Still one of my favorite restaurants in the DC area. For anyone with gluten issues they are extremely knowledgeable about what can and cannot be made gluten free (or is gluten-free naturally). Their Nyat KaukSwe Gyaw (V6) are made of the best rice noodles I've ever found- so chewy and absorb the flavors of the dish beautifully. This is my go-to comfort food. For salads I love the ginger and jasmine rice salads. I've never had an entree that I dislike! They also have a gluten-free dessert that's not too sweet and a great end to the evening- sticky rice with brown sugar adn coconut (it comes out as a little sticky cake!). They're open during COVID times and do a great job of providing contactless carry out. read more

Noodles had the kick of mustard sauce. The salad was quite filling. Liked the fried onions on top. read more

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Overall, I enjoyed my experience at Mandalay and will likely return. Went for lunch during the week. The menu has a lot of solid vegetarian, chicken, beef, and seafood options. The servers were warm and friendly. I ordered the Amethar Aloo Hin which is a beef and potato dish. It was a little salty for my tastes, but still delicious. read more

Great weekday lunch. If you like spicy Asian food, you can't go wrong here. I will not be able to provide the actual names of the dishes we ordered but the spring rolls, samosas, mango chicken, and chicken in thick brown sauce were great. Most of our party did not enjoy the texture of the pork in the thin noodle entree, but everything besides the meat (noodles and veggies) was great. Make sure to ask for the homemade chili sauce, it definitely packs a punch. The beer selection is also very good, try the double D IPA. Our waiter was pretty rude/sarcastic overall, but I think that just adds to the authenticity of this place. Highly recommend! read more

As a burmese person, I can say this is as authentic as it can get! I love sticky brown rice and the letthoke sone. The potato curry with pork is also amazing! Love this place. read more

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Ate here a couple of weeks ago, on what turned out to be a SUPER busy night. We were given a 30-minute wait (ended up being 40 min), and put aside in this small bar/storage area off of the main restaurant. The wait was tolerable for me, but my wife was on the verge of leaving by the time our table was finally called. They didn't have anyone tending the bar (at 7pm on a Friday, mind you) or else that would have helped kill time. We got a booth near the back, and our server was helpful in helping us pick out our first Burmese dishes. As I said, the restaurant was super packed, so we didn't see much of our server after that - it took a couple of attempts to flag her down and get our drinks. When the food arrived - cue Guy Fieri, because it was absolute flavor town. I loved my dish (WetThmar Hmit Gyaw), though I'll never be able to pronounce it. My wife ordered a beef dish, and made sure to communicating her absolute love of spice when she ordered...and they made her pay for it! It took both of us to finish her dish, tears streaming down both our faces, but it was equally delicious. I absolutely recommend Mandalay to anyone. Just be careful if you order extra spice if you go! read more

Instead of a traditional Easter dinner, I went to Mandalay to further investigate the idea that maybe I have an aversion to Burmese food. Although eating incredible amounts of spicy food one night after alcohol overload on H Street was probably not my greatest idea, I'm glad I did it because this food rocked. I started with a fried tofu salad. The thinly sliced and lightly fried tofu was paired with crushed peanuts over a bed consisting mostly of cabbage and carrots. The entire dish was accented with a refreshing dressing. At $4.99, this dish was a steal. It was good enough that my brother ended up subsequently ordering the similar mango salad (where mango substituted fried tofu). Although I was partial to the former, they were both worth ordering. My brother ordered some odd dried shrimp flavoring that could be used both in our soups, salads and entrees. I added it to my ginger soup (the spicy dried shrimp added a welcome layer to the soup) and my brother added it to both salad dishes (I liked the salads without the additional flavoring). When the order had come out, I thought it was a mistake, but it ended up not only flavoring the soup and two salads, but also my own entree. For dinner, I ordered a combination pork and potato dish served in onion curry. The base curry appeared to be a specialty of the house as it appeared in a number of orders across Mandalay's rather extensive menu. While I liked the dish, I thought that six moderately sized chunks of pork was a bit minimal given the price point ($11.99). Also, while the potato was nice, it really kicked with the addition of the dried shrimp flavoring. I also tried the pork in mango curry. The mango base tasted similar to pickled mango commonly served as an accompaniment to rice based dishes in India. Mandalay's dish presented like a curried version of the pickled mango (sounds gross but it was very tasty) served with meat (in this case, pork). I loved this fiery dish although I would have probably paired it with beef over pork. If you are in the Silver Spring area, you should definitely add this restaurant to your regular rotation. In my case, I learned that even though Burma may no longer appear on a map, it's cuisine is certainly still worth exploring. read more

