noodle time — Restaurant in Santa Cruz

I write reviews from a plant based consumer perspective, and for that reason a lot of vegans and vegetarians follow me

I'm consistent that way.

True to this I can tell you what is happening here for you tofu slang'n herbivores:

The wheat noodles are homemade, which is impressive, but they do have trace amount of egg that is used to hold things together. Some people might be willing to look the other way on that one as it is negligible and it's certainly not even visible. Just sad though because otherwise this place would be a regular stop for vegan types i think.

They do have a vegan appetizer which is a spicy tofu that is easily a meal in end of itself so check that out if you like.

Vegetarians should be just fine

My only complaint: i wish they had a specialized vegan menu with faux meat proteins (vegetarian mock meat) like so many Thai, Chinese and Vietnamese restaurants have these days.

The ambience is nice and the seating is quite comfortable out in the booths over by the window

One of the staff there came out and checked on me and sincerely asked how everything was which I really appreciated. I told her it was all fine but in reality, I took it home and had to do my own little touchup to bring it up to hedonistic flavor requirements.

They are kind of futuristic up here with these oversize iPad ordering devices set up. They encourage people to order ahead on their website, although I haven't tried that. Sure...

🌟🌟🌟🌟🌟 A New Gem in Santa Cruz

My husband and I recently visited this newly opened restaurant Noodle Time for lunch, and we had a very pleasant dining experience. From start to finish, everything was exceptional.

**👫 Friendly Staff: The team here is warm, welcoming, and attentive. They made us feel at home with their genuine smiles and quick service.

🍽️ Ambiance: The dining space is clean, spacious, and beautiful. The modern yet cozy vibe makes it perfect for casual meals or small gatherings.

**🔌 Phone Charging at Tables: How thoughtful is this?! They’ve installed charging ports right next to the dining tables—no more low-battery panic during your meal! Such a genius and convenient touch for modern diners.

**🍜 The Food: Absolutely DELICIOUS! We ordered the Pad Thai, Mongolian Beef, and fried egg Rolls - everything is delicious. The portions are generous—great value for the price! Don’t miss their Milk tea with Boba either; we loved being able to customize the sweetness levels to our liking.

💯 Final Thoughts: We’re very happy to have such a fantastic noodle spot in Santa Cruz! This place has everything—quality food, inviting atmosphere, quality service, and even convenient charging ports! We’ll 100% be back (probably sooner than we should!). **Highly recommend to anyone craving a tasty, satisfying meal. Welcome to the neighborhood, and thank you for an...

Was wondering who would take over this building after Dunkin Donuts! They've turned the place into a bright and welcoming restaurant. We've been looking for a place with milk tea and juice tea drinks that rival San Jose's offerings and boy are we impressed.

We ordered the peach slush with sea salt cheese cream and a camellia oolong passion fruit tea. Both came standard with crystal boba and you can adjust the sweetness. The fruit tea also had the addition of calamansi citrus and the sweetness level was wonderful at 30%. The peach slush at 50% sweet was also perfect and not too sweet.

We also ordered the special chicken bao, Beijing fried sauce noodles and braised beef soup.

The bao had a subtle sweet pepper sauce on them and we're fresh and satisfying.

Beijing noodles were bouncy with plenty of fresh julienned veggies and the added chili crisp was well made. Great dish!

The braised short rib noodle soup was piping hot with a huge portion. Beef was tender and the soup was subtle, noodles bouncy and not soggy. Needed a little hoisin to shine!

Overall great food quality and the service was so kind and welcoming to us. Definitely recommend if you enjoy similar places...