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Burmese national pride oozes from this narrow East Village space, where traditional art brightens the walls and travel-guide images decorate the menus. Many of the curries, noodles and breads here are influenced by neighboring India and China. Buddhist traditions preclude widespread consumption of beef and pork in Burma, so vegetables, fish and chicken play an essential role. Ginger, citrus, tamarind, and mango are prominent refrains, as are chili, coconut, and tomato-based sauces. Salads are a linchpin of Burmese hospitality—they are traditionally offered to houseguests—and their incarnations here are crisp and refreshing. The nutty green tea leaf and sweet ginger salads are like slaws: shredded tea leaves or ginger with cabbage, carrots, peanuts, fried yellow peas (a staple, and the base ingredient for Burmese yellow tofu), sesame seeds, and fried garlic and onions. Fresh coriander leaves on top cut the salty-tartness of the lemon marinade. The festival noodles fish broth—thin rice noodles and hard-boiled eggs in a porridge-like broth of minced fish—is texturally unusual and richly flavored. Work your way through the long menu, and soon you'll be pining for the day when Burmese restaurants become as ubiquitous as their Indian and Chinese competitors. — Stephanie Adler Yuan

Green tea leaf salad, $7.95; thousand layered pancake with curry, $10.95; mango soybean, $11.95; king fishball curry, $13.95