''Bandung'', ''sirap bandung'', ''air bandung'', ''iced bandung'' or ''rose syrup drink'', is a drink popular in

Maritime Southeast Asia Maritime Southeast Asia comprises the countries of Brunei, Indonesia, Malaysia, the Philippines, Singapore, and East Timor. Maritime Southeast Asia is sometimes also referred to as Island Southeast Asia, Insular Southeast Asia or Oceanic Sout ...

, notably in

Brunei Brunei ( , ), formally Brunei Darussalam ( ms, Negara Brunei Darussalam, Jawi: , ), is a country located on the north coast of the island of Borneo in Southeast Asia. Apart from its South China Sea coast, it is completely surrounded by t ...

Malaysia Malaysia ( ; ) is a country in Southeast Asia. The federation, federal constitutional monarchy consists of States and federal territories of Malaysia, thirteen states and three federal territories, separated by the South China Sea into two r ...

and

Singapore Singapore (), officially the Republic of Singapore, is a sovereign island country and city-state in maritime Southeast Asia. It lies about one degree of latitude () north of the equator, off the southern tip of the Malay Peninsula, bor ...

. It consists of

evaporated milk Evaporated milk, known in some countries as "unsweetened condensed milk", is a shelf-stable canned cow’s milk product where about 60% of the water has been removed from fresh milk. It differs from sweetened condensed milk, which contains adde ...

or condensed milk flavoured with rose syrup (

rose A rose is either a woody perennial flowering plant of the genus ''Rosa'' (), in the family Rosaceae (), or the flower it bears. There are over three hundred species and tens of thousands of cultivars. They form a group of plants that can be ...

cordial), giving it a pink colour.Naleeza Ebrahim, Yaw Yan Yee, ''Singapore. Not just a good food guide'' (Ed. rev. et augm.) 2007, p.253-4

Regional names

The term ''bandung'' means "pairs", while ''sirap'' means "syrup" and ''air'' means "water". in the Malay and Indonesian languages, and the sirap refers to the rose-flavoured base syrup. More broadly, ''bandung'' refers to anything that is mixed from other ingredients or comes in pairs, such as the term ''rumah berbandung'' to refer to a

semi-detached A semi-detached house (often abbreviated to semi) is a single family duplex dwelling house that shares one common wall with the next house. The name distinguishes this style of house from detached houses, with no shared walls, and terraced hou ...

house, or " mee bandung" which refers to a noodle dish. The name has no connection to the city of Bandung in

Indonesia Indonesia, officially the Republic of Indonesia, is a country in Southeast Asia and Oceania between the Indian and Pacific oceans. It consists of over 17,000 islands, including Sumatra, Java, Sulawesi, and parts of Borneo and New Guine ...

, but a variant of the drink can be found there as " soda gembira".

Details

''Bandung'' is a favourite beverage especially among the Malay communities of Southeast Asia. It is usually served during

Iftar Iftar ( ar, translit=Iftar Ramadan, إفطار رمضان), also known as (from , , 'breakfast'), (), is the evening meal with which Muslims end their daily Ramadan fast at sunset. They break their fast at the time of the call to prayer ...

in Ramadan month or wedding receptions with other foods such as '' nasi beriani'' or ''

rendang Rendang ( ; ) is a Minang dish originating from the Minangkabau region in West Sumatra, Indonesia. It has spread across Indonesian cuisine to the cuisines of neighbouring Southeast Asian countries such as Malaysia, Singapore, Brunei and the ...

''. Modern innovations include adding

grass jelly Grass jelly, also known as leaf jelly or herb jelly, is a jelly-like dessert eaten in East and Southeast Asia. It is created by using Chinese mesona (a member of the mint family) and has a mild, slightly bitter taste. It is served chilled, w ...

soda water Carbonated water (also known as soda water, sparkling water, fizzy water, club soda, water with gas, in many places as mineral water, or especially in the United States as seltzer or seltzer water) is water containing dissolved carbon dioxide gas, ...

and are served as

street food Street food is ready-to-eat food or drinks sold by a hawker, or vendor, in a street or at other public places, such as markets or fairs. It is often sold from a portable food booth, food cart, or food truck and is meant for immediate consumpt ...

. The soda water variant may be more commonly known as ''Soda gembira'' by Indonesians, although it has a distinct taste to ''Bandung'' due to the addition of a carbonated soft drink, such as

Fanta Fanta is an American-owned German brand of fruit-flavored carbonated soft drinks created by Coca-Cola Deutschland under the leadership of German businessman Max Keith. There are more than 200 flavors worldwide. Fanta originated in Germany as ...

. In Malaysia and Singapore, it may also be known by the English term Rose syrup drink. It may be bought pre-mixed or made at home.

Variations

Due to the popularity of ''Bandung'', many variations of the drink have emerged. Popular versions of the drink include the addition of

, basil seeds, lychee fruit, sparkling water, carbonated sodas such as ice cream soda, and even

Milo Milo may refer to: Arts and entertainment * ''Milo'' (magazine), a strength sports magazine *'' Milo: Sticky Notes and Brain Freeze'', a 2011 children's novel by Alan Silberberg * ''Milo'' (video game), a first-person adventure-puzzle computer ga ...

powder.

References

{{Malaysian cuisine Singaporean drinks Singaporean cuisine Bruneian cuisine Malaysian drinks Non-alcoholic drinks Non-alcoholic mixed drinks Street food

Regional names

Details

Variations

See also

References