Eating the World: A Gastro Globe-Trot

Malaysian food has been shaped by the cuisine of its neighbors and the region's many religions: At Penang you'll find hints of Thai food's tropical flavors, Chinese food's savory sauces and India's elaborate curries on the menu. A popular dish is roti canai, a kind of flatbread served with a tomato and chicken sauce, popular among Malaysia's Muslim population. If you don't mind picking bones from your meal, the whole red snapper is a delicious, authentic choice--and if you do, the fried taro pot with vegetables makes a great dish for sharing.

This Tunisian hidden gem is known for two things: its high-spirited, joke-cracking owner, Alia Rajab Meddeb, and her delicious rose lemonade. There's no alcohol served (Meddeb is a devout Muslim), but you won't miss it--you'll be too busy sampling the family-style dishes on the menu, with flavors that evoke both North African and Parisian cooking traditions. Baraka's menu is heavy on the lamb, couscous, eggplant and other Mediterranean staples, and dishes are easily shared. Low lighting, colorful African artwork and cozy seating up the romantic ante.

Fort Point insiders tend to make a beeline for this unassuming bakery during the lunchtime rush--in part because of its fresh-baked breads, potluck-worthy salads and grandma-approved desserts, and in part because of the friendly Albanian family that owns the place. Albanian food has all the appeal of its Mediterranean counterparts in Greece, Turkey and Italy, so you'll see many familiar foods on the menu, from lasagna to baklava, and what is for our money the best eggplant parmesan sandwich in the city.

Pho Viet's stands out from the deliciously varied restaurants inside the Super 88 food court for one reason alone: It serves the best banh mi in the city. A Vietnamese sandwich influenced by both the Provencal-style baguettes of its onetime French colonial rulers and the Asian ingredients to be found in that country, the banh mi is a near-perfect meal; done right, it is cheap, healthy and filling, made with a fresh baguette, a few sprigs of cilantro, sliced tofu or pork, luscious pate and pickled vegetables.

With a stronghold on the local Ethiopian restaurant scene, Addis Red Sea is a go-to for Bostonians craving African flavors. Diners huddle around thatched tables as waitresses bustle to and fro with plates of injera bread, plopping veggie and meat entrees down on the communal spongy substrate to be scooped up by hand. The beverages are almost as popular as the food, so be sure to order a dark African beer or a sweet glass of honey wine.

Taste a little slice of Iran in this dreamy Persian hideaway. Co-owners and siblings Babak Bina and Azita-Bina Seibel (also proprietors of Bin 26 Enoteca, Bina Osteria/Alimentari and Bina on the Common) serve the traditional Azerbaijani cuisine they learned from their mother in this cozy space. The environs are as romantic as their namesake--?Lala Rokh? is an epic 19th century poem by Thomas Moore--and the food, infused as it is with aromatic and exotic spices like sumac and saffron, helps to set the mood.

Most Americans couldn't find Burma on a map, much less describe its cuisine. However, if a combination of Indian, Chinese and Thai cuisines sounds good to you, then an expedition is in order to Boston's singular Burmese joint. The food is light and healthy, with a focus on salads, soups, fresh vegetables and seafood curries. And in case you're geographically challenged (regarding Allston, much less Asia), worry not--they deliver.

Tamarind Bay is way above your garden-variety tikka masala and samosa joint, featuring a coastal menu heavy on southern Indian cuisine, which draws from a constellation of deep ports rife with fish. The best way to order is family-style to get a feel for the range of flavors and spices, and be sure to order at least one seafood offering, as well as an inventive cocktail to wash it all down. Vegetarians and vegans will feel especially at home: Veggie menu items are clearly demarcated, and the restaurant serves an all-vegetarian brunch on Saturdays.

A godsend for Brazilian ex-pats and fanatics, Cafe Belo serves yellow rice, fried potatoes, plantains, bean salads and meat by the pound, as well as traditional treats like Guarana soda and cashew juice alongside chocolate cake and the ubiquitous flan. This isn't fancy fare--it's more like what you?d expect to see at a homey Brazilian potluck--yet provides an affordable, down-to-earth alternative to your typically more frenetic churrascaria.

This unassuming Turkish establishment specializes in meats, from sausage to lamb, and carnivores will want to try it all, all at once, as a ?mixed grill.? However, there's plenty of fresh fare for vegetarians to try too, from savory eggplant appetizers to hefty falafel platters. With free freshly baked breads and salads accompanying every meal, you won't leave hungry; but if you miraculously have room left over, be sure to indulge in baklava and dark, strong Turkish coffee.