The Best Burmese Around

When it moved from its College Park home to its current Silver Spring location, Mandalay Restaurant garnered a great deal of attention. If you neglected to check out the Burmese Restaurant when the critics were sweeping through, give the authentic, delicious and reasonably-priced place a chance now that the chatter has died down.

Located in an unassuming spot on Bonifant Street in Silver Spring, the place is borderline empty for a weekday lunch, but hopping when Saturday night dinner comes around. Though the service can be slow, it’s always friendly. But if you go to Mandalay, you’re not there for the atmosphere – you’re there to get suitably spicy fare for ridiculously reasonable prices.

I can honestly say I've never had better Burmese - particularly since I'd never tried Burmese cuisine pre-Mandalay. It strikes me as Thai meets Indian, though I'm not sure how educated that comparison is. At Mandalay, order a Burmese iced tea, a condensed-milk drink with a bitter, yet chocolatey taste - similar to the iced tea like they serve at Malaysia Kopitam. Appetizers, mostly deep-fried, are satisfying, such as flavorful samosas and firm, perfectly-prepared squash fritters (BooThee gyaw).

Main-dish portions are generous without being obnoxiously huge . KyetThar Ohno Hin, chicken in a coconut cream sauce, is tasty, though a bit less assertive than I would have liked. The dark-meat chunks of meat, though, are moist, and retain the flavor of the sauce well. WetThar HtaMin Paung features pork, delicious vegetables and a savory sauce – the crisp cauliflower is the highlight of this dish. My favorite entrée was WetThar ChoChin Gyaw, another pork offering (fork over the extra $1 and get the Chinese sausage), and a great balance of vegetables and spice. KyetThar ALoo Masala Hin, a chicken dish, tastes more Indian-influenced than some of the other options, and is a hearty choice. When giving your spice preference, hotter is better here - I learned this after my early orders of "medium" left me hoping for more heat.

I’m looking forward to returning and sampling some of the seafood or noodle choices – and with nearly every dish on the menu priced between $8-$9, I certainly can afford multiple trips. I was less impressed with the dessert ShweJi, which while boasting an interesting blend of tastes, had a texture to which I wasn’t accustomed.

Mandalay fulfills most of the criteria I look for in a restaurant – a lack of pretension, a variety of dishes, a balance of flavors and a price I can afford without adding to my ever-growing Citibank balance.

Mandalay Restaurant
930 Bonifant
Silver Spring, MD 20910
301/585-0500