Three Fold Noodles + Dumpling Co. | Pleasant Ridge — Restaurant in Little Rock

The staff are friendly. I like that. The place is clean and uncluttered. It has a decent atmosphere, but the furniture is not as comfortable as I'd prefer.

The real problem is the food. That's what a restaurant pretty much always comes down to, isn't it? The food is mediocre. Not bad, but not great.

It's at least fresh. It's presented reasonably well. But it's messy. The flavors are...... good. Not thrilling. Not amazing, but good. The dumplings are very meaty. I like that. The noodles didn't have quite aa much protein as I'd prefer, but that's a minor quibble.

The sauce for the dumplings is DELICIOUS. I think it was the best part of the meal. We ordered it medium spicy, and the spice level was perfect. We enjoy medium spicy salsa. We're not mild salsa people..... but we're not hot salsa people either. This medium spice was less spicy than the popular brands of medium spicy salsa. Just a little burn, but nowhere near painful.

But that dumpling sauce is runny. It's messy. That part, we didn't like.

Ditto for the noodle sauce. It's runny and MESSY. The noodles drip all over the table, and your clothes, while you're trying to eat. I know that is pretty traditional in the orient, but I could do without it. I could get more of that delicious sauce on my dumplings if it were thicker.

Without the sauce, the dumplings don't have a lot of flavor. That's a shame. Seasoning dumplings is easy.

The chicken in the noodles was nicely seasoned. No complaints there.

The noodles.... contained..... cilantro. WHY??!!!! I don't mind cilantro, but to many people it tastes like soap, and they don't expect it in Asian food. It can ruin the whole meal, as it did for my wife. There is no reason to put cilantro in the dish, and less reason not to warn people. A LOT of people hate cilantro.

The dumplings are also very messy because they are full of water. I have never cooked dumplings, but I understand that they should not leak, and should not be full of water from boiling. They should be sealed before boiling. Maybe I have gotten some bad intel on this, but I really don't think dumplings should be so messy.

We had water to drink. The water tap..... is very slow. Getting a cup filled takes quite a long time.

So.... it was a mediocre meal, that was a little on the pricey side. It wasn't outrageously expensive, but considering the quality of the meal, I think it was overpriced. I can't see myself EVER dining at a Three Fold again, despite the...

Update: we've returned to try their updated menu. We sampled a Set with peanut noodles, pork belly, and steamed chicken dumplings; we also ordered a bowl of mala noodles with chicken. First, I love the set dinner option because if you're anything like me and can't make up your mind on what you want to order then this helps! For the peanut noodles - the noodles were perfectly firm and bouncy (more ramen style in this iteration) and the peanuts were delightfully crunchy. I wish the sauce was a little thicker and stuck to the noodles more but it was so flavorful and nutty (yes, I did drink it, no regrets). And the noodles went great with the rich meaty pork belly chunks. The steamed chicken dumplings were light but packed with flavor. The mala noodles were also good - my partner reported that it was nicely comparable to the spicy beef noodle bowl from the previous menu. He did report that my pork belly was better than his chicken, so something to consider when picking proteins. Overall, sad to see the old menu go, but the refresh is great from what we've seen so far!

We've been several times now for dumplings and noodles which are incredible (the half and half with pork, and the beef noodle soup are standouts. And get the spicy dipping sauce!) But we went the other day for brunch, and y'all it was an experience! We got the dimsum set, the multi grain congee and the bing wrap. All fantastic! The dimsum were glorious little bites with something for everyone - the vegetable forward ones were light and delicate and perfect conduits for their spicy sauce, and the meatier bites were rich and packed with flavor. No notes. The star of the bing wrap is the scallion pancake, which really elevates it above a run of the mill breakfast burrito. And oh the congee - it's like oatmeal, grits and wild rice had a wonderful, savory, purple baby. There might be a slight texture issue for some, but if you like the flavors of oatmeal and/or mild wild rice then you will not regret ordering the congee. The black sesame and mala lattes were the perfect compliment to this fantastic meal. Can't wait to return and try the tea service and...

I placed an order to go. Two chicken noodle dinners both each with two extra sauces which cost 75¢ each. When I went to the window to pick up my order I asked if the sauce had been included because last time I paid for them they did not include the sauce. She stated yes there are 2 in the bag. I told her the order is for 4 sauces. Two per dinner and that I was charged accordingly. She proceeded to argue with me and would not give me the sauces. She also stated there was a container of sauce in with the dinner which was false. I got in my car and checked my order on my phone. Indeed I had ordered 2 extra sauces for each dinner. I went back up to the window and this time a male employee offered to help. I showed him my order on my phone and that I had paid for the extra sauces. He then gave me the other two that I had already paid for. My complaint is this female employee argued with me about my order that cost $1.50 for the sauces!!! While I like the food I will not be going back. The first time I did not receive what I ordered and now this employee wants to argue over $1.50! I had my order on my phone to prove I was correct....