Top Burmese
Top Burmese is an Oregon restaurant brand specializing in Burmese cuisine and related pan-Asian dining concepts.
Last updated August 26, 2026
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Overview
Top Burmese is a small restaurant chain based in the Portland metropolitan area of Oregon, United States. Founded by Kalvin Myint and Poe Myint, the business began in early 2019 as a virtual restaurant, taking orders primarily through delivery and take-out platforms while operating from a kitchen in northwest Portland. Its first conventional restaurant opened on Northwest 21st Avenue on September 19, 2019, establishing the brand in Portland's Northwest District. The brand's core identity is built around Burmese food, particularly dishes that introduce Burmese flavors through fermented tea leaves, aromatic curries, noodles, fritters, and other snack-oriented preparations. Its tea-leaf salad, commonly known as laphet or laphet thoke, is one of its best-known offerings. The menu also includes samosas, paratha, rice dishes, Burmese curries, and plant-based preparations. The restaurant has attracted attention for making Burmese cuisine more accessible to Portland diners while retaining ingredients and flavor combinations associated with Myanmar's culinary traditions. Top Burmese expanded through a series of distinct restaurant formats rather than simply replicating its original menu. Top Burmese Bistro Royale opened in Beaverton in 2020 with an Indian-influenced menu and incorporated service robots. Top Burmese Burma Joy, also referred to as Burma Joy Noodle House, opened on Portland's Northwest 23rd Avenue in 2021 and emphasized Chinese-inspired noodles. Top Burmese Ambassador opened on Hillsboro's Main Street in 2022. In 2023, the group introduced Old Asia Teahouse & Restaurant in Beaverton, its first concept to move beyond a primarily Burmese positioning. Old Asia pairs loose-leaf teas from different regions with pan-Asian dishes drawing from Burma, Singapore, and Malaysia. The group extended its presence into sports and event concessions in 2024, beginning operations at Portland's Moda Center with the 2024–25 NBA season. At the arena, it sells a selection of recognizable items from its restaurant business, including samosas, night-market-style chicken wings, Burmese curries, and salads. Top Burmese has received favorable local and regional food-media attention. Coverage has highlighted the brand's curries, vegan soups and noodles, samusa thoke, vegetarian offerings, and Bistro Royale location. The Oregonian included Top Burmese among its best new Portland restaurants in 2021. FSR Magazine later placed the company among America's Top 50 Independent Restaurants for 2024 and named it to its NextGen 25 list in 2025 as an emerging full-service restaurant brand in North America. The available reference material does not identify a parent corporation, public listing, formal corporate ownership structure, or operating locations outside the Portland-area market.
History
Top Burmese was established in 2019 by Kalvin Myint and Poe Myint in the Portland metropolitan area. Its earliest form was a virtual restaurant operating from a kitchen in northwest Portland. Customers ordered through delivery services including DoorDash, Grubhub, Postmates, and Uber Eats, or collected food from the kitchen. This model allowed the founders to test demand for Burmese food before committing to a full-service location. The first brick-and-mortar Top Burmese restaurant opened on Northwest 21st Avenue in Portland's Northwest District on September 19, 2019. The restaurant's menu centered on Burmese specialties and accessible shared dishes. Laphet, a fermented tea-leaf salad served with ingredients such as sunflower seeds, sesame, and peanuts, became one of the brand's signature preparations. Other offerings included samosas, paratha, curries built around paprika and turmeric, rice dishes, noodles, and vegan food. Expansion began in 2020 with Top Burmese Bistro Royale in Beaverton. This location broadened the group's menu with Indian-influenced dishes and became notable for using robots to assist in serving food. In 2021, the group opened Top Burmese Burma Joy, also called Burma Joy Noodle House, on Portland's Northwest 23rd Avenue. Burma Joy adopted a more focused noodle-house identity and emphasized Chinese-inspired noodle preparations while retaining links to the parent brand. The concept participated in Portland's 2022 Dumpling Week with tea-leaf, or laphet, dumplings. Top Burmese continued its geographic expansion in 2022 with Top Burmese Ambassador on Hillsboro's Main Street. The business then broadened its culinary scope in 2023 through Old Asia Teahouse & Restaurant in Beaverton. Old Asia was presented as a tea-centered concept, pairing loose-leaf teas from multiple regions with pan-Asian dishes influenced by Burma, Singapore, and Malaysia. This marked a strategic move from a single-cuisine restaurant identity toward a family of related concepts connected by Asian flavors and beverage-led hospitality. In 2024, Top Burmese entered venue food service at Portland's Moda Center, beginning with the 2024–25 NBA season. Its arena menu included samosas, night-market-style chicken wings, Burmese curries, and salads, giving the brand access to a large event audience beyond its neighborhood restaurants. The group has been covered positively by Portland food publications. Reviews and roundups have highlighted its curries, tea-leaf salad, samusa thoke, vegan soups, vegan noodle dishes, and vegetarian-friendly special-occasion dining. Top Burmese was included in The Oregonian's 2021 list of best new Portland restaurants. FSR Magazine recognized the company among America's Top 50 Independent Restaurants for 2024 and later included it in a 2025 NextGen 25 list of rising full-service restaurant brands. The available sources describe Top Burmese as a regional independent restaurant group; they do not establish a public company structure, a national footprint, or operations outside the Portland-area market.
