Mandalay (SF/Inner Richmond, Burmese)
4348 California St.
(@ 6th Ave.)
San Francisco, CA
(Inner Richmond district)
Price: $-$$
Rating: 7.5 (Rating & price key)
Last visit: 04/23/07
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A delightful alternative to the nearby-and often packed (but
excellent) Burma Superstar.
The interior is nicely decorated with Burmese art and objects, with
some cheesy christmas lights and bulbs thrown in for good measure.
The tea leaf salad ($6.95), a many-ingredient mix of tea leaves, lentil seads, ground shrimp, fried garlic, green pepper, sesame seeds, and dressing, all tossed together tableside. It was very flavorful, and had a lot of textural interest. It wasn't very attractive once tossed, however, most resembling a greenish pile of gloop.
On another visit, the ginger salad ($8) proved to be a very flavorful and also textural starter, with a large pile of shredded ginger, fried garlic, peanuts, sesame seeds, and a few other ingredients tossed tableside. I preferred this to the tea leaf salad, as the flavors were bright and fresh (and pretty spicy due to some slices of serrano pepper).
A few bites of a dining companion's Mandalay Beef ($8.95), proved it to be a delicious plate of fried beef slices sauteed with garlic and hot sauce. Although there was some heat to it, it wasn't overpowering, and the flavor was great.
Mongolian Chicken was also very flavorful, with mixed stir-fried veggies and chicken in a light and slightly spicy sauce. A nice topping to some tasty coconut rice.
Service is casual and a little distant, but gets the job done. Prices are very reasonable, with only a few seafood items exeeding $10 on the dinner menu. Few seem to know about this place, and it's their loss - I think they're one of the better places on Clement St.