Oakland Restaurant Week
Burma Superstar
4721 Telegraph Avenue, Oakland
When a guy emphasizes how much he doesn’t like eggplant each time he goes for another spoonful — again and again — you know the flavor’s there. But I didn’t need his convincing. The cooks at Burma Superstar understand what depth of flavor is, wowing even those palates predisposed to other tastes.
Burma Superstar is one of my favorite Oakland dining spots precisely because it always hits the spot, and often unexpectedly. Their prix fixe menu for Oakland Restaurant Week bursts with flavor, the kind of food you keep eating even after you’re full. You want those subtle, complimentary notes; that mouth-music.
Four of us — me, my partner, and her father and stepmother — arrived for lunch. The capacious outdoor seating in front on Telegraph Avenue was packed (it was a sunny, warm day), so we were led inside the restaurant. We usually come for dinner, so the interior’s dimly lit, spare elegance lacked the charm nighttime would have provided. But hey, we were there for the fare.
We all ordered from the prix fixe menu which offered a choice of one entrée: mango chicken, chili beef or lamb, fiery braised tofu, or eggplant in garlic sauce; coconut, jasmine, or brown rice; and a non-alcoholic beverage. My partner’s dad and stepmom chose the chili lamb. My partner got the chili beef. I opted for the eggplant, although the mango chicken was tempting (I’ve had it before and it always delivers). We also had to order Burma Superstar’s yummy little triangular sumusas as appetizers. And, of course, their superb tea leaf salad (Laphet Thoke, pictured at top): a melody of fermented tea leaf paste with romaine lettuce, cabbage, tomato, jalapeño, peanuts, sesame and sunflower seeds, chickpeas, fried garlic, ground shrimp, fish sauce, and a big squeeze of lemon.
Ginger lemonade to start: tart and bright, which we all chose over the mango lassi or Burmese milk tea. With the lemonades and the salad and sumusas — perfectly spiced little parcels of potatoes and onions where the cumin is strong but not overpowering — our appetites were ready and whetted.
Coconut rice came with our entrees, which were surprisingly large, so we were all able to share freely. There was plenty. And the rice paired perfectly with all the dishes. My partner didn’t care that much for or the chili lamb, but, like the chili beef, I found it scrumptious. The beef had an especially nice depth where the heat rose at the end of a bite. Both were well spiced, though I wish we’d opted for a higher level of heat when ordering (I’m a spice lover, but not all at the table necessarily share my enthusiasm for an eye-watering punch). The fresh basil atop them complimented the wok-tossed meat and Sichuan chilies and onions with a peppery freshness.
But the star of the show was the eggplant: shiny, iridescent purple cubes in an unctuous garlic and chili sauce with scallions. The flesh was firm yet soft, and the longer it sat in the sauce the richer the flavor became. But it didn’t sit long; we all raved over it and it disappeared more quickly than the other dishes. “I’m not a big eggplant fan,” my partner’s dad said. “But this is really good,” his refrain made moot by how often he dove into it for another helping.
Sated and overfull from a larger lunch than we’d anticipated, we opted out of dessert (we had an art gallery to get to). A bit of a shame since the fried banana — banana spring rolls with fruit and vanilla ice cream — is delectable.
Burma Superstar never disappoints. Its dishes offer a symphony of flavors that resonates in your mouth even after you can’t eat another bite. And you will have another bite.
