The far north east Bay Area (Vallejo, Benicia) has a dearth of good authentic Asian restaurants. So the opening of a good Burmese restaurant in Benecia is especially pleasing.
Aung Maylika is a small nondescript restaurant in a little strip mall in Benicia. It’s only been open for about a month and they are still working on getting a liquor license. We have been there two times so far. The first time we went with friends and this weekend we got take out. Both times were excellent. Here is what we ate:
First visit:
Somosa Soup. Excellent. Complex well spiced broth. Spicing was interesting with complex flavors including clove. Not as heavy as some versions I have tried.
Tea leaf salad. Excellent version.
Lamb curry. Excellent. Very spicy dark curry with layers of complex flavors and a prominent note of cloves or allspice.
Coconut pudding dessert with coconut ice cream. Not as good as the main courses. The coconut ice cream had an artificial flavor and was not creamy. The fried coconut pudding was heavy and one dimensional.
Second visit:
Catfish soup. Even better than the somosa soup. Very deeply flavored and satisfying. Would order this again in a second.
Rainbow salad. A salad with different kinds of noodles. Very good.
There is also a kind of fried flat bread on the menu, I forgot the name of it. Somewhat similar to versions I’ve had at Malaysian and Indonesian restaurants. You can order it with a side of different curries. We ordered it with the lamb curry and it was delicious. Next time we decided will get the curry with a side of the flatbread
Nice to hear a great option (even if its far for me). How do you rate it against other better known Burmese options like the old (or the new) Grocery Cafe, Little Yangon, etc.?
I don’t recall a great difference in the broths of the dozen or so versions I’ve had. They tend to distinguish themselves more by their toppings.
To be truthful, the best Mohinga I’ve has was made by cooking moms at the annual Thingyan (Burmese Water Festival) in Union City a couple of years back. It was sort of a luxe version with nice chunks of catfish in it. The restaurant versions seldom cough up much in the way of fish flesh; it’s all about cooking the flavor into the broth.
I’ve been here three times. The tea leaf salad is great. If you live out this way it’s great to have Burmese food this good close to home. I can say it’s one of the better options for Asian food in this area.
Excellent. The owners told us earlier this year it was in the works. It sounded like it will be a larger more elaborate place than the Benecia location. We are still loving the Benecia place, we get takeout from there about once every two weeks, sometimes once a week.
For those who need an excuse to go to Benicia. The main strip where Aung Maylika is on, and the nearby waterfront are both very strollable and relaxing.
Great review! It’s still our favorite restaurant in the area. If you are in Benicia again One House Bakery up the street has a lunch menu with excellent sandwiches.