Return to Yangon

I had some time to kill at the Bagan airport waiting for the flight back to Yangon. So I went to a nearby café that was recommended by the tour guide who dropped me off. There were no English signs even though it was a café by the airport (it's outside the gate, but within walking distance), and nobody spoke English either. All I asked for was coffee and Laphet Thoke. All the people I saw at the café were locals. Although I was a bit concerned about the hygiene, I was also excited by the opportunity. The Laphet Thoke I got was served in the salad style. The tea leaf in the salad was a bit slimy. I was a bit scared but this was supposed to be fermented tea leaf.... So, I went for it and it was pretty good. I've seen fresh chili on the side, but I've never seen tiny raw unpeeled garlic. What was I supposed to do with it?? It looked cute, though... 

 

 

 

When I arrived at Yangon, I had additional sightseeing without a tour guide. For dinner, I went to a Shan food restaurant. Shan food is from Shan state, which is northeast of Yangon. Another famous sightseeing spot in Myanmar, Inle Lake, is in Shan State. It seems Shan state has their own style of food. I should probably go there next time. Anyway, I found a Shan Food restaurant in Yangon so decided to give it a shot.

 

The restaurant looked pretty upscale compared to typical restaurants for locals. And yes, there were only non-locals in the restaurant. The price wasn't horrible for me, but I'm sure it's way too expensive for locals. This is the only restaurant I went to in Myanmar that included service charge in the final check. The dishes all tasted pretty good and I hope they were really authentic, not adjusted for tourists.

 

Sautéed green - I don't remember the name but the leaves were fuzzy.

Although mohinga is known as the most popular noodle dish in Myanmar, Shan state has quite a few noodle dishes in their own style. I asked the waitress which one is the most traditional and she chose this one. Compare to mohinga, the broth is much lighter. It looked a bit spicy but it wasn't at all. Anyway, most Myanmar foods are not very spicy. I think this is a chicken based broth. Pretty good.

I guess this is a side pickled green for the Shan noodle.

Pork cooked with banana blossoms

Myanmar version of Som Tom (Green papaya salad)

Chopped raw mushroom and other aromatics - I didn't expect it to be raw. It was very unique.

Complimentary sweet potato cake - it was very sweet. I wish it was a bit more moist...

Tomorrow, I'm going to take cooking class in Yangon and fly back to Bangkok afterward. I'm really looking forward to the cooking class!