I Noodle — Restaurant in Bon Air

Overall, iNoodle impressed me for a soft opening. The presentation and flavors showed a lot of promise, with several standout dishes that I’d gladly come back for. While a few items could use some fine-tuning, the variety and execution already make this spot worth a visit!

iNoodle’s interior is designed like a retro Asian night market, complete with glowing neon signs and rows of food stalls side by side, evoking a sense of community dining that immediately took me back to the traditional food courts I grew up with, where several vendors shared one roof and every corner was alive with color and aroma.

The dishes at iNoodle were beautifully presented and offered a range of flavors that stood out.

Beef Tendon and Tripe in Spicy Sauce Savory with a numbing kick of spice, combined with a touch of vinegar sourness. The tendon was pleasantly chewy, and the tripe had a nice crunchy bite without any gamy taste. A little less salt or sourness would have made it even better.

Sesame Sauce Noodles Soft, chewy noodles coated in a sesame sauce with a hint of peanut and spice. The minced pork added depth, and I liked how the flavors were mellow yet distinct, never overpowering one another.

Hot Honey Chicken Wings🔥 Crispy skin with a satisfying crunch, juicy inside, and a sweet-spicy honey glaze. A solid 10/10.

Truffle Soup Dumplings 😋 Steamy and rich, with minced pork and real truffle pieces that gave a natural, earthy flavor instead of truffle oil. It is worth noting that these dumplings made fresh in-house daily, which really showed in the quality.

Pan-Fried Dumplings (Beef & Scallion vs Pork) Juicy with generous filling, complemented by a mild sweet soy sauce. Both were good, but the beef and scallion dumplings stood out with their bold flavor.

Pork & Vegetable Wontons in Spicy Sauce The one miss for me. The pork filling lacked depth and seasoning, and the sauce leaned too heavily on vinegar sourness. It could shine if they used the same minced pork from the sesame noodles.

I first stopped in after noticing iNoodle’s soft opening while shopping for fishing gear in the area, and I’m glad I did. For such a new restaurant, they’ve already created a welcoming space and a menu with plenty of highlights. I look forward to coming back to see how they continue to...

We decided to stop in when we saw some people talk about a new noodle place opening up. We’ve previously tried a similar place in Henrico and wanted to see how this compared. First off, the comic sans exterior sign is quite hilarious compared to the gorgeously decorated inside. They definitely put a lot of effort in making it look like a retro night market noodle shop. Big fan of the interior design, as well as the nostalgic music our grandparents liked.

Secondly, very welcoming service which is a bit unusual and I was put off by the young energy as most Asian places leave you alone haha. The menu was pretty straightforward and I can tell they added some dishes to appeal to the local crowd so there’s something for everyone.

We immediately ordered the braised beef noodles since that’s definitely the defining dish. We also ordered the beef tendon and scallion pancake, some very standard small dishes to test out. Gotta say the appetizers were a let down, the tendon is almost the price of a noodle bowl but they made the portions look bigger with veggies underneath. The scallion pancake was very dry and thin and sad as opposed to the usual flakey chewy hand pulled texture. The braised beef was quite good with decent portions - enough meat for each bite. The broth was quite underwhelming and plain, as I had to add my own chili oil and vinegar. The noodles themselves feel and taste premade, there is little to no texture or chew to them.

Overall it was all okay food, maybe with some time they will refine the taste a bit more. There are not many places with this traditional beef noodle soup so there’s not a lot of competition compared to up north. We plan on returning maybe after the full opening as there are other dishes we’d like to try. Amazing atmosphere, though, especially if you come later in the evening so the lights...

iNoodle is off to an EXTREMELY promising start.

The atmosphere of the restaurant is super fun and cool, with tons of neon-style signs, scattered decor and a lot of little nods to traditional Night Markets that create a really welcoming and unique setting.

The service is absolutely excellent, especially for only being open a few werks at time of review. The server confirmed my order before sending it in to make sure everything was right, answered questions, and was proactive with any needs.

The food was also incredible. The Pork Soup Dumplings with bursting with flavor, with a juicy filling and perfect chewy wrapper. The Scallion pancakes were thinner than I'm used to, but super crispy and satisfying with the slightly sweet sauce. My main dish, the Taiwanese Beef Noodle soup was delicious, spicy, beefy, super rich and full of umami.

Both my server and the general manager stopped by the table and not only asked how my meal was going, but also asked for feedback on the flavors, textures and presentation of the dishes I ordered, explaining that they're workshopping things like cooking times on their noodles for the right texture and spice level for their dumplings.

It seems like they're really trying to hone in on what their customers want, and are providing a great experience while they perfect it.

Get in there and...