I had never been exposed to the Burmese cuisine nor did I ever thought of trying it. But our very own Miss Guiltybytes Devina herself had been raving about it ever since she got to review the hub of burmese food in Delhi - Burma Burma. As luck would have it, I got a chance to try it this time owing to the Thingyan festival - The Burmese New Year. And Burma Burma totally lived upto all the hype despite it being a pure-vegetarian , no alcohol serving restaurant that too in Delhi. The Decor and the Food at Burma Burma will make even a pure non-vegetarian forget their meats.Its a discovery that one would fall in love with!Owing to the geographic location of Myanmar, Burmese cuisine has been influenced by Chinese, Indian and Thai cuisine. The cuisine is characterised by extensive use of fish products like fish sauce and ngapi (fermented seafood).
Burma Burma is celebrating
Thingyan festival - the Burmese New Year and have introduced new menu owing to the same. I was super excited to try Burmese food and boy it didn't disappoint at all. The place is small but full mostly. Once seated I noticed the tastefully done up interiors which are both colourful and quirky with authentic Burmese decor and adorable dolls of burmese natives. The new menu has limited dishes and since it was my first time I requested the manager to get few much talked about dishes from the old menu as well , I also requested him to keep the portions small so that we have minimum food wastage and can try maximum dishes.
Drinks
Since there were no drinks in the new menu I ordered few favourites from their original menu. I tried the
Burmese Blossom tea and it was amazing. The
Nutella Bubble tea has Boba milk with chewy tapioca pearls. You may or may not like the taste but should surely try this unique drink. I especially loved
Elderdragon - a drink comprising of coconut water , elderflower and chia seeds.
Soups/Hincho
I first tried the
Kachin style dried mustard soup and the
Pumpkin & basil soup from the new menu. I also ordered the much talked about Samosa soup from their original menu.Kachin soup was quite sour to my liking and it had a peculiar fermented flavour too. I liked flavours of the Pumpkin and Basin soup and imagined sipping it on a cold winter evening - so comforting. The
samosa soup was tasty and had a very mild tang flavour that I really liked.
Salads/Thoke
Their salads are much talked about and surely they were all very delicious. I ordered for
Grilled Mock Meat Salad and what a discovery this one was! The non-vegetarian in me was happy to have the Mock meat aka Soya chunks in the salad. The salad was fresh and yummy. I also had the
Lotus Root salad which was super crunchy and again as good as the previous one. I had to order the
Raw mango salad which was recommended by Devina and it was tangy and mouthwatering. The salads are one of the culinary highlights in this cuisine and I almost felt like going on an all salad diet!
Starters
Their Khowsuey is very famous and these guys have come up with this dish called
Khowsuey in a bite. Its a crispy noodle nest topped with reduced Khowsuey and finished with roasted chili. It was super yummy ,crunchy and I can assure you I had more than just one bite! Next I had the
Grilled mock meat skewers which were tender,full of flavours and every mouthful was heavenly. I tried the
Crispy corn tossed in tea leaf - this one also has a slight fermented taste of the tea leaf and it wasn't my favourite. These Tea leaves are specially imported from Burma to maintain the authenticity. I just fell in love with the next starter which was
Avocado with Papadum. Creamy avocado topped with chilli oil and basil it was like heaven. The creamy avocado went so well with the crispy papadum and once you have tasted it you want it would keep going back for more.
They also serve
Steamed Buns or Bao’s with various filling options. It’s sweet and savoury at the same time. Quite light and healthy due to steamed preparation. I tried the caramelised onion ones , they were amazing.
Rice & Noodles
From their rice and noodle dishes I had the
Si Chet Thamin - Its Jasmine rice hand tossed with brown onion,garlic and chilli oil. I simply loved this rice dish. It was flavoursome and tasted amazing when eaten alone or paired with a curry dish. I also had the
Nan Pyar Khowsuey which was a flat wheat noodle dish topped with roasted gram flour,garlic oil,paprika & crisp onions. This dish a meal in itself, yummy,flavourful and has varied textures which add even more depth to the taste of the dish.It is medium spicy noodles with all the add ons according to ones taste.
Curries & Stir-Fries
On suggestion from the staff I had the
Mock duck and potato curry. What a clever idea! It seemed as if I was having a lovely Burmese duck curry and every spoonful of it with jasmine rice was divine. I also had
Stir fry greens with fermented mustard and tofu. It was good but my again not my favourite. The fermented flavor settles quite differently on my palate.
Desserts
To finish of my perfect Burmese journey I ordered the
Matcha ice cream from their new menu. matcha is an acquired taste and sadly for me it's not my cup of tea. Its a very strong flavour and quite in demand these days. What I loved were the desserts from their original menu -
The Smokey Avocado Honey ice cream , there is just one word for it Heavenly!teh ice cream is a must try and your meal isn't finished if you haven't ordered this. I also had
Coco Pina - Burmese take on my favourite drink Pina colada. This dessert is delightful and I kept going back for another bite. Lastly I also tried their
Kachin Chocolate Rainforest set with precision, the combination of dark chocolate mousse on a bed of raspberry coulis, garnished with chocolate soil and pomegranate, I would say it is absolutely mandatory to try for anybody who loves desserts and chocolates.
Overall my experience was delectable and very enjoyable. My stomach thanked me for there was no overload of spices and it was filled with the aroma of the herbs and vegetables. The aromas of lemon grass, creamy texture of coconut lingers on and makes you crave for more.If you are a Burmese food fanatic or if you have been contemplating to try Burmese food this new menu isn't to be missed!
