THE PULL OF NOODLES
Where to go for seriously slurp-worthy dishes in Houston
At MDK Noodles in Asiatown, the knife-cut noodles, or kalguksu, arrive in a shiny metal bowl all but submerged in an opaque chicken broth. Digging my metal chopsticks deep into the bowl, I grab a thick helping of noodles, pulling upward so that a cascade of glistening, Instagram-worthy strands dangles before me. As I inhale the silken strands from end to end, they glide effortlessly across my lips, and it’s glorious. I’m reminded of that famous spaghettieating scene in “Lady and the Tramp,” and that’s me in this moment, slurping one strand at a time, like a 5-year-old child who’s just discovered the most entertaining form of eating.
Noodles are my comfort. During the pandemic, they’ve also been an affordable luxury in which I could indulge without worrying that I might break the bank. Most noodle dishes average $10 per order, and there’s often enough for leftovers the next day, stretching the budget even further. I feel especially lucky for
the variety on offer throughout our city. I can find noodles to fulfill just about any craving when it hits: Vietnamese pho dac biet at Pho Dien; Japanese udon at Ishin Udon; Cantonese dry beef chow fun noodles at House of Bowls; Malaysian char kway teo at Phat Eatery in Katy; and so on.
Houston’s noodle game is also stronger than ever these days thanks to the trend toward specialty gourmet “noodle houses.” MDK Noodles, which was recommended to me by chef Pascal Choi of Azuma Restaurant group, is one such place. The familyowned mini-chain has roots in Korea — the original Myeongdong Kyoja was established in Seoul in 1966. The Shin family opened its first MDK Noodles in Los Angeles’ Koreatown in 2005. When the family matriarch moved to Houston last year, she brought the family recipes with her, debuting Houston’s MDK Noodles in mid-May shortly after the dine-in ban was lifted.
Though you can’t see the noodle-making in action — there’s a giant machine in the kitchen that renders fresh batches of 2-foot-long wheat noodles throughout the day — the proof is in the pudding. They are cooked to order and available in a mild chicken broth or a bracingly spicy one, and nowhere else in Houston will you find a version of kalguksu so strikingly long, elastic or silky. Pull them high above your head. Slurp them to your heart’s content. And if you can’t get enough? Order a noodle refill ($2 per bowl) to enjoy with the broth remaining in your bowl.
As wonderful as they are, a block away in the Dynasty Plaza, Mian just might be Houston’s best destination for noodles right now. Open since September, Mian, which is the Chinese word for noodles, bills itself as a Gourmet Sichuan Noodle House and holds the pedigree to back it up. It was brought to Houston by the same group behind Chengdu Taste and Xiaolongkan Hot Pot Restaurant. And Mian’s first outpost in the San Gabriel Valley is one of the few restaurants in Southern California to score a coveted Michelin Guide Bib Gourmand designation.
The standard Mian noodles, used in the majority of the dishes on the menu (there are 13 soup varieties and nine stir-fried or dry noodle dishes to choose from), are utterly delightful, plump and somewhat luscious, with an enviable chewiness that you simply can’t get find in store-bought noodles.
Mixing up the zhajiangmian, a Sichuan-style noodle with ground pork, fried egg, scallions and red oil laced with spicy-numbing Sichuan peppercorns is not only visually arresting (epic noodle pulls are de rigeur here) but masterful in that the sauce and toppings cling to the noodles, imparting just the right amount of spice and seasoning to make your palate stand at attention.
Excellent noodles notwithstanding, another great reason to visit Mian? Noodle refills are free.