Lipsmacking dishes that use healthy ingredients, available at reasonable prices. No, this is not a Utopian fantasy.Tucked away in the bylanes of Burma Bazaar are 10-12 stalls that have been serving piping hot Burmese cuisine.
CHENNAI: As you walk down the busy streets of Burma Bazaar around dusk, one thing that is sure to catch your attention is a line-up of food stalls selling dishes with funny names. Atho, Bejo, Mohinga, etc. are all some popular Burmese food items that have become quite a rage among the city's foodies. “I am a huge foodie and I am always exploring different cuisines and varieties of food. It was during my college days that a friend told me about Burmese food at Burma bazaar. That was when I first tried atho — Burmese noodles,” recalls Alex K Jose, a software engineer.
The narrow streets have about 10 to 12 stalls and they're almost always overflowing with customers digging into their plates of atho. Most of the owners of these stalls have been in the city for over 40 years; they were set up by Tamil refugees who fled Myanmar and settled down in the city. “We started doing business almost 30 years ago. It was my grandfather who started this stall right here and we are still doing a fair business. We get more customers around weekends and that usually goes up to 20 or 30 customers a day at times,”explains Hussain Basha, one of the stall owners.
Most of the stalls sell a similar menu which includes dishes such as atho, bejo, mohinga, khowsuey and some egg dishes. Atho, the most popular among the Burmese cuisine is noodles that is cooked with a lot of shredded cabbage, fried onion, tamarind, chilli powder, lemon juice and is tossed in garlic oil. Mohinga, a dish specially made for the noodle soup lovers, is made of plantain stem soup and is mixed with deep fried noodles (Bejo). Bejo is prepared out of rice powder and Bengal gram and is mixed with sauces and vegetables. Khowsuey, yet another favourite, is also referred to as coconut milk noodles and is another kind of noodle soup, made out of coconut milk, lemon and noodles.
Shahul Ahmed, who owns a food stall and has been in the field from childhood says that he has trained many people in this cuisine. “In earlier days, you would find Burmese food only in Burma Bazar, but nowadays you get it even in malls. I have had a couple of people who wanted to train under me for a few months, learn how to cook the basic dishes and now they run their own little hotels and restaurants,” smiles Shahul.
Though there are restaurants that serve Burmese food, there seem to be more customers at these little stalls than at bigger hotels. “My family has been running this stall for over 20 years, and even today, we are serving the same set of dishes, at prices ranging from Rs 50-100. Our customers have only increased day by day. If we start a restaurant, that means, the prices will increase, rent will be more and so people will be sceptical about buying from there. That's why we are happy with these stalls. This is where it all began from, and so we want to stick to the basics,” he smiles.
Vaishnavi Raju, a solution design consultant, agrees with Shahul Ahmed. “I have always eaten Burmese food from these little stalls and I feel that is where you get to taste the authentic flavours at such a reasonable price.”
With the number of stalls going up day by day, you would find stalls in many corners around the city. Though originally started by the Burmese, today, a majority of the stalls are owned by non-Burmese, who have learnt cooking from fellow Burmese. Radhakrishnan is one such person. “I set up my stall 15 years ago and am running it successfully today. The best thing about Burmese food is that it is healthy and natural,” he says.
Since most dishes are made from fresh vegetables and ingredients like plantain stem, it also has a lot of health benefits like preventing diabetics, aiding digestion, etc. “Everybody wants to eat healthy and people have become extremely conscious about their body and health. Burmese food is ideal in that aspect and also taste great at the same time. That's why a lot of people prefer this,” he claims.
How they came to TN
The Tamil Chola Empire had trade relations with Burma.
During the colonial era, many people of Tamil ethnicity migrated to Myanmar to earn a living.
It was after the Second World War that a majority of these Tamil people came back to India.
Burma Bazaar was initially set up in the 1960s by the Myanmar Tamil Refugees.
The government provided them a place to stay but many remained unemployed.
Many then started their own business, with a lot starting food stalls selling Burmese food.
Today, the stalls have flourished so much, and can be found in many parts of the city.