As per our tradition, during our latest meet up, Joyce of @monkeyeatsworld and I found ourselves in Point Grey looking for a noodle spot. A map search yielded a hand pulled Lanzhou Beef Noodle shop.
I wasn’t sold walking through the rundown exterior, but got excited as soon as I saw the window into the kitchen. This was a clear sign that there was a show to watch and they indeed pulled their noodles to order. I made sure I got a front row seat to this. Here, on the other side of the glass, the chef rolls out premade dough, spinning and weaving it, before manipulating it to the desired thickness. Each strand kept lengthy and dunked into boiling water to cook. Eventually they will be added into soup or getting a spin in a wok.
Also per our usual we ordered two bowls: beef soup noodle and a lamb pan fried noodle. You get to choose the type of noodle you want for each, but sadly they were out of some of their options; which I found odd, considering they are all made to order. They normally have thin, normal, chive leaf, flat and rice noodle available, but today it was only 3 out of the 5.
We got the Pickled Green Beef Noodle Soup with normal noodles. This broth is the same as their advertised Lanzhou Beef Noodle Soup, but not spicy and with the addition of pickled greens. I liked how warm and fragrant the broth was, punctuated by herbs. However, all this was drowned out by all the weight of the noodles. Don’t get me wrong, I appreciated how generous they were with the serving, but with little greens and only a few sheets of beef, the noodle was monotonous. The pickle also wasn’t pickle-y enough to have me taking note, and there was not enough of its acid to cut. This was the same chew and taste over and over again for a one toned bowl. In hindsight we should have gotten the flat variety for a better distribution of noodle to toppings. The table side container of crunchy chilli oil and vinegar did help to add some needed acid, thus creating depth and rejuvenation for longevity of eating.
Between the two, my favourite noodle was the Cumin Lamb Stir-fried Noodles. It is also available in beef, but I find the lamb a bold enough protein to carry all the zest of the heavily used cumin. All this balanced out with the freshness from coarsely chopped onions and red peppers. The latter also offered pops of sweetness in a brightening contrast. But the highlight was definitely the flat noodles we had with this. They were the perfect thickness offering an enjoyable mouthfeel. Once again kept lengthy, I was able to slurp them with gusto. I love this for its texture and finished the plate because of the taste.
In closing, this was an unexpected and terrific find. I am always happy to support local noodle shops doing it from scratch, and continuing on with the legacy of traditional hand pulled noodles.
食宴兰州牛肉拉面 Shi Yan Lanzhou Beef Noodles
3217 W Broadway, Vancouver, BC V6K 2H5
(604) 558-3217
