5/5 Mohan C. 2 years ago on Google
I've
been
wanting
to
try
Pa
Lian
forever-
it's
rare
to
find
niche
places
like
this
that
serve
less
mainstream
"ethnic"
food,
and
as
far
as
I
can
tell
this
one
of
the
only
Burmese
restaurants
in
the
Chicagoland
area.
Also,
everyone
raves
about
this
place
online
(5
star
rating
with
~500
reviews
on
Yelp),
so
I
was
extra
excited
to
try
this
place
out
recently.
I'm
no
expert,
but
in
my
mind
Burmese
food
is
most
similar
to
Thai
food
(a
lot
of
coconut
and
curry
based
dishes),
with
a
stronger
Indian
influence
in
terms
of
spices/flavor
profile.
The
host/owner
of
the
place
was
very
warm
in
welcoming
us
in
and
explaining
items
on
the
menu.
We
started
off
with
a
complimentary
chicken
bone
broth
soup
with
fresh
green
onions
in
it.
This
was
a
very
light
soup
and
a
nice
way
to
start
our
meal.
For
appetizers
we
ordered
to
Tofu
Gyaw
and
Tea
Leaf
Salad-
both
of
these
are
must
try
items!!
The
Tofu
Gyaw
was
phenomenal.
It's
essentially
a
fried
tofu
dish,
but
not
like
the
fried
tofu
you
get
at
Chinese/Thai
restaurants
which
I
usually
find
pretty
bland.
The
Tofu
Gyaw
came
out
steaming
hot
and
was
perfectly
crisp
on
the
outside
with
a
soft,
almost
creamy
interior.
The
inside
consisted
of
tofu
made
out
of
chickpeas,
which
was
a
surprisingly
flavorful
combo
that
reminded
me
of
Indian
pakoras.
Tea
Leaf
Salad
is
a
very
popular
Burmese
dish.
The
tea
leaf
salad
here
was
made
of
fermented
tea
leaves,
a
variety
of
fried
beans,
peanuts,
sesame
seeds,
and
tomatoes/cabbage.
I
loved
the
array
of
textures
in
the
salad,
ranging
from
crunchy
to
soft.
The
fermented
tea
leaves
themself
give
a
savory,
slightly
tangy
flavor
to
the
salad,
which
is
balanced
by
the
crunchy
garlicky
flavors
of
the
fried
beans
and
peanuts
in
the
salad.
For
our
entrees
we
tried
the
Shan
Noodles,
Ohn-No-Kauk-Swe,
Chicken
potatoes
curry,
and
shrimp
curry.
The
Shan
Noodles
were
probably
my
favorite-
it
was
a
noodle
dish
made
of
a
drier
chicken
curry,
greens,
and
some
other
vegetables
with
a
hint
of
sesame.
It
wasn't
really
too
spicy,
but
had
more
flavor
than
I
was
expecting,
and
I
loved
the
little
punch
that
the
sesame
added
to
the
dish.
Ohn-No-Kauk-Swe
was
a
yellow
coconut
milk
chicken
curry
based
noodle
soup
with
lentil
fritters,
boiled
egg,
and
onions.
I
didn't
like
this
dish
as
much-
I
felt
like
the
curry
flavor
wasn't
as
strong
as
I
was
expecting,
and
I'm
not
sure
that
I
liked
the
softer
lentil
flavor
with
a
more
savory
curry
dish.
The
chicken/potatoes
curry
and
shrimp
curry
were
both
really
good.
These
dishes
definitely
had
the
strongest
Indian
taste
to
me,
with
a
ginger/garlic/onion
based
curry.
The
shrimp
curry
was
a
little
sweeter
than
the
chicken
curry,
but
both
were
savory
and
hit
the
spot.
Overall,
Pa
Lian
is
definitely
a
must-try
restaurant
in
the
Chicago
suburbs.
The
owner
was
so
warm
and
welcoming,
and
spent
a
lot
of
time
telling
us
the
story
of
himself
and
the
restaurant.
Places
like
this
really
need
people's
support
during
the
COVID-pandemic.
I
highly
recommend
stopping
by!
It's
truly
a
gem
and
won't
disappoint.
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