As per tradition, whenever I am downtown with Joyce of @monkeyeatsworld and we are looking to eat, we gravitate towards noodles, majority of the time Chinese-style.
So given the proximity of our first stop, we decided to head to Wow Noodle for dinner after. Joyce has already been to this cafe, so recommended it, knowing that she already likes their cooking.
She described it correctly as a hole in the wall. There is nothing to have this noodle shop standing out, besides the greeting on the pine wall, and a few posters hung on the other. Honestly, with her referral, I would have never come in, in the first place.
I was not impressed by the smell of our freshly wiped down table. The scent of damp wetness, like wet dog. It lingered on the surface from the dirty rag used to spread it. Similarly, the maintenance of the washroom would have you losing your appetite. I went in to wash my hands before our meal and found myself grimacing over the built up junk and debris stored within, and the dust that was complied over it all. Not to mention the overall cleaning.
However, if you can look past this, you’ll have a pretty decent meal. The prices are average for today’s bowls of soup noodles $16.95 to $18.95 per bowl. It isn’t a very large serving but just enough to fill.
Their specialty is soup noodle with five varieties and the ability to customize each. They also have classic appetizers like dumplings, chicken wings, spring rolls, and pickled vegetables as a side.
We would order a bowl each, sharing with the other to taste. My guest got her usual, Szechuan style spicy peppercorn noodles in mild. She likes the numbing tingle as a unique flavour that she grew up with. I found the spice warming and not overwhelming. There is no heat with the mild, just starchy noodles soaking in a tangy and hot broth.
I ordered the classic Taiwanese braised beef noodle soup and was not disappointed. This is exactly what I wanted. Chewy noodles soaking up a meaty broth that warms you inside and out. The serving included a decent amount of beef, perfectly prepared tender with bit of sinew.
We appreciated the lone staff member bringing out two additional bowls of broth, one each for our respective noodles. He noticed we were taking photos, so wanted to make sure we had enough to sip on, that the noodles didn’t absorb it all as we delayed our eating to allow our cameras to “eat first”.
In short, not my first option for noodles when downtown, but a decent drop in for quick and easy house made food that satisfied. I would not be apposed to ordering their laksa to go, to see how they do with that.
Wow Full Noodle House
505 Dunsmuir St, Vancouver, BC
V6B 1Y4
(604) 620-8038
wowfullnoodlehousebc.com
