lonely-planet-myanmar-burma-11-edition

332EATING IN MYANMAR (BURMA) DRINKSThe websitehsa*ba (www.hsaba.com),written bycookbook authorTin Cho Chaw,a contributorto this chapter,includes a blogthat regularlyfeatures Burmeserecipes.Fountain of youthin a bottle! SpirulinaBeer, madefrom lake algaenear Monywa,is revered forits ‘anti-ageing’qualities (less sofor the slightlysweet aftertaste).BEERMany restaurants will provide as much weak Chinese tea as you canhandle – for free if you order some food. It’s a good, safe thirst-quencher,and some people prefer it to regular Burmese tea.Soft drinks cost more, but are reasonable by Asian standards. Sincethe privatisation of industry there has been a boom in new made-in-Myanmar soft-drink brands, including Fantasy, Lemon Sparkling, Max,Star, Fruito and Crusher. They taste pretty much the same as their Westerncounterparts.Real coffee is limited to a handful of modern Western-style cafés inYangon and other large cities. As a result, coffee drinkers will find themselvesgrowing disturbingly attached to the ‘three-in-one’ packets of instantcoffee (the ‘three’ being coffee, milk and sugar), which you can havein teahouses for about K250.Alcoholic DrinksIn the past the people of Myanmar were not big drinkers. This was due toa lack of disposable income, but also to the consumption of alcohol beinglooked down upon by the many Burmese Buddhists who interpret the fifthlay precept against intoxication very strictly. However, with the advent of‘beer stations’ – places that serve cheap draught beer – the number of urbanlocals who can afford a few glasses of beer after work is on the rise.BeerApart from international brands such as Tiger, ABC Stout, Singha, SanMiguel and other beers brewed in Thailand and Singapore (typicallycosting K1700 for a 375mL can or bottle), there are a couple of Myanmarbrews. These include long-established, joint-venture Myanmar Beer,which is slightly lighter in flavour and alcohol than other SoutheastAsian beers (to the palate of at least a couple of researchers). A morewatery beer is Mandalay Beer. If you order it, some waiting staff maydouble-check to see if you meant ‘Myanmar’ beer. Founded in 1886, MandalayBrewery, in Yangon, also produces the New Mandalay Export label,which is the best-tasting local beer. Some fine, newer brands brewed inMyanmar include Dagon and Skol.Among the locals, Myanmar draught is the favourite; a glass of it willset you back only K500 or so.Liquors & WinesVery popular in Shan State is an orange brandy called shwe leinmaw.Much of it is distilled in the mountains between Kalaw and Taunggyi.It’s a pleasant-tasting liqueur and packs quite a punch. Near Taunggyi,there’s a couple of vineyards making wine (p 191 ) and in Pyin Oo Lwinthere are several sweet strawberry-based wines.There are also stronger liquors, including ayeq hpyu (white liquor),which varies in strength from brandylike to almost pure ethyl; and tawayeq (jungle liquor), a cruder form of ayeq hpyu. Mandalay is well knownfor its rums, and there is also, of course, the fermented palm juice knownas toddy.DRINKING WATERDrink water in Myanmar only when you know it has been purified – which in most restaurantsit should be. You should be suspicious of ice, although we’ve had lots of icedrinks in Myanmar without suffering any ill effects. Many brands of drinking water aresold in bottles and are quite safe, but check the seal on the bottle first. A 1L bottle, usuallykept cool by ice or refrigerator, costs about K300 or K400 at most hotels.