Culinary Local cuisine Flavours from the streets of Yangon Tired of eating in fancy restaurants and want to experience the wide variety of food on offer in Yangon? Check out our quick guide to eight favourite dishes and the great local restaurants where you can try them. Ohno kaukswe Ohno kaukswe (coconut Shwe Yi, located in a quiet noodles) is without doubt a side street near the busy Myanmar favourite. However, Myaynigone Junction, is one its thick coconut soup not of Yangon’s more famous only fills hungry stomachs teashops. As well as ohno but is also notorious for kaukswe, it also specialises pushing blood pressure to in traditional snacks, like mon astronomical levels. Doctors lone yay por – rice balls filled are forever warning the public with sweet jaggery, or palm to choose a more healthy sugar – and does a mean cup option, so it’s with some of Myanmar-style tea to boot. regret that most people eat ohno kaukswe only Shwe Yi occasionally and the dish No 27, Maha Bawga Street, is now considered a guilty Myaynigone, Sanchaung pleasure. township Tel: (01) 500-065 It’s probably for this reason that there are few, if any, dedicated ohno kaukswe shops, but most good teashops will be able to fix you up with a bowl in the morning, alongside regular teashop fare, such as mohinga (fish noodle soup) and kaukswe thoke (noodle salad). Air Mandalay - The Golden Flight | 41 Mohinga Mohinga (thick spicy fish The thick yellow-coloured soup with vermicelli) is the soup is made from fresh most in-demand breakfast in fish, rice powder, bean and a Myanmar. It’s not uncommon mixture of chilli powder, garlic for people to say, “If you are and ginger. Connoisseurs a real Myanmar person, you also add a mixture of crispy cannot survive for a long time fried gourd or bean, banana without eating mohinga.” stem, fish balls, boiled eggs, Some people even say they coriander and lime juice. will never leave the country because they worry they Zakargyi Mohinga Shop can’t find a dish of their opened in the busy Hledan beloved mohinga abroad. area of Kamaryut township more than 10 years ago. This is not exactly a joke: The name refers to a kind of Mohinga plays a major fried bean that is put into the role in the life of Myanmar mohinga and the wonderful Shan noodles people and is served as a crispy texture complements special meal both at happy the salty soup. If mohinga is the most The best place to eat is at occasions, like a welcoming popular dish in Yangon, Shan a roadside shop, where the ceremony for a newborn Zakargyi noodles would have to be noodles are prepared right in baby, and sad occasions like Hledan Road (near Hledan in close second place. But, front of you. A cook takes a a funeral. Market, west side of Insein while there are now more handful of flat rice noodles, Road), Kamaryut township than 200 Shan noodle shops puts them into a strainer and So, how about the taste? It is spread around the city, nearly dunks them for about five sweet, spicy and salty – but always busy with customers, minutes in a pot of boiling not too strong. The secret to about a decade ago there water. The rice noodles are the perfect bowl of mohinga were only a handful of shops then mixed with soy sauce, is to get all the flavours in and all were located in the dried fermented soya been harmony. Chinatown district. paste, cooked chicken or pork and dried peanut powder. So how did Shan noodles shake up Yangon dining? Less soy sauce is used when Naturally, through ethnic making northern Shan State- Shan who migrated from their style noodles and a popular home to the city, bringing example can be found at Nan with them their favourite Htike on Bogyoke Aung San dish. There are two types Road. of Shan noodles – from southern Shan State and Nan Htike northern Shan State – and the No 145, Bogyoke Aung San former is probably the more Road, between 46th and 47th popular among Yangonites. streets, Botahtaung township Tel: (01) 295-977, 397-244 42 | Air Mandalay - The Golden Flight Panthay noodles Yangon’s thriving Muslim The food at Cherry Mann community is predominantly on Latha Road is seemingly of South Asian descent. Indian in style, but the The Panthay, however, curries are much drier than are Chinese Muslims who most of their subcontinent migrated to Myanmar after counterparts. The chicken the 19th century following and mutton are deliciously persecution