Myanmar (Burma) - The Rough Guide to Southeast Asia on a Budget - page 556

wi-fi. Rooms with a/c ($20) and private bathroom ($25)
are also available. $18

OLD BAGAN
There is a clutch of restaurants just outside the Tharabar
Gate, north of Ananda Paya.
★

Star Beam North of Ananda Paya; map pp.554-555. Not
only is this one of the best restaurants in Bagan, it's also one
of the best in the country. Owner and chef Tin Myint has many
years of experience in luxury hotels, and it shows in his cooking
but - crucially - not in the very reasonable prices. Start with
free baguettes baked on the premises, then move on to dishes
such as kyet that thoke (chicken salad with peanut, lime juice,
fish sauce and sesame seed, K3000) or exquisite grilled river
fish with lemon butter sauce (K4500). End with a decadent
chocolate fondant (K2500). Daily 10am-10pm.
Yar Pyi North of Ananda Paya; map pp.554-555. A rival to
the more established The Moon vegetarian restaurant nearby,
this friendly family-run place arguably has better food. The
veggie curries are tasty - the owners recommend the hot-
and-sour bamboo shoots (K2000) - and the guacamole with
pappadom (K2500) is highly rated too. Daily 7am-11pm.

NEW BAGAN
Mya Kan Thar Motel Main Rd T 061 65014 or T 09
2042005, E [e-mail]; map pp.554-555.
Two rows of concrete buildings located on the main road
(so try to get a room at the back). The plain but comfortable
rooms are equipped with new a/c units, and are good value
in New Bagan terms. $30

EATING AND DRINKING
NYAUNG U
Thiripitsaya 4 St is lined with restaurants aimed at tourists,
typically cooking many cuisines adequately rather than
specializing in one. Main Rd has more restaurants frequented
by locals. As for nightlife, there are a few places serving
draught beer, including Holiday (daily 7am-10pm) and Shwe
Ya S u (daily 10am-10.30pm) on Thiripitsaya 4 St, Power Five
(daily 8am-midnight) on the Main Rd and Hti (daily 9am-
midnight) close to the bus station.
Bibo Just off Thiripitsaya 4 St; map p.556. Relocated to
larger premises in 2014, Bibo is run by a hospitable young
couple offering superior versions of the usual Thai,
Burmese and Italian dishes, such as river prawn curry for
K4000. It's also a good place for an early-evening drink:
cocktails are already cheap at K1500, making happy hour
(5.30-7pm) a steal. Daily 8.30am-9pm or later.
Black Bamboo Just off Thiripitsaya 4 St T 061 60782 or
T 09 6501444; map p.556. The perfect place to hide from
the midday sun, this garden restaurant serves Asian and
European dishes - the former around K3500, the latter
K5000-6000. Check the blackboards for desserts, cakes
and specials such as granita (crushed ice drinks, K2000).
Daily 8.30am-10pm.
Moe Moe Win Yangon Monhinga Main Rd; map p.556.
As the name suggests, this small restaurant specializes in
the breakfast dish mohingar (K1000) and does a great job
of it. It also serves other dishes such as ohno khao swe
(K1000) and, for the adventurous, the mysteriously named
“mythical dish” (also K1000). Daily 6am-9pm.
Nu Wa Main Rd; map p.556. If you're sick of the tourist-
oriented restaurants around the corner on Thiripisaya 4 St,
try this simple place serving Burmese curries. For K2500
you can choose one meat curry, along with rice and around
ten side dishes; an extra K1000 lets you sample several
meat dishes. Daily 10am-10pm.
★

7

MYNKABA
San Thi Dar Main Rd; map pp.554-555. A couple of things
set this simple restaurant apart from many of its competitors.
One is the unusually extensive selection of vegetarian
options (around K1200) alongside the usual meat dishes. The
other is the friendliness of the famIly which runs it, who help
to make a meal here a genuine pleasure. Daily 8am-9pm.

NEW BAGAN
There are a number of restaurants and tea shops on Khayae
St, plus a few tucked away in the backstreets. Look out for
the new Star Beam offshoot (see Old Bagan), due to open
here during 2014.
Black Rose Khayae St; map pp.554-555. A family-run
restaurant serving mostly Chinese and Burmese cuisine
from around K2000, where you'll find very good food and
a warm welcome (even if they do sometimes get very
busy with tour groups). After the meal they give you tasty
tamarind flakes - sweet and sour, these are supposedly an
aid to digestion. Daily 10am-10.30pm.
Nooch Khayae St; map pp.554-555. At lunchtime
Chinese, Burmese and Thai dishes (from around K2500) are
served in the purple-themed a/c dining room, while in the
evening the staff fire up a barbecue and set up outdoor
seating. Daily 7am-late.

SHOPPING
Books There are two book stalls on the western approach
to Ananda Temple.
General handicrafts Shwe Pyi Nann, junction of
Thiripitsaya 4 St and Main Rd, Nyaung U (daily 9am-9pm;
T 061 60179); Amata Boutique House, Bagan-Chauk Road,
New Bagan (daily 10am-10pm; T 061 65099, W amatabtq
house.com). The latter also has a café, spa and restaurant.

Weather Spoon's Bagan Thiripitsaya 4 St; map
p.556. The name may amuse UK visitors (ask owner Win
Tun about where it came from) but the food is seriously
good - and the gra ti on the walls from satisfied
customers is testament to this. The menu covers mostly
Thai and Italian dishes, although the burger (K3500) is
surprisingly authentic. Free wi-fi. Daily 7/8am-10pm.