Talked to someone who visited the Bang Bang Noodle pop up in Citizens Public Market in Culver City. Said it was busy at times but not so busy at others. Was told that they were considering a permanent Westside location, and that they admitted they had altered the food a bit for Westside sensitivities. I’m not sure I like the last part.
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As a middle aged white male living on the Westside, I now feel bitter sting of discrimination’s evil whip.
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FWIW, you’re more Asian than many Asians I know, homie…
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I dunno… we arrived at 11:30a on Sunday and there was a good line, not crazy but we were in line for a good 20 minutes and then another 20 to get the food. They also sold out of some of their most popular items like seitan and beef by the time we got up there and on Saturday they were sold out within a couple of hours. However, I think the operation went well. They seemed to have plenty of help and the bowls all came out nice and hot.
We got the mushroom with tomato dry and the cumin with lamb. As well as some cucumbers…
I would not say they tampted things down too much, maybe for the cucumbers, but they gave you a good portion of extra spice if you wanted to add.
The toppings were great! The portion of lamb was generous and tender. The noodles were impressive, but they were lacking a bit of bite. A little too soft for me, I think they have a good system… but I think the baths they use allow a little too much time. Then there the whole assembly line…
I was super glad to try, I can’t do the pre-order thing because something will always happen in my crazy life. But I was left with a cravy of good dan dan mein or JYTH’s cat’s ears…
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What’s the red stuff in the bowl w/ the mushrooms? Tomato?
Yes, it’s the Xi’an Tomato Noodle. I was kind of disappointed by this dish because I felt like it was missing something. Maybe they had adjusted it for Westside tastes and left out some spice. While I appreciate the use of ground soy, it probably would have been more flavorful with pork. Loved the noodles themselves and the crew were super friendly.
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I enjoyed it (actually had leftovers today over rice), but it was missing a bit of Mala. The Cumin bowl had plenty of it.
Warrior: they have a location in the Arts District near Afuri Ramen and Guerrilla Tacos. I thought it was terrible and had to have a makeup meal. The noodles were too soft, which may not have been a dealbreaker, but the flavors were a mess. It didn’t just taste like watered down Shaanxi food. It tasted like an unsuccessful hybrid of Shaanxi and Italian food that was too sweet to boot. I tried both the dry and the wet noodles, and the wet noodles were worse—soggier and even less Chinese tasting. I think Xian Famous Foods in NYC proves that Americans like more authentic Shaanxi food. For here in LA, Shaanxi Garden is much superior. I thought I had taken pictures but only managed to snap the cucumbers, which were not bad.
