Guide to Sittwe - Eating

We didn’t find too many places to eat in Sittwe.  There were roadside sellers of noodles/rice.  There were also food stalls in the market.  However, we were too afraid of getting sick to try eating from them. 

Shwe Pyi Daw aka Dagon Beer Station, located on the main road

The menu says Shwe Pyi Daw, but the only English signage on the awning says Dagon Beer Station.  It’s located across from the Kiss guesthouse/internet cafe (which is listed in the Lonely Planet).  The people who run this place look like they’re ethnic Chinese, and some of their foods reflect this.  For example, they had Chinese-style roast pork hanging in a display case at the front.  The staff speak some English and they do have an English menu.  We ordered the fried noodle for 1200 kyats, which came with soup.  We ate a lot of fried noodles on the trip, and this dish was tasty, but pretty standard.  Also ordered a chicken curry for 2500 kyats (rice is an extra 300 kyats).  I would describe the chicken curry as Chinese-style versus Myanmar-style.  Very mild, and the taste was reminiscent of a curry I’d get at a Chinese restaurant.  Locals come here to drink and snack.  We didn’t observe anyone eating full meals like us, just drinking lots of beer or whisky.  

Mya Tea Garden (listed in the Lonely Planet)

Located 1 block off the main road, Mya Tea Garden has a nice leafy, shady, garden setting.  Apparently there’s an attached guest house, but we didn’t poke around enough to take a look.  Very minimal English is spoken here.  We tried to enquire about food options (ie. mohinga or noodles), but failed.  Did manage to order sweet tea, and was brought the typical snacks along with it – samosas, egg rolls, and sweet coconut rice.  The samosas and egg rolls were tasty, but the sweet coconut rice was not my cup of tea.  I think because it tasted both sweet and savoury, I couldn’t grow to like it.  The prices were standard Myanmar teahouse prices - 300 kyats for tea, 300 kyats per plate of snacks.  Of positive note, they clean their tea cups by ‘boiling’ them in a hot water bath.  I observed other teahouses just doing a cold water rinse, so this seems to be more hygienic. 

River Valley Seafood Restaurant, located on the main road

A different location of this restaurant is listed in the Lonely Planet.  However, that location is a bit of a jaunt out of town.  This location is more central.  The restaurant itself is huge; there’s tons of seating and tons of staff.  There is an attached cafe located next door, however, it looked closed while we were there.  The menu is extensive.  Prices are more expensive with a fried noodle being 2500 kyats, and a can of pop 1000 kyats.  They also have fruit juices, which we saw locals drinking, but we were too afraid of food borne illnesses to try them.  On the plus side, they have decent toilets with soap and water.