00:00 I'm a little scared because it's my first time eating it.
00:02 You have to try it.
00:03 Last time in Macau,
00:05 we dived into the history of Macanese cuisine.
00:07 It's the happiest thing to see
00:10 when my kids take me home.
00:13 In this episode,
00:14 we're learning about the Burmese-Chinese community in Macau
00:17 and the dishes they're proud of.
00:19 Burmese cuisine is not very popular in the world.
00:24 But it's still a place that can be seen in Macau.
00:27 Welcome to City Bites.
00:29 Macau edition.
00:30 We're here in a neighborhood around Rotunda de Carlos de Maya,
00:51 a circular plaza.
00:52 There are five streets connected to this roundabout.
00:57 Locals call this area "Three Lamps"
00:59 due to this iconic lamppost.
01:01 There are four lamps.
01:03 Why are there three lamps?
01:04 Because when you look down from each street,
01:08 there's a lamp that's covered by a pillar.
01:11 Meet Yep Wing Wah.
01:17 He's Burmese-Chinese,
01:18 but moved to Macau over 40 years ago.
01:21 Having spent half of his life in the Three Lamps area,
01:24 he's an expert on the neighborhood.
01:26 The Three Lamps is very famous.
01:28 I've been here with my wife, Jie Ting Fung.
01:31 These two small shops are also run by Burmese-Chinese.
01:33 If you go further down, you'll see the street market.
01:36 Yep is among the thousands of immigrants
01:41 who settled here decades ago.
01:42 In the early 1970s,
01:46 over 10,000 ethnic Chinese moved to Macau
01:49 from Southeast Asian countries like Myanmar,
01:52 Cambodia and Vietnam
01:53 to escape from anti-Chinese sentiment in the region.
01:57 The majority of them were Burmese-Chinese.
01:59 They formed communities in a few places in Macau.
02:02 The Three Lamps area was one of them.
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02:46 Today, Three Lamps is known among locals
02:49 for being a hub for the Southeast Asian community.
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03:09 Out of everything here,
03:21 the Burmese restaurants are the most well-known.
03:24 Yep invited us to try some classic dishes
03:28 at his restaurant.
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04:43 The soup is very tangy, quite peppery.
04:53 I can imagine that if you eat this in the morning,
04:56 it can wake you up.
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05:54 - So I would say this is like elevated version of Indomie
06:10 because they mix it in a basket.
06:11 It's not like you mix it at home,
06:13 you only have a little bowl.
06:14 Since the restaurant, they use fresh ingredients to make it.
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06:20 - In the Three Lamps neighborhood,
06:23 there used to be dozens of Burmese restaurants like Yip's,
06:26 but half of them decided not to continue anymore.
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06:33 At the remaining Burmese restaurants,
06:42 you can find some unique dishes.
06:44 For example, pork brain and offal noodles.
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07:43 - I think the pork brain is actually better than I expected.
07:49 It's actually softer than tofu.
07:52 The pork brain absorbs all the soup,
07:54 so I can imagine that it would be a great combination
07:58 to add when you eat a hot pot.
07:59 - If you've got a sweet tooth,
08:06 there's also Burmese faluda.
08:07 Paul, the owner of the restaurant,
08:10 took over the business from his mother.
08:12 Its Burmese-style desserts and snacks
08:16 are quite popular among younger customers.
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08:54 - So this dessert is like a drink.
08:56 It's like strawberry milkshake,
08:58 and when you drink it, there are different textures.
09:01 - Over the years, the Burmese-Chinese community
09:07 in the Three Lamps area has become smaller,
09:09 as some moved out,
09:10 blending in with the rest of the city's population.
09:13 But Yip decided to stick around.
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09:45 - Hi, everyone.
10:05 Three Lamps area is very special,
10:07 'cause even though it's like a hub
10:08 for the Southeast Asian community,
10:11 it's also part of locals' day-to-day lives.
10:13 So it's not like this area is separated from the local.
10:16 It's not like it's a comfort zone
10:18 for the Southeast Asian community.
10:20 I guess a huge reason for that is because of the culture,
10:23 'cause even though they are born in Southeast Asia,
10:26 many of them are still Chinese diaspora.
10:28 So I guess they still share that identity
10:32 or like culture as a Chinese person
10:34 with the local community.
10:36 So tell me, in your home country,
10:38 is there any area that is similar to the Three Lamps area?
10:41 And in the next episode, we are going to get snacky,
10:45 'cause we are going to try some almond cookies.
10:47 - Up next, we'll find out if locals
10:51 are actually fans of the almond cookies
10:54 that almost every tourist picks up
10:56 as a souvenir of Macau.
10:58 Stay tuned.
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