Location: Various London locations
In this blog I list out 6 great noodle restaurants in London. I am not writing this article to definitively determine which are ‘the best’ noodles in London, rather to serve as a guide for anyone looking to find a great spot to have noodles. I am also not including Ramen in this blog as I think they deserve an entire article dedicated especially to them.
So if you are keen to hear about 5 great places to get noodles in London, please read on!
Master Wei Xi’an
Location: Bloomsbury
Price per head: £20 – £25
Booking: Recommended
A bustling Chinese restaurant serving food from the Xi’An region. Incredible hand pulled noodles of all shapes and sizes, with a variety of sauces and spice levels, mean you will find noodles to fit all tastes. The texture and freshness of the noodles is incredible and the accompanying sauces are always delicious.
They also serve a variety of non-noodle based dishes, with particularly good dumplings.
It’s not a huge restaurant but they cram a lot of people in, so be prepared to be sitting very close to your neighbours.
Dishes we loved:
- Steamed Pork and Vegetable Dumplings
- Beef BiangBiang Noodles
- Chicken Hand-Pulled Noodles in Xinjiang style
Liu Xiaomian
Location: Marylebone & Aldgate
Price per head: £12 – £15
Booking: Possible
A Chinese noodle joint that’s a little bit different! Their original location was in the basement of The Jackalope pub. When you arrive in this lovely traditional pub the last thing you expect is to find an authentic noodle joint downstairs, but that’s exactly what you get. They have now opened up a second location at the Aldgate tap, but we have not been to this second place yet.
As for the food, it’s amazing. Not like any noodles I have had anywhere else. They are flavoured with Szechuan chilli which has a kick to it, but more interestingly also has a numbing effect. It is quite a strange experience to have this dish leave your tongue tingling. A must try in my opinion! The flavours themselves are fantastic, and they are decent portions. Very good value for money all in all.
Dishes we loved:
They are all great. We loved them so much we got a bowl of noodles each and then also the numbing Wonton soup to share!
Xi’an Biang Biang Noodles
Location: Covent Garden, Aldgate East
Price per head: £15 – £20
Booking: Possible
Another Chinese restaurant serving food from the Xi’An region. They also have beautifully hand pulled noodles, with velvety texture and rich sauce with just the right level of spice. I personally didn’t rate the signature pork dumplings here – the sauce had a slightly odd flavour and the filling lacked ginger in my opinion. However, the noodles were fabulous.
We walked straight in whilst at Covent Garden on a Saturday in summer, so if you are in that area I would seriously recommend this place if you are looking for a tasty place to eat where you can easily get a table.
Dishes we loved:
- Skin cold noodles in Sesame sauce
- Hand-pulled BiangBiang noodles with beef in special sauce
Etles
Location: Walthamstow
Price per head: £20 – £25
Booking: Recommended
Now for something completely different. A BYOB Uyghur restaurant in E17. You have to experience it to believe it, but trust me this place is incredible! Whilst it may seem out of the way it is 2 minutes away form the Victoria line, so may be easier to get to than you think!
The Uyghur population is predominantly muslim, and this influence is clearly evident in this super interesting cuisine. The Chinese and Middle Eastern influences mean this is very different to your traditional Chinese noodle. Not a place that is purely dedicated to noodles, but a place that offers a number of superb noodle dishes. If you get the chance please go!
The restaurant is small and cramped, with plastic coverings on the table. It feels rough and ready and that’s what makes it so great. A really authentic experience for a lesser known cuisine.
Dishes we loved:
- Lamb skewers
- Traditional leghmen
- Shredded beef
- Etles large plate chicken (can be too spicy for some)
- Naan
Ye Ye Noodle & Dumpling
Location: Spitafields
Price per head: £20 – £25
Booking: Not possible
A place I have walked past numerous times, always loved the look of, but only decided to try out very recently. This is in part due to the fact that there is always a bit of a queue outside. After finally eating and this place I can absolutely see why, the food was incredible.
There were 5 of us when we went, so we had to queue but only for about 20 minutes. It was prime time on a Saturday evening too so I can’t imagine you will ever have to queue much longer than that, but I would happily queue longer for this place too.
It was great that there were a few of us because it meant we could order a number of different dumplings to share. All the dumplings were great, the dough was soft and the sauces matched perfectly. We tried some called ‘Grilled juice pork dumpling’ , and these were dumplings like I have never tried before. First, they were absolutely huge, and second they burst with pork juice/stock as you bit into them making them a very messy and sticky experience. They were very tasty, but be warned they can be absolutely scorching hot when bitten into!
The noodles themselves were also delicious. We enjoyed the noodle soups, but the standout was definitely the ‘Dry mixed spicy beef noodle’ dish as we felt that the sauce clung to the noodles better than the soupy dishes, please try it!
Dishes we loved
- Chives and prawns dumplings
- BiangBiang pork dumplings
- Grilled juice pork dumpling
- Dry mixed spicy beef noodle
- Braised pork ribs soup noodles
Xi’an Impressions
Location: Highbury
Price per head: £20 – £25
Booking: Not possible
You may be noticing a theme here, as this is the 3rd place whose menu hails from the Xi’an region in China. This place is right next to the Emirates Stadium, so be wary if you are heading on a game day as the streets surrounding it will be rammed. This place is also BOYB which is great.
Their hand pulled noodles are beautifully soft, with just the right amount of chewiness. They have numerous different options, including bowls of hot and cold noodles as well as soups. They also have Chinese ‘hamburgers’ loaded with yummy pork or beef. These definitely are worth a try.
We absolutely loved all the food here, getting a combination of noodles, dumplings, vegetable dishes and a ‘burger’. It is a small, cramped, and very authentic restaurant. The biggest challenge will be finding space for all your food on the table as it is all served at once and very quickly!
Dishes we loved:
- Chicken and mushroom pot sticker
- Xi’an pork hamburger
- BiangBiang noodles with chunky beef in special sauce
- Xinjiang stir fried chicken with hand pulled noodles
