Burmese Comes to Ottawa [General]

2010 Jun 15
FYI, a Burmese restaurant is replacing Curries at Gloucester and O'Connor. I've walked by it a couple times but keep on forgetting the name. Forgot it again today (Coconut something I think!?), but figured I'd post it anyway!

2010 Jun 15
Very cool. I don't think I've had Burmese food before. Can anyone tell me what I can expect? Is it curries? Saucy food? Etc? I realize that it may have lots of regional differences, but is there an undertone to most Burmese food?

Thanks!

2010 Jun 15
That's exciting news! As usual, en.wikipedia.org has plenty to say about Burmese cuisine.

I've shared my only Burmese recipe on our wiki: wiki.ottawafoodies.com

2010 Jun 15
I think the place is going to be called Rangoon.

"Elaine, you may know it as Myanmar, but it will always be Burma to me..." -- J.Peterman

2010 Jun 16
snoopy, ever had Khao Soi? Available at some (not many) Thai restaurants, its essentially a Burmese dish. Absolutely sublime when done well!

en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Khao_soi

fingers x-ed for Rangoon!

2010 Jun 16
Being a massive fan of SE Asian cuisine of all sorts that I've tried (I am a gargantuan fan of Thai food and make my own curries from scratch for friends and family all the time), I was really excited to learn more about Myanmar food awhile back, but what I read on Wikipedia at the time made it sound sort of meh.

I am still wickedly curious, though. If anyone tries this place, report back?

2010 Jun 16
No... I have not, but I'm pretty sure I've had the "original" Chinese Muslim dish in Xian. I love that stuff! If Rangoon is serving that up... count me in!

2010 Jun 17
I cheered when Curries closed... was reasonable when it opened, quickly went downhill. Amazed it lasted as long as it did!

Now I'm cautiously optimistic for Rangoon. But a cuisine that says "of all the fruits, mango's the best" is a-ok by me! :) The fish sauce used in quantity would mean a few friends couldn't go with me, though.

It would be great to have something good and different in stumbling distance from my apartment. :)

2010 Jul 21
I went last night - in the company of a vegetarian, which Burmese tends to usually not be very inclusive of.

I had the chicken curry and it was delicious. The chicken was super tasty and perfectly spiced - and then our server (the restaurant's owner, a really sweet woman, unfortunately can't remember her name), brought me fried onion and spicy bacon bits to add to the curry sauce and rice, which made it even more delicious.

Soup comes with your meal and it was lightly spiced, had vegetables in it and there is also a vegetarian. All of the salads are vegetarian and my dining partner ordered two of them and was greatly pleased with both the presentation and the taste (fresh, lots of coriander and noodles!).

Our server brought us a Burmese yogourt-type of drink as a complimentary desert. As they have just opened and yet to do any advertising, I could tell they were grateful for the business.

We were both pleasantly surprised, after having delicious Burmese food in New York, that this little place offered excellent service, presentation and on top of that it was delicious. They will be expanding their menu, but there are four different curries (shrimp, pork, beef and chicken), plus veggie salads, soup, and spring rolls to offer.

Take-out's also available.

They're even open 'til 10pm for those who like late-night munchies. Definitely worth a try!

2010 Jul 21
Awesome! Thanks for the report. I live a few blocks from Rangoon so I'm excited to try it out -- and the late-night hours make for a great addition to my trusty too-late-to-make-dinner-so-let's-take-out list.
What are the prices like, pray tell?

2010 Jul 21
I was there last week for lunch and it was terrible. The soup was saved by the cilantro, but the chicken and shrimp curries were tasteless. The chicken breast cubes that were extremely dry as if they were over cooked separately and then added to the curry sauce.

The waiter asked how we liked our meal after we paid and his response was a simple "Oh".

Maybe it was a bad hair day for them but I got the impression that the owner of the building decided to open his own restaurant and does not really know what he is doing.

Went today to Town for lunch. For the same price there is no comparison.


2010 Aug 12
I had take out tonight. it was really bad. the green tea salad was ok, with a mix of crunch and freshness. The pork curry was horrible: dry cube of pork soakng in a tasteless, over-oily curry sauce. the portion was minuscule. It cost me $19 for one person, no rice, and I am still hungry. I told the lady (i think that she is the owner). she argued with me that her curry had no veggies, only meat, so that I got my money`s worth, etc. I do not recommend this place at all. way too expensive for such a ridiculous meal. unless the owner changes her attitude and her menu, of course. too bad, because i was really looking forward to including this new cuisine into my downtown routine.

2010 Aug 16
Burma, situated between SE Asia, India, and China, has a fusion cuisine, of Indian, SE Asian and Chinese influences. I think they also eat most of their dishes by hands, not chopsticks.


2010 Oct 2
I went there today for lunch and had a nice time. The owner was very pleasant and friendly and substituted the fish soup for the regular soup that goes with the curry for us because we wanted to try it. I had the shrimp curry which was very tasty and went well with the shrimp flakes they brought with it. One of my dining companions had the chicken curry which was also delicious. We also had the green tea ice cream for dessert, which was wrapped in rice dough (or something like that) which gave it a nice chewy texture. I'm glad this place is so close by, I will definitely go back.