Kevin Liang and Michael Yang, two former New Yorkers who met while working at Han Dynasty, are behind Highland Park’s Mala Class, a jewel-box-sized restaurant serving chile-spiked Sichuan cooking. Inside the dark mint–green building, find a bare-bones
dining room accented by red tile, a handful of tables that remain busy through lunch and dinner, and enough plants to make the interior feel like a greenhouse. The kitchen quickly turns out Sichuan peppercorn–dusted wings and numbing mapo tofu, as well as other Sichuan classics, all for under $20. Mala Class isn’t trying to rival Chengdu Taste and similar icons; it succeeds as the best affordable neighborhood option for those looking for some serious heat closer to Highland Park.
What to order
- Dan dan noodles get tossed tableside in a nutty, slightly sweet sauce studded with ground pork. Threads of cucumber, tucked between bouncy noodles, diffuse the building heat.
- Crispy dry pepper fried tofu arrives splayed and dusted in an orange-hued dry pepper mix. The cubes are an ideal heat-to-numbing-to-salty balance, where each bite tumbles into the next until the entire plate is empty before you know it.
- Cumin-dusted mushroom fries are reminiscent of Chinese cumin lamb kebabs without any gamey meat. The fries offer a non-spicy option to counteract all the Sichuan pepper–laden dishes that should cover the rest of the table.
- Fall-apart tender beef and gai lan swim in an aromatic broth for the spicy beef noodle soup. Enough mala flavor comes through in the broth, tinged bright red by the pool of chile oil that rests on top.
- Sliced cucumbers and sheets of beancurd get dressed in a vinegary, homemade dressing and dusted with chile flakes. With just a hint of heat, the cukes and beancurd act as a refreshing side and a good way to get some vegetables in among the parade of noodles.
- Dumplings wrap pork in a delicate, semi-translucent skin that holds everything together without overpowering the filling. A double threat of sauces — chile oil and sweet soy with garlic — pairs low-level spice with a kiss of sweetness. Each order comes with five dumplings, which tends to be enough to share with one other person as a side.
To drink
Sip on a can of Wong Lo Kat, a Chinese herbal tea known for its cooling properties, or order a pot of hot tea that gets steeped tableside.
Insider tip
The heat level of any dish on the menu can be modified. Try it as-is on your first visit, before asking for a little more or less spice.
