There was a moment during my meal at Mali Restaurant, Virginia Highlands’ blossoming Thai restaurant, when my husband and I both nearly spit out our glasses of Ca’ Monti and began to laugh.  Not in response to the hilarity of our dinner dates, but to the odor steaming off our appetizer, Nua Nom Tok.  When the pot of sliced grilled beef mixed with exotic spices was placed on our table, the air filled with the scent of cat food.  Our friends Jeff and Rachel were horrified, but we were relieved.  Anyone who has ever been to Thailand knows that traditional Thai food traditionally smells like Fancy Feast.

Mali Restaurant is known for its classic cuisines and generous portions.  The menu is studded with flavors that can transport any diner to the streets of Chang Mai.  There is the Panang Chicken, for instance.  Panang is a national dish of Thailand, with as many recipes for it as there are islands in the Pacific.  Some are soupy braises of chicken or pork in coconut milk and fish sauce.  Others are cooked down in a sweet but fierce curry paste.  At Ma Li, head chef Wannee Ounalom uses a red curry infused with basil and peppers.  It’s spicy, but it’s terrific.

At Mali Restaurant your best bet is to stick with the items you can’t pronounce, there in hides the menu’s strength.  My husband ordered Masaman Shrimp: sautéed shrimp and scallops in masaman curry with avocado, onion, and cashew nut.  He added some stir fried noodles and finished the entire plate (which is saying a lot because the serving was enormous).

Don’t get your hopes up with the sushi menu.  The Salmon skin roll was good, but monochromatic.  My advice, save your taste buds for the Seafood in a Clay Pot- Jeff’s meal choice.  While I am sure he didn’t appreciate my plunging spoon in his bowl, I just couldn’t resist the delicious medley of shrimp, scallops, and grouper sautéed with Thai jelly noodle, napa, zucchini, and black mushroom in garlic sauce.  

As any Atlantan will tell you, our city is filled with Asian cuisine restaurants.  Most of them are lined with chrome-accented décor, constellations of LED lights, and cold, winding booths.  Mali Restaurant is unadorned and uncluttered.  But if you make sure to sit on the candlelit patio, preferably next to the plumerias, you’ll never miss the city chic, or the fourteen-hour plane flight.