Mad Noodles — Restaurant in Pittsburgh

M & J Bistro is a new Asian-fusion restaurant on Pittsburgh's growing culinary scene, located in the South Side. The owners have made a bold statement of intent: to provide more than just a memorable meal, but to create an experience to remember. How bold is this statement? Well, the legendary chef and culinary artist Ricky Kirsop has been brought in to tantalize the senses via the canvas that is your table. With a visually stunning presentation of food, you immediately sense the passion that Ricky pours into every one of his creations. The flavors, textures, and scents all work together in perfect harmony- creating a sensory work of art that delights and intrigues with every bite. It is an almost spiritual experience. I have seen patron's eyes roll up into the back of their heads in a euphoric daze with their first taste of the amazing sushi menu. I have sampled, on multiple occassions now, the majority of the menu- including appetizers and desserts- and nothing falls short of a stand-alone masterpiece that creates an art gallery of a menu. The bold statement continues with the addition of a wizard disquised as a mixologist. His name is Biz, and his cocktail creations are reason alone to visit M & J Bistro. To say that Biz is an artist in his own right, is not doing his talent justice- his talent is more akin to sorcery or wizardry: his drinks are those of a magician that needs no sleight of hand or misdirection to believe that his magic is real... belief is just one sip away. I may just start calling him Wiz instead! Now, to punctuate the bold statement, one must look to what must be the best General Manager and staff, hands-down, in the Pittsburgh area. Casey(GM), Cheyenne(Hostess), Chad, Landon, and Corey(Customer Servers Extrordinaire), are some of the staff members I had personally experienced. They set the standard for exemplary service with a genuine desire to show why they are the best, and why lunch or dinner here is a transcendental experience. The decor is sensual and sophisticated, and the atmosphere is intimate with a sexy vibe. This is the Must Go place that needs to be on your radar, and it is my new addiction...

I walked in before to order takeout and they told me to order online, despite me being there physically and could have just ordered in-person. After going through the process of ordering online, I left to wander around until the food was ready, since it seemed they didn’t want any physical contact beyond picking up orders. I waited 15 min and returned to check on the order. I was told they refunded me because they didn’t have the ingredients for what I ordered. Despite having to enter my phone number when placing the online order I didn’t get a call. What also irritates me about being told to order online despite being there in person is the accessibility issue of it. What if someone doesn’t have a smart phone, phone is dead, etc? I imagine the staff would be flexible, it just seems unnecessary if a customer is standing right in front of you.

ETA: I realized I did receive a call and did not know my phone rang. In the future I hope they leave a message, text, or send an email cancellation to do due diligence (I was checking my email since the website order sent...

I think the rating is too low for this place! I actually quite enjoyed some of the food I had from here. The menu is super broad and has a ton of variety. I tried the pork buns and pad Thai.

Seeing the name, you may think their specialty is noodles. I don't think so! They should really be renamed to Mad Bao or something because their pro buns and dumplings are what actually stood out.

The bun was so fluffy and had the perfect amount of casing to meat. The meat was well cooked, tender, seasoned well, and just all around delicious. Perfect crisp on the outside. And, a pretty nice savory sauce too, but that wasn't anything crazy. I would really recommend trying one of their dumplings.

The pad Thai was not as good. It was a big portion, yes, but quality wasn't the best, and it was a tad expensive. It had a strange sugary sauce, almost like sweet n sour noodles. I just wasn't the biggest fan of this pad Thai.

All in all, I quite enjoyed this spot. If you come here, you definitely need to try the buns...