Mamaling Asian Street Food — Restaurant in Palm Coast

Bravo's Top Chef, Season 3 winner, Hung Huynh, is the owner of Mamaling. I read that Mamaling's food was a fusion of Asian street food and French food. Abby, the hostess, told me that he selected Palm Coast, Florida as the location of his restaurant, because his mother lives here. He trained the chefs in the restaurant. His mother is a part of the restaurant as well. Surprisingly, it was the adobo in a clay pot that attracted me to Mamaling. I have never tasted good adobo, yet it is a famous historical dish. In ancient times, adobo was cooked in a clay pot for hours and marinated to preserve the food. I have only cooked vegan eggplant adobo, and it was spectacular (just not true adobo).

After reading the best and worst reviews of Mamaling, I made a list of things to try and made a date to come at the earliest time on Friday. My friend wanted to visit Mamaling, so lunch was a birthday gift to her.

We were the first ones there, and the service was wonderful. Abby was our hostess. Veronika was our server.Everything is served fresh and never frozen. This might explain why service is very slow. It is like cooking at home except they have two chefs. I have cooked and eaten Asian food at a home. It can take hours to cook tasty Asian food. I had the Red Dragon Sangria , White Tiger Sangria, Nigori Yaegaki Cloud Sake, and Strawberry Nigori Homare Sake. All of them were served cold. They were all unique and a delight. I preferred the sweeter Red Dragon Sangria over the lighter and more tart White Tiger Sangria. Red Dragon will be the drink most people would like if they like sweet drinks. The Nigori Yaegaki Cloud Sake was elegant, slightly creamy, and fine in taste. I drank it slow and decided I liked it more after each sip. My favorite sake was the Strawberry Nigori Homare Sake. It was sweet but not too sweet and tasted like strawberries. Not your typical sake. It is my favorite Sake of 2018.

The Adobo Pork Steam Buns were similar to siopao--an urban Filipino adaptation of the Cantonese char siu bao, steamed barbecue pork bun. They were well displayed and cooked well. They were not the best appetizers I have tasted, yet they were well executed. Siopao takes a long time to cook, and these adobo steam buns were cooked in a short amount of time. We were given two buns. The Szechuan Mini Chicken Tacos were the perfect appetizer. I like the savory crunch and flavor of the tacos, and we had five tacos. I never had a Szechuan taco, and I usually don't eat tacos. Even though the appetizers were tasty, I would prefer to try new appetizers and new flavors.

Service was quick and friendly in a quiet way. Veronika cleared our tables efficiently and was very attentive without being overbearing. For the main entree, I ordered two entrees: the famous Mamaling Fried Rice and Adobo Pork in a clay pot with white Jasmine rice. My friend ordered drunken chicken udon noodles. The adobo was an evening entree but they accommodated my request. The udon noodles were spicy and delicious. I had mixed reviews for the Mamaling fried rice. It had the best seasonings I ever had in fried rice but I couldn't get past the texture. The fried egg over the rice was a great touch. I think it was a preference matter. I like my fried rice to be fluffy and cooked with jasmine rice. The fried rice was not jasmine and had some chew to it. After sharing it, there was a lot of leftover fried rice swimming in sausage, shrimp, veggies, and chicken. My husband feasted on the leftover and said it was the best fried rice he ever ate. My favorite food was the pork adobo in a clay pot. I could slice the soft and succulent meat with my fork. There was about five servings in the adobo clay pot. I ate a little of the adobo with white jasmine rice. The egg in the adobo clay pot was perfection. It was like a little humble surprise and addition to the adobo. I would order the adobo as a takeout again again.

If you come to Mamaling's, go outside your comfort zone. Follow your intuition. Eat with mindfulness and zen. This humble place is a little some kind...

04/18/2024 Update: I've visited this Asian restaurant before and had a wonderful experience with both the food and service. However, my recent visit with new friends left much to be desired. While the food remained satisfying, the service was disappointing. Our waitress initially forgot about us, although she apologized for the oversight. Throughout our meal, she was more engrossed in loud conversations with another table than attending to our needs, even forgetting our drinks. What stood out was her differing treatment towards us compared to other guests. It was evident that her lack of attention affected our overall dining experience. My friend, who had high expectations after driving nearly an hour, was particularly displeased. Fortunately, the other service staff, including the host and busser, were friendly and tried to make up for the lapse. Despite the waitress's indifference, another staff member promptly brought the chili oil I requested. I hope the restaurant takes this feedback constructively and works on improving their service quality. While I'll consider returning in the future, I expect a more attentive and welcoming experience next time.

My original post: Mamaling Asian Street Food offers an exceptional dining experience with its inviting ambiance and attentive service. Our dining experience was elevated by the delectable array of dishes we sampled. The bacon-roasted Brussels sprouts stole the show with their perfect balance of charred exterior and tender interior. The fusion of Eastern and Western flavors in each dish was a delightful surprise, leaving us eager to explore more. Personal favorites included the crispy firecracker shrimp and the succulent half roast duck. Mamaling Asian Street Food has undoubtedly earned a spot on our list of go-to restaurants, and we look forward to...

Sorry, we wanted to like this place. Friends of ours raved about this place so we met them over there. They arrived 10 minutes before us and told us they had ordered drinks already. The waitress came over and asked what we wanted to drink after 15 minutes, and then told our friends that she forgot what they wanted. That beginning was a clue. We got to order food when our drinks were delivered, the table ordered 2 appetizers of egg rolls, I got drunken samurai, The wife got egg rolls for her dinner as she wasn't real hungry, friends got lemon grass curry and fried rice. 10 minutes later I was served my dinner. Appetizers hadn't come out yet, and I had finished my tea as well as the water glasses were in need of attention. Nothing was done. We had to ask for drink refills. 10 minutes later the wife's COLD egg rolls arrived, still no appetizers, and we mentioned it. There was a guy that was delivering our waitresses food and at this point we hadn't seen her since she took our order. Then the friends' meals arrived, 5 minutes apart, and 1 egg roll appetizer. Still missing 1 egg roll appetizer. Another 10 minutes and the final egg roll appetizer showed up. The waitress did show up to deliver the tab, which is on her handheld computer, so no chance to look over the bill at all. You are told what you ordered and then the total. She actually was pleasant at that point, but it was short lived as she swiped the card, and I chose no tip because we leave cash...she was not pleasant anymore. The food overall was kind of mediocre, with varying degrees of warmth.... even our friends were apologetic over the experience. I doubt we'll go back. If you try it out just don't set the bar too high and don't get the very tiny waitress. I wish I could remember her name but I'm not sure...