This Friday, while braving the cold and treacherous ice patches that still line many parts of the Corner, I decided to pop into Mangosteen Asian Street Food for Charlottesville’s Restaurant Week, hoping that a hearty meal would offer me some warm relief. With their fixed Restaurant Week menu offering a three-course meal for $25, both my budget and cold body were happy to walk into Mangosteen to try some Asian street food. And I have to admit, the trek was worth it.
Joining the iconic lineup of food spots on Elliewood Avenue — such as Crozet Pizza, Grit Coffee and Marco & Luca Dumplings — Mangosteen offers up a mixture of Vietnamese, Thai, Chinese, Korean and Japanese dishes. Named after the sweet Southeast Asian fruit, Mangosteen is the newest business venture from Kitty Ashi, a local restaurateur and former “Chopped” contestant. Ashi is the mind behind local spots such as Maple Pine Breakfast & Thai Kitchen, Camellias Coffee & Tea, Pineapples Thai Kitchen and Tangerines Kitchen. Mangosteen offers flavorful fusion dishes at affordable price points, making it a soon-to-be favorite for University students looking for a casual sit-down dining spot.
Housed in the building formerly home to Kuma Inc and neighboring Coupe DeVille’s, Mangosteen is open everyday from 11 a.m. to 3 p.m. for their lunch service, then 5 p.m to 9 p.m. for dinner. Reservations can be made by calling the restaurant’s phone number, listed on their website.
Upon entering the restaurant, I was greeted with the bright openness of their covered front patio section, and the hostess warmly welcomed me as soon as I made my way in, offering me a brief respite from the below-freezing temperatures outside. I was seated in the front section, giving me time to truly take in my surroundings. While the large windows of the covered porch space offered up nice nighttime views of the corner and a plethora of people-watching opportunities, I did quickly become cold again upon sitting, adorning my jacket again less than 15 minutes after taking it off.
With Christmas centerpieces still lining their wooden tables, homemade signage and mangosteen fruit-related posters and plaques on their walls, the restaurant offers up a simplistic dining environment, reminding me of other mom-and-pop Asian restaurants. In addition to the facile decor, I did notice the cleanliness of the front entryway section — lacking any wet shoe marks or brown salt littering the floors. Cooking compilations played silently on a TV screen anchored high up on the back wall, while a melody of pop songs played over a speaker.
To begin my tasting, I ordered the Curry Puffs as my appetizer. Described as “Thai samosas” by my server, I was greeted with a plate of two orange-sized turnovers stuffed with a curry filling. The bites were served over a bed of chopped lettuce, with a sweet cucumber and onion relish served on the side. With a filling of a mixture of fried vegetables — most notably, sweet potato — and a flaky exterior, I quickly finished the curry puffs. The curry seasoning of the vegetables offered the slightest of kicks, and the cucumber relish offered a perfect sweet but savory sauce to round out the dish.
About 15 minutes later, I was served my main dish, Chicken Pad Thai. As someone who considers herself a chicken pad thai connoisseur, I approached the dish with a mixture of skepticism and excitement — would this be my new go-to pad thai option on the Corner? And I have to say, yes.
The noodles were warm, with the perfect combination of elasticity and firmness. Coated with a creamy fish oil sauce, the near-perfect ratio of thinly-cut chicken, eggs, bean sprouts, carrots and crushed peanuts were seemingly expertly sprinkled throughout. The pad thai had a slight sweetness, and its flavor wasn’t overwhelmed by an ungodly amount of fish oil, which is usually my biggest critique with pad thai dishes. My only complaint is that the scallions were far too thick, left in larger chunks rather than being thinly sliced and mixed within the dish. I found myself sliding them over to the edge of my plate to avoid being assaulted by their overwhelming flavor. Still, overall, this dish definitely met my high pad thai standards, with its large portion size allowing me to bring home leftovers for a later lunch.
Finally, for dessert, I opted to try a Japanese Crepe Cake. This cake turned out to be the perfect palette cleanser following the richness of my pad thai, offering up a subtly sweet vanilla flavor interspersed by moist creme and a flaky crust. The cake was garnished with powdered sugar and strawberries, allowing for a bit more sweetness than the subdued flavor of the cake itself offered. While I enjoyed the subtle flavor, I wouldn’t necessarily recommend this cake for anyone with a big sweet tooth or a craving for a truly sugary desert.
Overall, Mangosteen offers high-quality dishes and generous portions at a price range at about $14-18 per main dish, making it accessible for University students. A perfect spot for a pre-going out dinner or a casual sit-down date, Mangosteen offers an eclectic and tasty variety of dining options.
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