Went on a quiet but very hot Saturday afternoon. Service was okay. We had to ask for water refills since it was a bit warm in the restaurant. Some people in the party could not eat too spicy. So we asked for mild spice and dishes that were supposed to have some spice to them came out a bit bland. I wish I could give more stars as there is a huge shortage of Burmese restaurants in the area and I from past visits the food can be tasty. Hoping this was an off day for the chef. Will give this another try in the near future. read more

Mandalay is one of the first places I reviewed on Yelp and still a favorite. Price wise, it's a steal and the food is mind bogglingly good. Having eaten here many, many times, here are some of the best things on the menu (bear in mind that I have yet to be disappointed by any of their dishes.) Appetizers: The gram fritters are reminiscent of hush puppies, fluffy and flavorful with a crispy golden exterior. The chickpea flour gives them a savory quality and they come with a spicy red sauce that would make shoe leather appetizing. The tomato salad is sublime - chopped fresh tomatoes with crunchy fried onion tidbits, cilantro, and a dressing that will rock your world. Even nicer, they offer a fish-sauce free version of the dressing for vegetarians. Entrees: The Tofu NanNanBinHin is irresistible. Even when I have something else while here, I often get an order of this stuff to go. Completely gluttonous, I know, but this dish has a hold on me. The onion tomato curry sauce is an umami bomb and the cilantro brightens the dish, keeping it from tasting too heavy. Mandalay does the fried tofu right too. Thin strips of firm tofu, browned on both sides, are hearty without being greasy or pillow-y. Nyat KaukSwe Gyaw is loaded with big, fat rice noodles, more of that spectacular fried tofu, and a mix of crunchy and tender vegetables. On the side, there's a small dish of this intensely flavorful sauce that you pour over the top. I don't know what goes into this addictive stuff, but you may find yourself dredging noodles through the last remaining drops to avoid missing out on any of it. Desserts: The dessert array here is unusual, fun, and not too sweet. The brown sugar coconut sticky rice has the texture and flavor of a caramel mochi hybrid. The ShweJi is a bit like a baked polenta pudding, but without the corn flavor and studded with raisins. read more

There was a Boy; a foodie, who walked up to the Genie (the greatest ever lived), who said, "Genie, I want a restaurant that serves my new ethnic meal at a bargain meal price. " "The cuisine would be less sweet than Thai, less pungent than Indian, less predictable than Chinese, less onion-garlicky than Mexican, and less fishy than Japanese." "But, what I wish for is something that tastes as harmonious as Thai, intriguing as Indian, addicting as Chinese, flavorful as Mexican, and vegetable heavy as Japanese. I eat with my other senses, not with my eyes. Genie, can you make this happen all at once?" Looking very excited and wise, the Genie said, waving his Aladdin Lamp, with a little twinkle in his seductive, kohl-lined dark eyes, "Sure! Dear Boy, Burmese food is your wish. Tomorrow night, go to the location of 930 Bonifant Street, Silver Spring, MD USA and your greatest wish will come true!" "And don't be cheap...bring something back for me!" So...don't ask. Don't expect delicate ingredients or fresh nouvelle cuisine (because that's not what The Boy wished for). Expect something that is close to crack comfort food cooked with a lot of flavors, heavy seasonings like fish sauce and MSG. Wash everything down with a cold beer on a summer's night. No food can taste that addicting without MSG, which is something that the Great Genie (also known as Wise One) created himself. MSG is the dust powder of his moustache when it turned white, the culmination of the tastiest things that the Genie had ever had. read more

