GB Hand-Pulled Noodles — Restaurant in Toronto

There are multiple places in the Toronto area to get hand pulled noodles so the decision was made with some trepidation about where to finally get them. With so many good restaurants in Toronto you don't want to make a misstep. Luckily we found ourselves in a small diner-esque restaurant with formidable sized portions and delectable flavors.

Walking inside my gf and I worried that it wouldn't be a fancy enough place to meet a friend we haven't seen in a while, but appearances aside everything came up roses. Not that it was dirty, in fact it was a very clean restaurant with a very plain atmosphere. It was though, freezing cold inside with the weather being 35f (about 2c) outside. I would have liked to have felt comfortable enough to take off my coat, but I noticed a lot of the people dining in kept theirs on. Every time someone came in the door for a pick up order or to dine in, a freezing blast of air went up my back!

But, despite all this, the food was amazing. I ordered the "Noodles with homemade pork sauce" which came with soup. I was told traditionally that you add the small bowl of soup to the dish, but I didn't want to possibly ruin an already delicious thing. Sorry, not traditional I know! My friend that ordered the same dashed her soup right into the bowl and said it was great. I ordered the wide noodles and though it was too cold to have them hand pulled (they used a machine this night) they were deliciously springy and chewy, absorbing the flavor of the sauce. The bok choy in the dish and shredded carrots weren't overcooked but delightfully still a little crisp with every bite.

My girlfriend got the Special Lanzhou Beef Noodles which was more of a soup than a noodle dish. She does have a habit of wanting whatever you have instead of what she ordered but in this case, I think the pork sauce noodles was the better dish between the two. She did say she wished she could control how much of the chili oil was added and wished for more vegetables in her soup. We also ordered the sweet and sour shredded potatoes and an egg and tomato dish and a beef shank dish. All were pretty good but when (not if) I go back, it's straight to the pork sauce and noodles dish, thick noodles please, and I'll probably skip on any sides.

The waiter was a really nice guy once we got to talking to him and seemed like he had a lot of energy but just too tiny a space to move around. The set up is kind of interesting with limited seating, but they do a good job for the room they have. And kudos for diligently checking everyone's covid vaccine status. I'll be back for...

I had had a busy day, but was determined to find a noodle house for dinner and had seen this one online. It was close to where I was so I went to it. I sat on the outside patio. The wait staff was a young woman Who was excited to be asked her opinion about the menu. In fact, she asked if she could settle someone’s bill so she could then devote her time to explaining it to me, which was great. She recommended a certain dish and when I also wanted to order another she thought it would be too much and suggested I get it next time I came. Good advice. She suggested I order the beef and noodles. It’s on the first page of the menu and I think their signature dish. I was certainly not disappointed. Rich gingery broth with endless broad noodles and delicately sliced beef with cilantro and green onions. I also got her advice on the size of the noodles, which you can pick, And they brought me chili oil so I could organize my own level of heat which I also appreciated. Honestly, I’ve rarely had such an enthusiastic and helpful wait staff before. She was utterly delightful and explained about the noodles from her hometown and the culture Behind it. She was even helpful when I asked about certain etiquette when eating noodles. Anyways, suffice it to say the food was incredibly delicious, authentic and an excellent price. I will absolutely return and I highly recommend this very simple and very excellent noodle house. My bill came to $16 and I was full. I left a $10 tip for her and only wished it could have been more. Well deserved! on the way out, she passed me what I thought was a peppermint and I declined, but she insisted I take it and said it was taro with what feels like Jell-O inside and she was sure I would love it…and Just like everything else…...

GB Hand Pulled Noodles is the place to go if you're looking for a heart warming bowl of noodle soup. We went this weekend to the Edward St. location, steps away from the Eaton Centre (right beside the Atrium on the Bay). It is a small little restaurant (about 10 tables) but the food makes up for the lack of space. By the time we ordered our food, the restaurant was already full! The kitchen is open concept so you can easily see the staff cooking your food. It's not a fancy restaurant but you are definitely going to appreciate the food.

We ordered their signature Special Lanzhou Beef Noodles. You can choose the size of noodles and we opted for the 'narrow thick thick' which resembles a chubbier spaghetti noodle. We love that it's al dente and has a great chew but noodle options range from thinner to flatter, wider noodles. This dish comes spicy but you can opt out and ask for no spicy (which is what we did). The noodle soup is garnished with coriander and green onions, which again you can opt out for. The broth is piping hot and rich in flavour with a nice hint of 5 spice/star anise (my best guess). It's fragrant and tickles the tongue. This noodle dish in particular is made with slices of beef and sliced daikon. Sizes range from small (featured here in the images) to mega size (good luck, it's huge!).

The menu has other soup noodle dishes as well as dry noodle dishes along with home made dumplings. I've never been able to get past the Special Lanzhou Beef Noodles which is my absolute favourite.

If you're in the area and feel like something warm and cozy, go give GB Hand Pulled Noodles a try! That bowl of deliciousness left me satisfied...