threads that can be expected from Burmese food is a strong sour and savory flavor being the most prominent taste, as well as the numbers of garnishes that accompany the dishes. The emphasis is on strong, pungent flavors, very different from the spicy flavors we Indians are accustomed to. The new year feast is a treat to the palate, despite it being totally vegetarian and non-alcoholic.

We started with soups. Phat Saw Hincho (Rs 250) or Kachin Style Dried Mustard Soup is a light and fragrant clear soup from the mountain region of Kachin. Shwepayon Hincho (Rs 250) or Pumpkin & Basil Soup is a fresh and tangy tasting hearty soup from Yangon region. Both the soups are pleasant.

 

A personal favourite part of a Burmese meal is the variety of salads as starters, and that is precisely how we start our meal. Anything can be turned into a Burmese salad – crunchy, spicy and sour.  Grilled Mock Meat Salad (Rs 370) is unexpectedly tasty with grilled mock meat having a delicious texture with lettuce, tomatoes brown onion tossed with tamarind & chilli providing the right contrast. Kyar Zen Thoke (Rs 370) or glass noodles salad with glass noodles, tofu, potatoes tossed in sweet & spice dressing does not have a very pleasing mouth feel.

 

Among the starters, Khowsuey in a Bite (Rs 390) is an interesting concept with a crisps noodle nest topped with reduced khowsuey & finished with roasted chilly but the fried noodles tend to overpower the taste.

 

I wish I had a glass of chilled beer with the next starter which is Crispy Corn Tossed in Tea Leaf (Rs 390), an ideal bar snack. Equally good is Avocado with Papadam (Rs 390), a specialty of tea plantations having, creamy avocado topped with chilli oil, garlic and basil on rice papadams.

 

In the main course, Mock Duck & Baby Potato Curry (Rs 390) has a close to authentic mock duck marinated in robust hand grounded curry paste and coconut milk. The mock meats being used here are a beautiful balance of wheat gluten and soya which makes them taste pleasant. Acccompanying it is fried rice from the Buddhist Shan province, Shan Thamin Kyaw (Rs 390) which is perfectly sticky and crunchy.

 

Stir Fried Greens with Fermented Mustard & Tofu (Rs 390) is pleasant though unremarkable. The dried version of Khow Suey, Nan Pyar Khowsuey (Rs 390) is made with flat wheat noodles topped with roasted gram flour, garlic oil, paprika & crisp onions and is delicious.

 

I end the meal with a mild tasting Matcha Ice Cream (Rs 330) and my perennial favourite, Durian Ice Cream (Rs 330), a delicious ice cream that is not for the faint hearted!

 

Whether you are a vegetarian or a carnivore, a visit to Burma Burma will always delight you. It is a much recommended culinary adventure.

Ratings (Out of 5)

Food: 4.0 | Ambience: 4.0 | Service: 4.0 | Value: 4.0 | Overall: 4.0

Meal for two: Rs 1000 | Alcohol: No | Credit Card: Yes | Wheel chair friendly: No

Address: Cyber Hub, DLF Cyber City, Gurgaon. Tel: 8588860201

About the Author
Aalok Wadhwa Aalok Wadhwa
Restaurant Information
Burma Burma Burma Burma
Ground Floor, Shop 6, Building 8, Tower C, Cyber Hub, DLF Cyber City, Gurgaon
Telephone: 0124 4372999, 0124 4372998 view on a map
Opening Hours: 11 AM to 11 PM
Cuisine: Burmese
Average Price: Rs. 2000 - 2500