The kitchen is making judgement calls it shouldn't be! I ordered spicy. I know spicy, I love spicy! The kitchen sent back the waiter to get me to change my order because of the amount of "Too Spicy" orders that had been sent back. I insisted I wanted spicy, the lack of spicy added to the lack of flavor of the food here. It was horrible. Perficetly good food wasted because they didn't listen to what I asked for! They became very busy and the orders got mixed up (this doesn't usually happen) and it was just all around disappointing. I won't go back anytime soon. Such a shame! read more

I ordered the eggplant dish KaYann Thee Hin and when it arrived it was drenched in oil. I called the restaurant to ask which oil is used to cook this dish... Everything here is cooked using soybean oil, which is inflammatory and high in omega-6 fatty acids. I could not bring myself to finish this dish. I hope in the future restaurants refrain from using highly-processed vegetable oils. read more

4.25! This was our 4th yelpluck dinner spot, and it surely wasn't a disappointment. I drove from DC, and it took over 45 minutes to get here due to traffic, but the trip was totally worth it. I never had Burmese food, but I am extremely glad that my lovely fellow MD burbs yelpers chose this place!!!!!! If anything you should try the tealeaf salad. It's like cole slaw, but very nice, creamy in a strange way, and refreshing at the same time. We ordered a bunch of dishes to share, and many of the dishes had tomato pastes. But the best dish of the night was this remarkable fish pasta. We didn't order it, but our server (I arrived late, so I didn't get his name), gave it to us on house. That dish was so unbelievably good... I am not familiar with this cuisine, and we ordered a bunch of things so I can't really exactly describe everything we ate... I just remember tasting all different dishes, and thinking they were really good lol. I would definitely like to come back here to taste each dish better! read more

I love this place. I eat here quite often: sometimes twice a week. Burmese food is a very interesting cuisine. It's like taking Thai and mixing it up with Indian. There are a lot of really good curries and noodle dishes, as well as some really unique flavor profiles. You can customize the heat level of your food (mild, medium, spicy, OMG); I always get medium, which delivers a nice heat without sacrificing flavor. To be fair, even the crazy spicy isn't too much of the "tastes like burning" variety of hot, although it is a bit too much for me. I've tried a wide variety of dishes, and I've never been disappointed. The appetizers are mostly fried and can be a bit greasy, so I tend to avoid them, even though they are all full of yum. The salads are fairly solid, though most are shredded cabbage with other things mixed in. The squid salad, however, is bloody fantastic. (I've never been a huge seafood fan, but this is really well done.) The entrees are varied and numerous. I've never had a dish I didn't like. I've had at least one thing in every category (noodles, vegetarian/tofu, chicken, pork, beef, and seafood), and all are well seasoned, properly cooked, and delicious, consistently. And be sure to leave room for dessert! The shweJi is light and delicious, and the coconut ice cream is made of heaven and sparkles and unicorn magic. The restaurant is always busy, which I think is a great testament to the quality of the food. The wait staff are also very friendly and fast. I've never had to wait around forever to get my meal. This is a no-brainer choice for really good food. read more

3.5 stars. Welcome to your local Burmese family diner. That's what I thought when we walked in the other night. I panicked for a second because I thought that meant they didn't serve booze, but a wave of relief washed over me when I saw beer at one of the tables. I have to say I enjoyed my first experience with Burmese. This place has a whole vegetarian menu, and the appetizers (Golden Triangles) were amazing. I had the Tofu Ohnno Hin and I loved it and so did my hus. In fact, I think my friend finished his dinner in like 30 seconds. He had a full plate, then I dropped my fork and leaned down to pick it up and when I looked at his plate again, it was completely empty. I'm exaggerating, but not by much. One bad thing about this place is the service is terrible. I don't ask for much, seriously. But the only time we saw our waitress was when she took our order. I flagged down the busboy for another drink and our check was brought by someone I'd never seen before ... not sure if he even worked there. read more