at the hands of soft and can be eaten with Qing-dynasty rulers. either bread or rice. Panthay- style noodles are extremely Originally famous for rich, and one dish will be dominating the caravan more than enough. trade in Shan State and Kway teow soup neighbouring Yunnan Cherry Mann Province, the Panthay also No 78-80, Latha Street, Despite being a Chinese dish, Cham Myay Aung, on Yankin established communities Latha township kway teow soup was most Road, not far from Yankin in Mandalay and Yangon Tel: (01) 374-891 commonly found in Yangon at Centre, serves not only kway and, naturally, brought their up-market Thai restaurants. teow soup but also a wide distinctive food with them. However, in recent years range of Thai curries at a very it has also migrated to the reasonable price. It is also streets and has become a popular for its lively night popular and cheap snack food time atmosphere. throughout the city. Cham Myay Aung Rice noodles, watercress, No 15-16, Yankin Street, bean sprouts and slices of Yankin township chicken or pork are mixed Tel: (01) 549-264 together with soup and garnished together with garlic, pepper, sugar and coriander leaves. Barbecue Chinese-style barbecue wide selection of top-quality has become a fixture of meat and seafood, tasty streetside dining in Yangon, dipping sauce and cold beer with small barbecue stalls – and Yunan ticks all three set up all over the downtown boxes. The array of options area. Nineteenth Street in also includes tasty malar Chinatown is perhaps the hin – a huge plate of odd focal point for this kind vegetables in a spicy Indian- of cuisine, but in recent style curry. Throw in a lively, years a number of slightly alcohol-soaked atmosphere more upmarket shops have and football on the numerous appeared. televisions and you’ve got yourself an excellent start to The largest of these, Shwe a Saturday night. Li, now has about half-a- dozen branches, but it’s Yunan Yunan on Kabar Aye Pagoda No 48A, corner Kan Yeiktha Road that is often considered Street and Kabar Aye Pagoda the top of the pile. Rd, Mayangone township Tel: (01) 664-496 Essentially, barbecue has three crucial ingredients – a Air Mandalay - The Golden Flight | 4341 Rakhine mont tee Rakhine mont tee (hot and clear fish soup) is often recommended to people who lack appetite after an illness, because it is seriously If you can find an empty stool spicy and will put a sweat – these shops are fiendishly on any brow. The chin, busy – then sit down, ngan, sat (sour, salty and because eating in is much spicy) flavour of this dish better than take away. But if from Rakhine State leaves a you’re looking for somewhere clean taste in the mouth and with a more quiet and refined is guaranteed to have you atmosphere, Minn Lann Let pet thoke wanting something more Rakhine Moh Ti on Min Let pet thoke (pickled tea leaf substantial when you’ve Street in Yankin township is salad) is a popular snack or finished. However, this is not known both for its mont tee after-dinner palate cleanser the reason for its popularity: and deliciously fresh seafood. that is made by the tea- the main point is it tastes If you love spicy food, don’t growing Palaung people of really good. hesitate to ask the cook to add more chilli paste – but at northern Shan State. Along with betel nut and green tea, The ingredients in the fish your own risk! let pet thoke is usually kept soup are fish, fish paste, in every house to offer to garlic, pepper and salmon Min Lann Rakhine Moh Ti guests – but it also makes the gingerlily. The soup is eaten No 1, Min Lan, Bahan perfect snack for a leisurely with vermicelli, green chilli Township afternoon teashop stop. paste, tamarind sauce, fried Tel: (01) 551-259 sliced onion and coriander As well as the pickled tea leaves. leaf, the “salad” usually features lentils, nuts, sesame In Yangon there are now seeds, dried prawns, tomato, Rakhine mont tee shops chilli and a healthy drizzling on many street corners, of oil. particularly on busy roads. The pleasantly located Bedauk Yay, which literally means “in the shade of the bedauk (gumkino) tree”, is popular with young couples and groups of friends and is also well-known for its deliciously fresh fruit juices. Bedauk Yay Corner of Bogyoke Aung San Road and Bo Myat Tun Street, Botahtaung township 44 | Air Mandalay - The Golden Flight Air Mandalay - The Golden Flight | 45.