COCONUTS HOT SPOT – In much of Southeast Asia, the opening of a restaurant in a mall would be pretty ho-hum. But this is Yangon, and a multi-level shopping center laden with international dining options makes for fairly big culinary news.
So when Myanmar Plaza, on Kabar Aye Pagoda Road, opened late last year, customers flocked there as much to try the eateries as to browse the boutiques.
Imperial Garden, a dim sum joint on the top floor, has proved an early favorite. Run by Hong Kong chef Paul Wong, the place has quickly earned a reputation for authenticity.
For a lazy lunch on a recent public holiday, it did not disappoint.
The ambiance is spot on for casual dining: clean and spacious but still bustling with the hum of lunchtime conversation.
We started with the char siu bao, or roast pork buns, the sweet steamed cornerstone of any dim sum meal. These were delicious: the dough dense but fluffy, the slow-roasted meat tender and sugar-glazed but not sickly.
As we washed down the cottony mouthfuls with the first of many cups of Tieguanyin tea, a bitter, nutty type of Oolong, the rest of the dishes began to come out in quick succession.
We opted for non-fried carrot cakes – which are, despite the name, neither cakes nor made from carrot. Rectangular slices made from turnip and rice flour, they are often served crispy but Imperial Garden’s soft variation were melt-in-the-mouth good. Some soy sauce on the table would have been appreciated, though.
Prawn dumplings were deliciously meaty, with just the right amount of squelch.
This is what the xiao long bao, or soup-filled dumplings, looked like.
They tasted better: a satisfying bite into chewy bao followed by a gulp of sweet, meaty broth.
Spark ribs in piquant black bean sauce went down a treat with my meat-loving dining companion.
But the egg tarts served up at the end of the meal fell foul of one golden rule: they were encased in hard pastry rather than the flaky, buttery kind. Nevermind: the creamy center made for a sweet finish to the meal.
And the reasonable bill, just K15,870 (about $12.50) for a more-than-filing lunch for two, made it even sweeter.
Imperial Garden is located on the top floor of Myanmar Plaza, in the HAGL Center, on Kabar Aye Pagoda Road near the bottom of Inya Lake. Open from 8am until 9pm.
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