I can't believe this is related to the Mandalay that used to be in College Park. Very cozy room, very helpful staff. I went with a group, and we passed dishes around, and frankly I lost track of which was which! But all were tasty, a sort of fusion of other cuisines in the region. Less brash than Thai, more robust than Cantonese. The beer of the day was Leffe Belgian ale, rich and smooth. A companion enjoyed the Mandalay Ale, brewed to spec by Old Dominion. Alas, we had no room to try the deserts. Worth braving the Silver Sprung congestion. read more

Went here tonight with my family (group of 12) to celebrate my dad's 77th b-day. He ordered a chicken dish and is not one to complain typically, but said that it was extremely salty. When my dad told the server, she took the dish to the kitchen and then the owner (Joe Mhint?- the big guy) came back with the dish and questioned his opinion that it was salty and placed the same plate in front of him and said that it was the mustard greens. We have been coming here on and off for the past 10 years and besides the horrific, rude and down right terrible customer service, the food had kept us coming back. The quality of food had declined dramatically over the years and now makes me question why they even moved from college park MD where we first fell in love with Burmese food. What happened to customer service? We will definitely not return to this establishment and hope most people who experience this will follow suit. Not sure how a family can survive in America with such a raw, rude attitude. read more

I can't ever go to Silver Spring without thinking "oh I'm all the way over here, I should go to Mandalay." I try not to do that so that I can actually experience other places :), but Mandalay will always be one of my favorites and somewhere I make a point to go regularly. I have been a fan since they were over in College Park. Actually, the CP location would have received 5 stars. It was a tiny little hole-in-the-wall, completely family run - mom in the kitchen, dad hosting, sons serving, wives bringing the kids by at the end of the end to play on the tables (the infants) - and it was wonderful. A little bit of that character has been lost in the move to Silver Spring, but the food is still excellent and it is always an enjoyable place to be. Burmese is similar to Thai, and if you haven't tried it - do. Really wonderful. Mandalay offers a wonderful selection and plenty of choices for vegetarians, and I have never had something here I didn't like. My favorite is V06: Nyat KaukSwe Gyaw - Flat rice noodles stir-fried with yellow beans (Vatana), bean sprouts, romain hearts, crushed peanuts, and lightly fried tofu. To be honest, I really have trouble ever ordering anything else. Noodles #6 is the non-vegetarian version of this dish which I used to eat and was also wonderful. I love the desserts as well. Shweji and Sticky Rice (vegan) are both treats not to be missed. If I'm too full to eat dessert I usually order them to go and get to have something special waiting for another day. They also have vegan coconut and pineapple ice creams, which I haven't yet tried. read more

This is the most authentic burmese food i have had, after my grandmothers burmese cooking. The dishes taste the same if not better than what she makes. I ordered the Lethoke Sone - absolutely amazing vegan dish full of textures and flavours that meld together to give a very authentic taste, without being very spicy or overwhelming at all. This is one of my favourite burmese dishes and this place knows how to do it with perfection! Also tried the Chicken KaukSwe Gyaw, felt the gravy could be a bit creamier, but still an exceptional dish thats really easy to love by all. Nice cozy family owned restaurant, well made dishes, I only wish i lived closer. This was easily the best part of my visit to Washington. read more

