London’s Best Noodles
Whether it’s long and thick, hot or cold and enjoyed in public or private, every girl has her favourite. Minds out of the gutter please. Today we’re discussing the quintessential comfort food-turned-gourmet, the noodle.
London has always lagged slightly behind the curve when it comes to embracing the humble noodle shop. We may have a weakness for greasy fried dishes of the takeaway variety, but we’re missing the homespun goodness of a quick and tasty noodle broth bowl outside of Wagamamas.
Never understimate the power of slurping your noodles. Noodle dishes, especially of the soup variety, are designed to be eaten quickly before your noodles turn to a floury mush. Slurp up those noodles and drink the broth from the bowl – trust me, everyone around you will be doing the same.
With these tips in mind, here’s a look at two of my favourite (and newest) noodle shops in town:
If you’re ever on Soho’s Frith Street any time around lunch or dinner and see a line of people snaking around the corner, there’s one good reason – London’s most exciting noodle spot has moved in.
Koya specializes in Japanese Udon – the kind of white, worm-like thick noodle that sends me into a happy frenzy.
You can order your noodles cold and mix them with hot broth to your liking in the traditional style, or go for the full steaming bowl. Either way, there’s a million reasons to love this place – from simple duck/chicken and vegetable mixes to the more ambitious mushroom and walnut miso – all centred around the firmest, springiest noodles to be had in this town.
The staff at Koya make the noodles in the basement using a traditional foot-kneading method, and it shows in the quality of the food.
Add to all that a speciality beer, an extra sprinkle of tempura batter to give your noodles some crunch, and those 30 minute spent waiting on the pavement will have flown by.
I approached this one with a bit of trepidation. I’ve always found the Vietnamese take on the noodle bowl a poor cousin of my beloved Udon, but was delighted to be proved wrong.
Pho (pronounced ‘fuh’ for those in the know / those who want to seem unbearable smug when eating out) serve the traditional pho noodle – a flat, thin rice noodle teamed with homemade broth.
Pho’s strength is in not trying to reinvent the wheel. Pho soups are tasty enough without too much embellishment, and the restaurant keeps it simple – focusing on hearty, beef-led dishes with a thoughtful side dish of herbs you can use to season to your liking.
I liked the thin-sliced steak in beef broth (traditional Pho Tai), but would also go back for the hot and spicy prawn or chicken bowls. Our waitress even obligingly tied bibs around our necks – not the sexiest look, (and probably not one for a date!), but immensely practical. This was not the time for shyness.
I’ll be back to both Koya and Pho on a regular basis, as well as scouting out a few more places across the city for a bowl of homespun goodness.
On your marks, get set….SLURP!
Photography: www.thelondonfoodie.co.uk, ne* and Nicola
Have you tried Cafe East Pho, Surrey Quays? I bit further out of central London but their noodles are REALLY good! (and good value)Cash only though.
Thanks for that I too have always loved noodle things. I shall check them both out,V
I am surprised you continue to offer many restaurants which have a dubious reputation. Todays restaurant is The Driver. Please look at the web site London Eating for their comments. This is not the only example. There have been many restaurants mentioned in the past with poor reputations. I feel these offers discredit your organisation and that you should spend more time checking them out. Another extemely poor restaurant is the Aberdeen steak house in Brighton, once an excellent place, but now selling frozen meat and a poor shadow of its previous incarnation.
I am sure there are testiomonial sites for a lot of the restaurants you choose and may I suggest you look at these. You are leaving an openiong for a competitor to develop a reputaion for offering much better choices.
Hey Maurice!
Thanks for the feedback – I’ll pass it on to our after sales department. We feature thousands of deals throughout the year, some offers are bound to not be to everyone’s liking, but it is a good point to make nevertheless. Thanks!