- 2024
Moda Center operations begin
[1]Top Burmese starts selling selected restaurant items at Portland's Moda Center for the 2024–25 NBA season.
- 2023
Old Asia Teahouse opens
[1]The group launches a tea-centered, pan-Asian restaurant concept in Beaverton.
- 2022
Ambassador opens in Hillsboro
[1]Top Burmese expands to Hillsboro with a Main Street location.
- 2021
Burma Joy opens on Northwest 23rd Avenue
[1]Top Burmese introduces a noodle-focused concept with Chinese-inspired dishes.
- 2020
Bistro Royale opens in Beaverton
[1]The brand adds an Indian-influenced Beaverton restaurant that uses robots to assist with service.
- 2019
Top Burmese begins as a virtual restaurant
[1]Kalvin Myint and Poe Myint launch Top Burmese in Portland through delivery and take-out service before opening a permanent restaurant.
- 2019
First brick-and-mortar location opens
[1]The original Top Burmese restaurant opens on Northwest 21st Avenue in Portland's Northwest District on September 19.
Products and positioning
A locally rooted Burmese restaurant group that combines traditional Burmese flavors with accessible, contemporary restaurant formats, plant-based options, delivery and take-out convenience, pan-Asian extensions, and venue-based food service.
Burmese restaurant · 2019
Original Top Burmese
The original Portland restaurant presents the brand's core Burmese offering. Its menu includes laphet, a fermented tea-leaf salad served with seeds and nuts, along with samosas, paratha, curries, noodles, rice dishes, and vegan options. The restaurant is particularly associated with tea-leaf salad and approachable versions of Burmese comfort food.
Burmese and Indian-influenced restaurant · 2020
Top Burmese Bistro Royale
Bistro Royale is the group's Beaverton outpost, opened in 2020. It extends the original Burmese focus with an Indian-influenced menu and uses robots to assist with food service. The location has also been associated with the group's tea-leaf preparations and vegan dishes.
Noodle restaurant · 2021
Top Burmese Burma Joy
Burma Joy, also known as Burma Joy Noodle House, is a Portland concept focused on Chinese-inspired noodles. It maintains a connection to Top Burmese while using a more specialized noodle-house format. The location served tea-leaf dumplings during Portland's 2022 Dumpling Week.
Burmese restaurant · 2022
Top Burmese Ambassador
Top Burmese Ambassador is the group's Hillsboro location on Main Street. It represents the brand's geographic expansion beyond Portland proper while continuing the broader Top Burmese restaurant identity.
Pan-Asian tea house and restaurant · 2023
Old Asia Teahouse & Restaurant
Old Asia is a Beaverton concept centered on loose-leaf tea from different regions and pan-Asian food. Its menu draws on culinary influences from Burma, Singapore, and Malaysia, marking Top Burmese's first clearly stated expansion beyond a primarily Burmese cuisine identity.
Arena food service · 2024
Top Burmese at Moda Center
The Moda Center operation adapts selected Top Burmese offerings for sports and event service. Items reported for the venue include samosas, night-market-style chicken wings, Burmese curries, and salads.
Brand decisions
2024
Enter arena concessionsStrategyBackground
The restaurant group expanded its distribution beyond neighborhood dining rooms.
Action taken
Top Burmese began operating a food outlet at Portland's Moda Center during the 2024–25 NBA season.
Aftermath
The brand gained an event-venue channel for selling selected signature foods, including samosas, curries, salads, and wings.
2023
Extend the brand into pan-Asian tea serviceStrategyBackground
After opening Burmese-focused and noodle-oriented restaurants, the group pursued a broader Asian hospitality concept.
Action taken
Top Burmese opened Old Asia Teahouse & Restaurant in Beaverton, pairing regional loose-leaf tea with food influenced by Burma, Singapore, and Malaysia.
Aftermath
Old Asia became the group's clearest move beyond a primarily Burmese cuisine positioning.
2021
Diversify through a noodle-house conceptStrategyBackground
Top Burmese sought to expand its restaurant portfolio while retaining a connection to Asian cuisine.
Action taken
The group opened Burma Joy, a concept emphasizing Chinese-inspired noodle dishes.
Aftermath
The concept broadened the group's formats beyond the original Burmese restaurant menu.
2019
Begin with a virtual restaurant modelStrategyBackground
The founders initially operated Top Burmese through delivery and take-out rather than opening a full-service restaurant immediately.
Action taken
The business used a northwest Portland kitchen and third-party delivery platforms before establishing its first permanent dining location.
Aftermath
The model was followed by the opening of the first brick-and-mortar restaurant later in 2019.
Sources1 sources
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