Though I've moved away from the DC area, Mandalay remains one of my favorite restaurants on the planet, and I still make a pilgrimage every time I'm in town. Back when I lived close enough to visit regularly, Mandalay was my top "go-to" restaurant for visiting friends, co-workers and dates, and almost never failed me in any way. Some of the dishes are less exciting than others, which would explain to me the few low ratings I see on here, so I'll toss out a few recommendations so that you can't go wrong: 1. The salads. I'm not a salad fan in general, but these are mindblowingly good and filled with unqiue flavors and textures (the sesame seeds and fried crunchy bits on top really work well with the crisp, thin salad greens and carrots). There are around ten different ones, but they're mostly the same save for one different ingredient each. Ginger is the best, in my opinion, but mango's pretty damned good as well. 2. Appetizers -- I prefer either the samosas or the gram fritters. The former aren't exceptionally different from other veggie samosas out there but both of these (and all the appetizers, I think) come with an amazing sweet/spicy red dipping sauce that complements them so perfectly. Sometimes, when no one is looking, I will eat a spoonful of this sauce by itself... 3. Chicken in coconut cream sauce -- Amazing. I still order it even though, after years of patronage, Joe (one of the three brothers that run the place) gave me the recipe. And no, I will not share it with you. 4. Noodle Number ? -- I do not know the number because they have changed the menu on me multiple times. My friends and I used to rave about "Noodle Number 7" so much that, when it became "Noodle Number 9" years later, we were lost and confused, despite the recipe being unchanged. Last I checked it was "Noodle Number 6." It's got flat noodles, peanuts, bean sprouts, chicken and an egg in the ingredient list and it's probably the best thing on the menu. I went to visit some friends in Scranton (4 hours away) who had visited Mandalay before and they begged me to bring them four servings of this dish. It's pretty much perfect -- sweet, salty, nutty, chewy, meaty, crisp. God, it's amazing! 5. Dessert -- The Golden Shweji. It's as fun to say as it is to put in your mouth. It's a hot, wet, semolina pie with coconut flavor and a few raisins tossed in. No matter how full I am, I get this every time. 6. The Iced Coffee. I'm not a coffee person, but this stuff is addictive. Price-wise, dishes are around 10-13 bucks each, which is a big jump from the old days when they were in College Park, but still very reasonable compared to other local fare, and well worth it. I can't recommend this place enough! read more

... the food aftertaste did my bode well with me ... also had a tummy ache the whole night :/ read more

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With a cuisine as unique as Burmese, it's good to have a guide. And as anyone who have ever taken a bad walking tour can attest, a good guide should be informative, entertaining, and answer all newbie questions with the patience of a saint. Luckily, Mandalay has one of the best in their owner, host, and server. For a group of nine (especially nine Yelpers), his floor show of jokes and recommendations wasn't surprising, but having been here in a "group" of two before, I knew it was the norm. Our large group started out with the Tealeaf Salad. It was very unexpected. It's more a slaw (though don't call it similar to a cole slaw, according to the owner, "cole slaw has mayonnaise in it!") than a traditional salad with pieces of crunchy leaves and peas throughout. It's vinegary aftertaste gave it just the right amount of kick. I could have eaten it as a main course. Being the token vegetarian, I only got to try a couple of the dishes. Their noodles in bean sauce (V06) was savory and the noodles were just the thick, firm noodles were fulfilling. The tofu could have used a bit more blending with the sauce (which tasted a lot like a black bean sauce even though it's not advertised as such) but other than that it was perfect. I never even got to sample more than a bite of the veggie eggplant dish since the omnivores ate it all! So I would guess that was even better. Throughout the meal, the server came by a lot to make sure everything was alright on both occasions I was there and was very good to check about dietary restrictions. This place is legendary, according to my lady, in the D.C. vegan community since all of their veggie dishes are vegan and they cater to that crowd. One warning though, the spicy is not "American spicy" as the owner reminded us. A couple of drops of the chili sauce is no joke. I guess the profuse sweating of those of us with weaker constitutions just adds to the authenticity though. read more

This is one of my favorite restaurants in the area! I dream about their food all the time! I'm vegan/vegetarian so their vast amount of meatless options are a godsend. I recommend the gram fritter salad (so delicious) & the tofu ohnno hin (equally delicious). The flavors are to die for. The only thing I wish is that they had more restaurants all over DC! Can't wait until the next time I can have their food read more

