Xi'an Famous Foods 西安名吃 | Court Square LIC — Restaurant in New York

The purpose of this review is not to hate or harm this restaurant in any way, shape, or form. That being said, I hope you take this review as an informative review.

Atmosphere: This place is clean for the most part. It is also pretty spacious. They have a second floor where you can sit if there's no room on the first floor. In my opinion, it was well designed in and out.

Service: Service was good. They have kiosks machines where you can order in case the person at the cashier is busy helping other customers. Either way, the ordering process is straightforward. The menu in the kiosks machines is clear and not confusing. This is the part where I gave them 4 stars only. I know this is a noodle place, but for those who are not good with chopsticks yet, it can be a bit hard to eat the noodles with one fork. It would be of great help if they can give knives. Again, this might just be a personal preference, but I think it can help many customers who may encounter the same problem.

Food: Okay, I'm going to be as truthful as possible here. If you are not a spicy food person, this place is not for you. I ordered the Pork "Zha Jiang" Hand-Ripped Noodles at the kiosk and customized it to have the least heat. I felt the heat. Not a painful heat but a good one. As a person that can handle some level of spicy, I did not mind it at all. The noodles were delicious and it even help me clear my nose 🤣. Yes, some other people and I were using a decent amount of napkins to clean our noses. I had to go buy something sweet after I was done with my noodles. I would suggest, if you want to customize the level of spiciness in your noodles, order at the cashier. Hopefully they can have a clear understanding of how much heat you really want in your noodles. I'm going to do that next time.

Price: Prices are decent to be honest. The food is delicious, if you're into spicy food. Therefore, the quality and flavors of the food do compensate...

The food overall is great! The prices are a little higher, BUT consider that the food is made fresh (especially the noodles), I didn’t notice anything microwaved either so that’s a huge plus, and they actually pay their workers well (above $15 minimum wage btw). It does get super busy during weekday lunch hours, but food is prepared within 15 minutes, so it isn’t too bad. However, I have a couple of minor annoyances: the bathroom and utensils are only on the ground floor, so you have to move up and down the narrow stairs if you’re eating on the 2nd floor… the canned drinks and water go for $2, which I think is a rip-off, the teas are O.K. at $3.25, but when you consider the price of food your order can add up.

My biggest annoyance of all though, which merits me removing a star, was seeing a bearded worker without a beard net. If you have a beard (like me), you know you have to be extra mindful and clean when preparing food. That has to be a health violation if that continues… no one wants beard hair in their food, so if you’re Xi’an and you’re reading this, you really have to do something...

SO GOOD. Cafeteria style seating, which I think is so efficient. No waiter to hover over. You order and wait for your order to be ready and take to your seat. You eat. Clean up and leave. Efficient and no hassle.

Price is amazing, but it's not a major portion, but the flavor is amazing with the chili oil and Mala spice. The tangy numbness of the spice works so well in the cucumber, though I think the cucumber bite size is too large. But so satisfyingly crunchy and refreshing. The noodles were so good and chewy. The thick hand pulled noodles were addictive and mouth watering in the meat and oil sause. I think you should try one with and one without soup. Both equally yummy.

The buger was aromatic and delicious as well. The cumin lamb was not gamey. It was chewy flavorful and addictive as well. I dipped the bun in the sauce of the noodle, and I was in heaven.

Even after we finished everything, we kept the sauce to bring home and add more noodles ourselves. Unfortunately, all the dumplings were sold out and beef burgers. We are definitely coming...