I recently had to take my car in for servicing again. Though instead of waiting around or heading for lunch at somewhere close to the dealership, I decided to jump on the trolley. And while there were several places on my “list” that were close to a MTS Green Line stop….I really didn’t want to be changing lines, I settled on a place that opened in the Gaslamp last year. Noodle & Bun. I had heard that the Owner/Chef is from Shanghai. The shop is located on Fourth Avenue. I thought the address seemed familiar and one look at the location had me smiling.
Yep, this is the location right on the street of what used to be called Horton Plaza; who knows what its name is now? But, for a short time, it was the location of Sultan Baklava, which has since moved back to El Cajon. I had heard that the place made good hand pulled noodles and XLB. So, in spite of this being a rather hot day, I was all for trying it out!
The place was pretty quiet during my entire meal. The two young men working were really nice….they actually started speaking to me in Mandarin when I entered!
The kitchen area is open for folks to watch the noodle making taking place.
And the condiments were in place as expected.
Looking over the menu, the place features hand pulled noodles, knife cut noodles, and wide noodles. Along with three main noodle soups; Langzhou style, Beef Brisket Noodle, or Spicy Beef Brisket Noodle. All priced at $15.99. I went with the Beef Brisket Noodle. I also decided to try the Xiao Long Bao ($11.99) as well.
The Beef Brisket Noodle arrived first.
I thought the broth was on the thin side, fairly salty, with a hint of anise-five spice flavor. It struck me as being fairly bland, so I boosted the flavor with a good amount of chili oil. I’m guessing I should have ordered the spicy version.
The beef was a plus-minus. Some pieces were really nice and tender; others super chewy, but the five spice-soy sauce beefiness came thru nicely.
The highlight of the bowl were the noodles; which were perfectly tender and springy….the definition of “QQ“. I’m thinking that most of the other NRM places and even Lanzhou Noodlelicious is preferred; but the noodles here were excellent.
Look at how nicely the noodles picked up the broth.
Like I said, if I return…maybe the next time I get Jury Duty, I’ll get the spicy version.
As for the XLB ($11.99); it was kind of “meh”.
First off; you know my pet peeve with XLB, right? Yep as you can see four of the XLB wrappers were broken and the “soup” had leaked out.
And check out this hammajang looking one!
As for the rest…well, the wrappers were too think and chewy for my taste. The “soup” what there was by the book, though a bit light in porkiness. The filling was on the chewy side and mild in flavor.
I’ll probably pass on these next time.
Still, it was interesting to see a place making hand pulled noodles in this area. Just as it was surprising finding Silk Road Lanzhou Beef Noodles in PB!
Service was very nice and as I mentioned above; I’d probably revisit when I’m in the area again. I hope they are able to do well in this area.
Noodle & Bun
770 Fourth Ave.
San Diego, CA 92101
Current Hours:
Mon – Thurs 11am – 9pm
Fri – Sun 11am – 10pm