Biang biang noodles
Xi’an, China
We found a noodle place!! I’m thrilled to have dared to enter one of the tiny little restaurants, order, pay, and eat a delicious, CHEAP meal! (Though, the word “restaurant” feels generous - “café” is closer, but still sounds too diner-y.) Biang biang noodles are thick “like a belt” and native to Xi’an. The Chinese character for biang requires an amazing 58 strokes to write!
After an unsuccessful trip to find biang biang noodles the other day <shakes fist at defunct Chinese Google maps>, Josh found a place on our walk today on the way to the Giant Wild Goose Pagoda. It was a little hole in the wall, only recognizable to us by the double Chinese character with all the strokes.
A kind gentleman with visible cataracts in one eye helped us find a seat and helped us order. There were only four small tables in this back room, two already occupied. In my mind, the group next to us - a father and his grown daughters? - left on account of our crude attempt at the thick, slippery wheat noodles with the tools provided.
Tools being four giant bowls, like ceramic serving bowls or something you could bake bread in; chopsticks; four smaller bowls with what I thought was broth but tasted of pure pasta water; and some condiments which I didn’t use mostly because the food was already so flavorful. Also I was afraid one of bottles would be fish sauce. Yuck.
There was also a small, clear jar filled with full cloves of garlic! Like, yum! Through hand motions we asked for a spoon for Ari (we saw someone else with one) and another friendly, older gentleman who was clearly curious about us, fetched one from what curiously looked like an inset freezer where more bowls were lined up, yet it wasn’t cold.
As a side dish we ordered, well, I don’t know what it’s called, but it was a flaky pastry on the outside and ground hamburger (at least I think and mostly hope it was ground hamburger) with onions on the inside. The whole meal cost us a mere 103 yuan, or about $13USD. It was absolutely dee-LISH-ious, which is what I typed into Google Translate and had my phone say on my behalf to the shop owners. They were so pleased and smiled big. So did we.
