I can tell I like something when I go back a second time the next night. That’s exactly what happened with MOH Kitchen. A couple of weeks ago my friend, Tane, introduced me to Burmese food. I fell in love with it. It’s a milder version of Thai with better textures and a bit heavier Indian influence. This makes sense because Burma is right between Thailand, India and China. What I like about Burmese food is the texture. They combine the soft with the crunchy, the smooth with the rough and it all comes out perfect.
Unfortunately, the place we ate at then was on the other side of the Bay. That’s a bit too far of a drive for anything other than a special occasion. So I pulled up my trusty Yelp app and looked for local Burmese food. I found MOH Kitchen and the reviews were all top notch so we decided to try it. They also serve Thai food as well as Burmese food. That’s a win/win as far as I’m concerned.
It’s a bit of a drive down there (about 10 miles) but well worth it. It’s actually close to where Jene works so he can drag his co-workers in for lunch. Koko (the owner) said they’d only been open for about a month. I am hoping to send lots of people his way because I want him to succeed. Koko runs the front and is the only server while his wife does all the cooking. It’s a small place, maybe seating for 25-30 but it’s fantastic food. And not only did Koko provide awesome service but he also told me about a fabulous Burmese cookbook. It’s called Burma: Rivers of Flavor by Naomi Guduid. I immediately bought the Kindle version so I could read it while we ate.
As usual, I mostly forgot to take pictures but I have a few.
Friday night’s meal:
Tea leaf salad: I don’t have a picture of this but it’s a fabulous salad so completely unlike anything a Westerner is used to. It’s based on fermented tea leaves. I’m sure that many people are a bit taken aback by the idea of fermented foods but it’s really quite good. The tea leaves have a little bit of a tangy flavor and a smooth texture. They are served with a bit of cabbage. Around the side of the cabbage topped with tea leaves is an assortment of condiments. There are fried yellow peas, toasted peanuts pieces, sesame seeds, shrimp powder, chili paste, lemon and some things I’m probably forgetting. The idea is that each person adds the flavors they want to the tea leaves and cabbage. Or you can just mix everything together at the table. This was nice because I liked everything except the chile paste so we left that for Jene to add to his portion. According to my new cookbook, in Burma there usually isn’t any cabbage or lettuce but I think that here it’s added so that Westerners have something that looks like “salad” to them.
Paratha: a thin, flat bread very similar to Thai roti. I found that MOH’s is much less greasy than the roti I’ve been served at Thai restaurants. Instead of being served with curry sauce, it’s served with curried potatoes that have been mashed into a thick paste. Mmmmm.
Thick round rice noodles with curried chicken and boiled egg: This dish is pretty much exactly what it sounds like. Thick, round riced noodles with pieces of curry chicken and slices of boiled egg. There is also shredded cabbage and some other things that make a nice crunch to offset the softness of the noodles and eggs. Again, no picture but it tastes really good!!
Mango with Sticky Rice: This is a very traditional Thai dessert. What made this so outstanding was the presentation.
Saturday night’s meal:
Friday night Jene ordered the Thai yellow curry. It was so good I actually woke up Saturday morning and told him we had to go back again lol.
Samosas: Since we’d tried the Paratha the night before this time we had the Samosas. They’re filled with a lovely seasoned blend of potatoes and veggies. Unlike many Indian Samosas, there were no chickpeas in them. Win!
Thai Yellow Curry: Holy cow! I could go on about this curry forever. I really enjoy Thai yellow curry but this stuff is addictive. I wish I could get the recipe so I could make it at home. But then I wouldn’t be going back to the restaurant all the time lol. It was so good that I even got some to go for Tane. I dropped it off that the vet clinic where she was working on the way home. Then at 1130 last night I was eating the rest of the sauce mixed with brown rice as a midnight snack. In fact, I’m drooling right now, just trying to type about it.
Thai Green Curry: Jene likes his food pretty spicy so he gave the green curry a try. He said he felt heat in his mouth which means I couldn’t eat it. I wasn’t even brave enough to taste a tiny bit. I know I’m a sissy when it comes to heat!
We skipped dessert Saturday night because we were quite full. Next time I’ll get the Black Sticky Rice dessert which is a Burmese dish. I don’t think I can rave enough about this place. GO THERE!! The prices are quite reasonable too. I bought dinner for three and left a very good tip for just under $50. GO THERE! Eat really tasty food and tell Koko that Kris says hi. GO THERE!!
Dreamy's Delights 