兰州拉面 Lan Zhou La Mian — Restaurant in Manila

The simple fact that they were blasting a budots-like remix of Justin Bieber's Baby already warrants this restaurant a 5 star review.

The Cha Chiang lamien was a bit too salty for my taste but I still enjoyed the bean sauced covered noodles. The hand-pulled noodles were chewy and cooked just right. Best to pair this dish with a cold soda to cut down on its saltiness and umay factor.

The steamed and fried dumplings were also 🫰👌. The wrapping was extra thicc but well compensated with the volume of juicy meat filling inside. Not really a thicc wrapper enjoyer but some people might like this type of dumpling.

The dishes that stood out to me the most were their Crispy Pork and Egg Cha Fan. I appreciate how they separated the spices/ powdered flavoring from the crispy pork so that you can customize how much seasoning goes into your meat. Even without the great powdered seasoning, the pork can stand on its own in terms of flavour. Also, the pork was so soft, I honestly thought it was chicken at first. The best thing about these two dishes, aside from their delciousness, is that even though they're fried food, I didn't give me that nauseating oily MSG feeling you get after eating most fried and MSG laden dishes 😵‍💫

Serving size was also generous. The price may seem a bit expensive at first glance but most dishes mentioned above can be shared between 2-3 people. ( I also included pics for reference on the portion sizes :D)

Overall, really enjoyed eating at this restaurant :D

Service was v...

This place has been my go-to noodle spot since 2014, and I honestly can’t get enough of it. My all-time favorite is their spicy beef la mien. The beef is super tender, the noodles are perfectly cooked, and the broth is just packed with flavor—every bite is a treat. I always pair it with their steamed and fried kutchay dumplings, which have stayed just as tasty over the years. They go so well with the spicy la mien. Oh, and don’t skip the egg fried rice—it’s simple but so good and really completes the meal.

This is the one place I’d happily drive all the way from QC to Manila just to eat at. It’s such a shame that they had to close their branches in Masangkay and Ongpin after the pandemic. I really hope the last remaining branch in Manila stays strong.

That being said, I’d skip the one at Lucky Chinatown, specifically the San Guo. It just doesn’t hit the same mark as the Manila branch, and honestly, it feels like a watered-down version of the real thing. For me, the Manila branch is the only one I trust for that authentic, delicious experience I’ve...

The initial thought I had seeing the menu was how expensive the lamian was at around P380. But when the actual order came out, it made a lot of sense as the serving size was a really big size with a lot of toppings with the lamian.

I ordered the beef wanton lamian soup. The soup was addicting to drink as it was flavorful but not too salty. The beef was very tender and tasted yummy together with the noodles. The wanton was also great with the wanton itself small with a meat filling. The noodles are great in texture and are pretty firm as they handpull noodles to order before boiling them in hot water.

They also allow you to get as much spring onions as you want and you can ask for wansoy (coriander) to place in your soup or noodles.

Overall this was a really good place to eat and I would go back...