Modern Asian cuisine is on a meteoric rise as armies of young Asian chefs and restaurateurs push the envelope when reimagining food from their roots. Club Rangoon, a newly minted contemporary Burmese restaurant in the heart of Duxton, is certainly a first of its kind. Despite Singapore’s open-minded dining scene, traditional Burmese food culture—let alone modern versions—remains shrouded in mystery and elusive in the Little Red Dot.
Before exercising our taste buds, Tatler Dining spoke with Burmese restaurateur and co-founder Nelson Htoo about what you didn’t know about Burmese food.
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Burmese restaurateur and Club Rangoon co-founder Nelson Htoo
Burmese food is powered by a holy trinity of flavours
“Burmese cuisine is rooted in three core flavour pillars: chin (sour), ngan (salty), and sat (spicy). Contrasting flavours are welcomed in a typical Burmese meal. For example, the laphet thoke, a fermented tea leaves salad with crunchy broad beans, is a prime example of a Burmese staple incorporating these flavour pillars. There is chin from a squeeze of lime, ngan from fish sauce and the occasional dried shrimp, and finally, sat from green chillies or spicy fermented tea leaves, when it is used.
At Club Rangoon, my family uses a specific brand—Sein Palaung—for our laphet-thoke. It is fermented for three months to result in a beautiful gentle funk, making it perfect for consumption at any time of the day.”
Laphet thoke is a fermented tea leaves salad with crunchy broad beans, a prime example of a Burmese staple (Photo: Club Rangoon)
Burmese food carries influences from surrounding regions
“Burmese cuisine is diverse and is heavily influenced by its bordering countries such as China, Thailand and India. And with over 130 indigenous ethnic groups across Myanmar, it’s no surprise that there are many ways to make (and eat) a dish. Take mohinga, Myanmar’s unofficial national dish, for instance where the funky fish noodle soup boasts multiple regional variations. At Club Rangoon, we present the classic Yangon style anchored by the use of catfish and chickpea flour as opposed to recipes from the Rakhine state which is less soupy and more savoury. But beyond each region’s specific style, each household also has a recipe they swear by for this popular breakfast staple.
Another fine example is Club Rangoon’s Wagyu beef cheek dan bauk, a take on the Burmese-style biryani that has roots in India. The traditional version usually comprises lightly spiced biryani rice with a richer chicken or mutton curry, but we opted to use Australian Wagyu beef cheek for a heartier take on a classic.”
Nangyi thoke is a Mandalay-style chicken curry rice noodle salad (Photo: Club Rangoon)
Mohinga is Myanmar’s unofficial national dish, where the funky fish noodle soup boasts multiple regional variations (Photo: Club Rangoon)
Breakfast is a big part of Burmese food culture
“Burmese people are morning people. We will get out of bed early for a good Burmese breakfast. Breakfast also ties in with the strong tea culture we have in Myanmar. If you head to any popular teahouse in Yangon at 9am, you’ll find that you’re already two hours too late to devour the best bowls. Popular savoury dishes like mohinga and nangyi thoke (Mandalay-style chicken curry rice noodle salad) would already be sold out. This encourages people to grab their favourite bites earlier as teahouses generally open around 4am and shutter by mid-afternoon.
Regardless of weekdays and weekends, the breakfast rush usually happens around 7am where Burmese folks catch up and chit-chat over breakfast before the day really gets going after 9am.”
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Laphet-yay is a hot Burmese milk tea (Photo: Club Rangoon)
Burmese love their tea as Singaporeans do with kopi
“We love tea so much that we’ll drink it and we’ll eat it. We start our day with a laphet-yay, a hot Burmese milk tea, and continue drinking it throughout the day. Naturally, Laphet-yay is often a catalyst for conversation which makes the laphet-yay sine (teahouse) a cornerstone of Burmese social life. Similar to how kopi is to Singaporeans in a kopitiam.
Teahouses are ubiquitous in Myanmar, always ready to welcome anyone looking for a space to gather, relax, and catch up on the latest news. We like to say that all great ideas were born at a teahouse. Here’s a secret: my favourite brand of tea leaf is Lucky Tea, my family and I have sworn by this brand for 30 years now.”
Just like most Southeast Asia cultures, Burmese meals are often communal, best enjoyed via sharing (Photo: Club Rangoon)
Meals are often communal like most of Southeast Asia
“A sense of sharing and communing is embedded in Burmese cuisine, just like other Southeast Asian cultures. Traditional meals usually consist of many dishes—you would graze on different curries, soup, greens, and a bunch of accompaniments with rice. Having this spread on the table naturally invites a form of family-style feasting where both conversations and flavours mingle.
It is almost customary for Burmese people to mix and match different dishes on a plate with rice. We like treating our palates to varied flavours and textures with every bite. A little bit of everything is our philosophy.”
Club RangoonAddress: 76 Duxton Road, S(089535)
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