u chit sien inherited this tea-house from his father. his family was originally in the international trading business, during the military rule era, their family business was seized and given that international trade was no longer possible - they decided to do f&b and started this place, as that was the only business that had a domestic market.

this place is located at the intersection of religious homes in yangon - the only burmese jewish synagogue is across the road, and diagonally across is yangon's largest mosque, 2 blocks down there is a chinese taoist temple, i saw a couple of small christian places within a mile, there are 1-2 indian temples along the same road as the tea-house and it is also is minutes away from many burmese buddhist temples. no wonder u chit sien said his tea-house quench the thirst of all religions.

this teahouse screams old school charm - everything from the menu, decor and i suspect some patrons were from the 60s or 70s. the tea used are burmese green tea and their sweet milk tea is some of the best i had. the cakes and pastries ain't my fancy but i will have them any day over those hipster avocado nonsense breakfast platters.

u chit sien and family owns the entire building that house the tea-house. there is a bakery at the top floor that manufactures bread and cakes. and his 10+ workers stay on the 2nd floor.

u chit sien stays in one of those old colonial blocks in downtown yangon - the prime real estate in an ever expanding yangon. he occupies the first floor duplex. it is modestly decorated and what took center stage are many photos of his family and ancestors.

his residence is 8 streets down from the tea-house and is just 10 minutes by foot and 12 minutes by car (traffic in downtown yangon defies the physics of speed). he has to be at the tea-house at 330am everyday and he works till 630pm everyday. so staying nearby helps.. a lot.

u chit sien parents came from xiamen, china. his wife and his children are in san francisco, united states of america. he said there are more opportunities there.

while u chit sien's sister had already prepared dinner, he wanted to bring me to a local curry house. i told him i wanted to try local street food but he didn't want to compromise my work schedule by consuming food served out of street stalls. he managed to find a hole in the wall establishment that is still open for dinner.

burmese curry and rice is perhaps one of the underated national cuisine - it is not as famous of her peer cuisines as as those in thailand and vietnam. it is absolutely delicious.

a quick primer on burmese curries - it is an array of proteins or vegetables that is simmered or stewed in aromatics and is meant to be eaten as a topping on plain white rice or alongside flatbreads. despite its name, burmese curries aren't spicy - it fact the prominent characteristics are mushy or soft texture, plenty of bitter herbs, sour, use of fermented sauce and meats and loaded with fragrant oil and caramelized aromatics. smear this curry on anything and boom, it becomes desirable, even on your boss.

u chit sien asked what i wanted to order. i wanted to go "everything" but said "anything you usually have". mistake. i soon realised elderly burmese man eat very little for dinner. he ordered some dried fish, a pork curry, a sambal and a pickled salad. in all meals, it will come with a herb tray and a sour soup.

after dinner, u chit sien wanted to play guide by bringing me to some sights in chinatown - most of the places i would have seen and photographed before. he went into a temple to offer some blessings and wanted me to do the same, which i declined.

en-route home. we made a stop at his childhood friend's house. she runs a tapioca flour factory in another township. she supplies flour for u chit sien's bakery. due to the difference in working hours, the 2 has not met for 5 years. they conversed in mandarin and hokkien. the whole time i was marvelling at the beautiful teak wood furniture in her house. when it was made, they brought in whole timber and carve the furniture to fit the interior.

this is perhaps one of the most bizarre meals in yangon. the clan dinner was at a chinese restaurant that time stood still. the decor was 70s hongkong chic with phoenix and dragon ornaments and koi pond. the whole time i was waiting for some hongkong gangsters to walk pass in trenchcoat and break out in a slow motion gun fight. nothing like that happened. in fact, nothing much happened.

i was introduced to many chinese businessmen - one gentleman by the name of u thon runs a goldsmith shop next to the tea-house. he is 96 and shutters between yangon and new york. another one was albert and runs a sushi chain in san francisco. i soon realised my intro was boring. by the 5th guy, i told everyone i am a magician and i can make sandwiches disappear - very quickly.

i have not seen u chit sien for over a year now because of the pandemic. the first person that crossed my mind in the recent yangon situation is him. i lost his mobile number. i hope he is safe and healthy. if anyone can reach him, please email me.