This place is so good, and reasonably priced. Lots of vegetarian dishes here, and you can tell them how spicy to make your order. My favorites are the eggplant fritters and V06, which is a flat noodle, romain lettuce, bean type of dish. It sounds odd, but it's really yummy. read more

Mandalay Restaurant & Cafe - Burmese Near Me - Silver Spring, Maryland

Pretty good...we order some appetizers and a chicken, beef, and pork dish - flavors were okay not too overpowering but a tab bit bland except the beef dish - personally I thought the portions was a bit small... read more

Mandalay Restaurant & Cafe - A1 and A3 - Burmese Near Me - Silver Spring, Maryland

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We had never had Burmese food until we stopped in for lunch while looking at apartments in the area. So we decided to move to Silver Spring after having a delicious meal here. Ok not really, but it didn't hurt! We both had delicious noodle dishes from the lunch specials and decided we'd be back. Fast forward a few weeks and we returned for dinner with the in laws and again we were blown away by the experience. Service was excellent despite the fact every table was full. Food was amazing. We got the Theesone Hin soup. ORDER THIS SOUP. So many flavors and so delicious. Next we got three dishes - Letthoke Sone (mixed noodles), Pazun Ohnno Hin (shrimp in onion base curry), and Htamin Paung (tofu and veggies in brown sauce). The noodles and the tofu and veggies were light, tasty, and not too spicy. The brown sauce is heavenly. Lastly, we finished with the sticky rice and coconut ice cream. I would go here to just get these two desserts and nothing else. The ice cream has so much flavor without being overpowering and the sticky rice has the perfect addition of brown sugar. Order these dishes and you will not be disappointed! read more

A friend and I decided to go to Mandalay one Saturday a few months after it moved to Silver Spring. The next day, we started talking about how good it had been--and we decided to go back again that night. (It was just as good as the night before.) I liked it in College Park, and I like it here. I tend to order iced coffee, then focus on the starters, especially the samosas and salads (I second the gram fritter salad recommendation), and then skip to dessert, but the entrees are also good. The coconut cream curry tofu (tofu ohno hin) is excellent. The food is light and unusual and addictive. read more

This was my first time having Burmese food. The food was pretty good here, but probably something I'll just be trying once. Food tastes a little like Thai food but perhaps not as sweet. We started with green tea leaf salad, which was refreshing but not filling at all. It was interesting to try but didn't necessarily taste great. We ordered Noodle #6 which was delicious; it comes with a sweet/spicy sauce, which makes the noodle taste even better. We also tried the curry pork ribs dish (under specialties), which I wasn't a huge fan of. The curry is not much like anything I've had before - it's kinda thick and chunky and not as flavorful as indian or japanese curry. The portions are pretty big. Coconut ice cream was super delicious, and probably my favorite part of the meal. Service was great, and people were very nice. I would recommend trying if you've never had Burmese food because it's interesting. read more

The food is unique and good and healthy. The prices are around $10 an entree. For these reasons, this is my absolute favorite restaurant in the DC area. (I've been to the downtown Silver Spring location and that's what I'm reviewing.) On a side note, the atmosphere leaves a lot to be desired, so I wouldn't go here on a date. But the food more than makes up for it. This is where I take people who visit, especially family. I recommend any of the salads - mango or papaya salad. It doesn't have a bitter taste that often accompanies leafy salads and the dressings work so well with the fruit. Get the thai tea with your meal. I can't remember what entree I got, but my friends all shared our meals and I loved every single one of them. There is selection here to please everyone - from vegetarians to octogenarians. I also got the dessert made with "cream of wheat" and it was unbelieveably delicious. Three of us shared it and there was nearly a war. The service was great, the food is fantastic and the prices are among the cheapest I've seen in the DC area. This place is the best! read more

