Lost heaven's mystic touch

Spicy cod steamed in banana leaves.[Photo by Feng Yongbin/China Daily]

Lost Heaven also features a mix of Chinese, Thai and Myanmarese flavors. I started with the Myanmarese Tea Leaves Salad. It was the first time I was eating tea leaves as a dish. "Unlike the Chinese who like drinking tea, Myanmarese tend to eat tea leaves. We like pickled tea leaves, a common ingredient in Myanmarese appetizers," says restaurant manager Rike Wam.

The salad made of Chinese cabbage, pickled tea leaves, freshly-fried broad beans, tea oil, cherry tomatoes, lemon and chili sauces ignited my taste buds. I recall the typical salad being salty, nutty, with weak spiciness and the fragrance of green tea.

Wam, a Chinese-Myanmarese, says that Myanmarese cuisine is characterized by its salty, spicy flavors and the extensive use of sea fish. "Curry is also a common dish as we were influenced by Indian culture."

The Miao people's "hot and sour prawn" dish also took me by surprise.

The large prawns were in a rich, sweet-and-sour tomato and chili sauce, and came with onions, wild black pepper, and special herbs that are said to be from a mountain revered by the Miao people. The dish has a delicately fragrant taste, somewhat similar to the Thai Tom Yum Goong soup, but a bit stronger.

The "spicy cod steamed in banana leaves" dish, inspired by the Dai ethnic minority cuisine, is another must-have at Lost Heaven. Steamed cod is put out on a plate for us, with banana leaves resting on it. The leaves help to maintain the original flavor of the fish during steaming and add their own subtle aroma.