Manow Asian Bistro

One of things Mark and I miss the most about living in Burlington, VT is the quality and quantity of Asian restaurants. Somewhat surprisingly, there were at least 4 Thai places, 2 sushi places, and a handful of Chinese places all within walking distance. Since we've been back in NJ, we have been lamenting the fact that all the good Thai places are at least 20 miles away. No more! Mark discovered a new place that opened just one town away from us in Lincroft, called Manow Asian Bistro. Tonight we tried it out.

The outside is nothing much to look at, but once we got inside, the decor improved. A mostly dark color palette, along with shiny wood tables and tastefully low lighting made the space pleasant and relaxed. It was pretty empty, so we received prompt, and friendly, service. The menu was quite big, with a good selection of appetizers, soups, and salads. Mark and I split the shrimp and crabmeat spring rolls to start. They came with a soy herb dipping sauce that was a great shade of green. It was a very tasty take on the traditional spring roll. The rest of the menu consisted of curries, main entrees, seafood, and noodle and rice bowls. A very pleasant surprise was the extensive vegetarian part of the menu. It included everything from appetizers to entrees, all in a separate section. For dinner, Mark ordered green curry with tofu and I ordered pad woon sen (bean thread, cabbage, egg, mushroom, carrot, shrimp). My dinner was excellent. Not greasy, full of tasty veggies, a generous number of shrimp, and the overall flavor was super tasty. Mark said his was very good as well. As soon as it came to the table, we could both smell the curry. Besides the tofu, it was full of vegetables like baby eggplants, carrots, and baby corn. The fact that our dinners only cost $13 and $12 respectively made it even better. The portions were huge; I have some lunch for tomorrow at work.

This place is a fantastic addition to the local restaurant scene. It fills a much needed Thai food niche that is otherwise empty in the immediate area. The food is legit, delicious, and reasonably priced. Plus, they do take out, and deliver. I am hoping this place does well and gets a lot of business, mostly for the selfish reason that I want to eat there regularly. Try this place out! Not only for me, but for your own palate. You can find them on the web here.