Nice little Burmese place in the Spring. They were open pretty late for a weeknight so that was cool, and our waitress was friendly. The food came out very quickly. I ordered the noodle dish #1, which I think is called the mixed noodle dish (in English of course, I cannot remember the Burmese name). It was very good and a BIG portion. They were out of tofu so I got dried bean curd instead, and I couldn't really tell much of a difference. The samosas were also good and seemed very Indian, probably because the countries are next to each other. For dessert I had the sticky rice, which comes served looking more like a slice of pie than the sticky rice you get at a Thai place. It was good though, and I'd definitely come back here again if I was in the mood for some different Asian food. read more

Wow, amazing Burmese food! We had the samosas (more like an Asian fried dumpling than an Indian samosa), the ginger salad, LetThoke Sone (Mixed Noodle Dish), WetThat ThaYetThee Hin (mango pork), and the Sunday special Dan Pauk (chicken in an onion curry with jasmine rice). You can order your main dishes in one of three levels of spiciness. We went with medium, which was underwhelming, though the pork had a curious afterburn. Dessert was delicious sticky rice and a refreshing generous portion of coconut ice cream. You can share the ice cream, but may not want to share the smaller portion of sticky rice. Mandalay has a lot of veggie and vegan options. Tell the server if you have a peanut allergy or a coconut allergy. Decor could be better. Definitely more of a jeans place than a dressed to impress place. Service could be a lot better. read more

In as much as you don't have much choice when it comes to Burmese food in the D.C. area, it would almost be an affront to say that Mandalay is the best Burmese restaurant. The matriarch chef of the family who owns the restaurant cooks delectable authentic home-style meals, though many items on the menu have a similar taste. Burmese cuisine is often compared to a cross between Thai and Indian food with myriad curry and noodle dishes, yet the large variety of salads are what stands out as particularly unique. The green tea salad is quite the novelty, albeit a slight after-taste is apparent but not unexpected. My favorites are the papaya and the gram fritter salads. Whenever I go to Mandalay, I'm tempted to make a meal out of the salads alone, which is no wonder, because the restaurant practically caters to vegetarians with a wide assortment of dishes in every category. The wait staff will even offer to serve dishes such as the salads without the fish sauce, which is a common ingredient in South East Asian cuisine and a common faux pas when ordering for the unsuspecting vegetarian. read more

I have loved Mandalay ever since it was in College Park. It was one of the few things I really missed about the DC area when I was living in Baltimore. When I was a vegetarian, there was always something on the menu for me. Now that I'm not anymore, my favorite dish has become the tamarind catfish curry--I can credit this dish with getting me to appreciate catfish. I am really surprised that some reviewers have called the food at Mandalay bland! I know I'm a wimp, but their "medium" is too spicy for me. I like that they give you options for the spiciness of your entree. "Hot" is not for the faint of heart. To address a couple of other comments: I don't think the portions here are too small (a comment I've heard before from friends). I think they're just right--I think we're just all used to the portions at most Chinese restaurants (where I usually find myself taking home leftovers). The other thing is, the best way to experience this or many other Asian cuisines is family-style...order a salad and a couple entrees and then share them. That way you won't get bored with just potato curry (which I think is great, but not really a well-balanced meal). There are so many things on the menu, and chances are you're probably not going to love all of them. It took me a while to find my favorites. I think this can be a kid-friendly place, depending on the kid. We took my 6-year-old stepdaughter and her 5-year-old friend here and they loved it (this is where sharing entrees comes in handy; kids can't finish a whole one themselves). They were especially thrilled by the coconut ice cream in a real coconut! read more

Why on earth am I up at 1 am writing to an audience of tens of readers about wetthar aloo hin? Because I care. I care about your experience at a Zagat rated Burmese cafe in Silver Spring. The appeal of being different; of being able to say tomorrow at the water cooler that you went to this fabulous Burmese cafe - may be too strong for you to resist. You imagine yourself saying pithy things like, "I call it 'Burma' because I just will NOT support Than Shwe and his Myanmarian thugs." Don't let this desire cloud your taste buds. The pork was low quality, dry and tasteless. It reminded me of a dish I made as a 17 year old for my "world culture" dinner at Mr. Santos' house (I was India). To be fair, this isn't terrible food. It's marginally good food. read more

