Noodle Kingdom

My go to place for a quick dumpling feed in town. Ok it’s not Hutong, but when you have kids and a budget, it’s a pretty good option. The dumplings are better than the other cheap places nearby, and there are many other tasty dishes on their vast menu. You can even watch them make the noodles in the front window. The kids are fascinated. Who needs Myer Xmas windows?

Well, here is another option of a cheap meal in the city. Okay, you should be warned that they only take credit card on purchases over $ 20.00, so you if are just eating for yourself, either plan to eat quite a lot, or simply bring cash. The thing is that their servings are quite generous, and I always get a decent feed on their soups, or noodles. They also have beer available (including Tsing Tao) which reminds me of the street restaurants in Hong Kong. I can’t say that the food comes out incredibly fast, but fast enough if you are looking for a place to eat during your lunch break. It certainly isn’t my favourite place in the city, and there are lots of other options that I would like to try at some time, but it is a good place if all you are looking for is a cheap meal.

It was raining. We were hungry. And cold. And probably waaaaay too overeager with the ordering. The xiao long baos are huge, probably twice the size of the delicate ones I’m used to. Less finesse, less broth, and way thicker skin. Also, while there’s vinegar to go with the xiao long baos, there’s no slivered ginger. Blasphemy!
The special fried rice is ho hum, while the french beans are delicious. Other deep fried items like spring roll are forgettable, while the spring onion pancake is terrible. Do not order– it’s a huge mass of dough and the chef has a stingy hand with the spring onions and seasoning.
On the upside, the Taiwanese waiters there are cute and very prompt. Price point is very comfortable on the pocket too, and the noodle dishes look massive.

It’s not bad for a local eatery but probably not a destination restaurant. I had the Shanghai dumplings (xiao long bao) and they were pretty good, huge in size but just a tiny bit of soup. Much cheaper than Hutongs but not as good. Also had the cold braised pork snack which I found pretty tasty.
Everyone else had noodle soup, so I probably ordered poorly. I wanted to order the sautéed crab but couldn’t bring myself to spend that much.

Not as terrible as I expected coming from a franchise. Their noodles had a nice and chewy texture, and so so so long too! Soup however was overdone with salt/​msg (I used it as dip for my spring onion pancakes and it tasted sinfully good!)
Portions were gargantuan and not what you would expect for these prices ($ 10 average per bowl) and their menu had some variety of other noodle and rice dishes which peaked my interest.
Go easy on the msg and they would have nailed it!

Having tried the wonton noodles here, I find the wontons just average tasting. The filings are just lumps of pork & shrimp without much other texture. The noodles are quite smooth though and the serving size is big.
Sitting is cramped, to the point where I could smell the noodle dishes from the tables beside me. Service is rudimentary; the waiters get the food to the tables quite quickly, just don’t expect any smiles or greetings.
In summary, the food is edible, but I can’t think of a good reason for coming here instead of a couple of dumpling places on Tattersall Lane nearby that also serve a similar dish at significantly lower prices.