You certainly don't go to Mandalay for the interior design and the intimate atmosphere. It's the kind of restaurant you might stumble into after hours of desperate driving across the mid-west, only to find yourself in a beige meeting-hall kind of space, surrounded by wrinkles and disapproval.

You go to Mandalay for the food. It's good, interesting and reasonably priced. I'd never given much thought to the Burmese cuisine. I'd assumed it was an extension of India's palate and palette, being spicy and brown. While it's heat level isn't as high as India's (and you can pick your level of spiciness when you order), it's also influenced by the South East Asian cuisines that lie to the south, with a sweet caramel element as well as a sour tamarind-y one.

Mandalay's menu offers some intriguing starters, like Green Tealeaf Salad, made with fermented leaf and shredded cabbage in a Burmese dressing that wasn't salty enough for me, sprinkled with fried garlic chips and yellow peas and some fritters that turned the sticks of eggplant inside them to a light softness behind the coating of crisp batter. There was a wonderful noodle dish with four kinds of noodles and various comforting slow-simmered, rib-sticking meat dishes. Desserts, which we didn't have, include sticky rice with brown sugar and coconut, Japanese mochi and coconut sorbet. There are plenty of options for vegetarians and vegans.

My only cavil is that the head waiter had kept his charm off for the night and was a touch pouty about letting the four of us into the empty side of the dining space when we baulked at him steering us towards a table right by the door. Then there was a bit of impatience about how long would we be gossiping over the starters before we made up our minds about the mains. (Have you worked out this was a table of women?) But then, the place was very busy.

Mandalay, 930 Bonifant St, Silver Spring, 301 585 0500.