Fried tofu and onions are fried in same fryer as the meat. They are therefore NOT vegan. Staff was unwilling to substitute soft tofu for the fried tofu. Thus most dishes are not vegan and all of you have been lied to. ETA: yellow beans are just garbanzo (chickpeas). They aren't yellow colored!!! read more

I am Burmese & I cook well. So I know which Burmese is really good & which one is pretender. Those pretenders are Burmese restaurants that are only good for Americans customers. This restaurant was actually good but I can't give five stars because it is missing a lot of Burmese signature dishes on the menu. They need to work on the Burmese non alcoholic drinks & desserts menus. The restaurant also need proper modern decoration. There are so many beautiful Burmese artworks that can be displayed! read more

Mandalay Restaurant & Cafe - Burmese Chicken Biryani (on Sunday). Really good Spicy Pork Belly with Mango Pickles (must try). - Burmese Near Me - Silver Spring, Maryland

I've been trying to go here for quite some time, so finally when my boyfriend said he would treat me to dinner, there was a perfect opportunity to try it! We started with tea-leaf salad... NOT my favorite thing. Had a bitter taste and a lot of different textures. As entrees, we ate: rice noodles with pork (Nyat KaukSwe Gyaw ($10.99), Flat rice noodles stir-fried with pork or chicken (dark meat), bean sprouts, lettuce, ground peanuts and topped with egg ($2 extra with shrimp or combo) and, chicken coconut cream curry (KyetThar Ohnno Hin ($11.99), Chicken (dark meat), green pepper, onion, and tomato simmered in coconut cream sauce ). BOTH WERE ABSOLUTELY DELICIOUS. We ordered them mild and they had just the right amount of spice. Perfectly prepared and the sauces were divine. Service was initially pretty slow, but once we ordered our food, the service improved and our waiters were very cordial. The interior has some cute pictures of little girls (oh, that sounded creepy), but they're in traditional Burmese dresses... so that's what makes it cute. In any case, it was a very good dining experience. read more

This is a terrific joint tucked on a quiet street of downtown Silver Spring. Burmese food is an interesting amalgam of different influences: Chinese, Indian, Thai. The textures and tastes of the menu offerings at Mandalay will probably remind most folks of a savory, less spicy Thai. But the common feature amongst all the styles mentioned above is that they are all delicious. And Mandalay certainly is that. I always end up sharing family-style with pretty much the same dishes (the dishes are also portioned out property for you to have a dish per person). The gram fritters and green papaya salad are a nice start to any meal - the perfect combo of crispy and crisp! The fritters are served with a terrific lemony chili sauce that I can never get enough of! Then it's always a noodle entree (I've tried basically every single one of them, and they are all great...with the Lethoke Sone probably being my favorite) and a stir-fried dish or curry (have not yet had all of these, but the Tofu Ohnno Hin I had recently was great). Mandalay is one of those rare restaurants where both vegetarians and omnivores/carnivores will feel comfortable in ordering just about anything on the menu. The service is friendly and very efficient. Sometimes I feel the food is a little over-priced for what it is, but it's definitely delicious and well-worth the (short!) trek from the Metro. read more

I liked them better in college park.....but I still them in silver spring... 1st thing - when they say hot they mean HOT...so don't play tough guy cuz Ur gonna lose. I LOVE THE CHOP SALADS AND THE SQUASH FRITTERS.....they also have a great vegetarian curry with potatoes. read more

Love this place! The atmosphere is not your trendy, concept, new-age DC restaurant. But, eh, who cares...at least it doesn't distract from the deliciously interesting food. Musts are the ginger salad, any of the noodles and the Burmese iced tea. The tea is super strong and super sweet, so be prepared. In a city where the food scene is hot hot hot, it's nice to have restaurants who have been around for a long time and that are solely focused on serving excellent, authentic food. read more