Xi’an Famous Foods
“I had previously tried their Chinatown resto, and was blown away by the spicy cumin lamb noodles (N1).”
“Been here twice and both the Spinach Dumplings in broth and Mt Qi Noodles are delicious, just spicy enough to water your eyes but not murder you.”
“I knew these guys were serious about their food when I saw their sign discouraging takeaway orders.”
Xi’an Famous Foods
Take-out: Yes
Accepts Credit Cards: Yes
Wheelchair Accessible: Yes
Good for Kids: Yes
Price range.
$ Price range Under $10
8 reviews
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Spicy Cumin Lamb Noodle Soup (Ns1) was delicious! I usually leave the noodles when I order soup elsewhere but these noodles were so good I ate them all.. Recommend ordering the cucumber salad as the fresh cucumbers offer a nice balance to the soup 🙂 Also ordered the spicy tofu which I didn't care for.
Quick service, relatively clean place.
Food was pretty good but not mind blowing. Could be very spicy, very numbing if you want it to be. Gets a 4 for being what it advertises to be
I would drop by if you're in the mood for this tongue numbing food without breaking the bank (too much)
Love me some spicy and tingly pork noodles. I need to keep exploring the menu because the noodles are so good. The service is great too. I was able to order my food and be out within a minute and a half. I'll be back for sure.
Unexpectedly good! That makes it better than just good good.
I happened to be in the upper east side of Manhattan with a wicked craving for what else but beef noodle soup. Thoughts of driving through flushing on my way back To LI crossed my mind. On a whim, I Yelp for beef noodle soup in Manhattan Upper east side. Fat chance. Yea right. I see a few generic sounding Chinese restaurants like Wok Like A Man and Panda Heaven. Avoid. Then I see this 4 star place on 78 st and 2 Ave with a very authentic sounding name. Xian should ring a bell. I have literally been living under a rock it seems because I totally missed the famous xian foods movement. Yelp reviews seem promising so I decide a drive by. Parking is impossible so I stop at an illegal spot and run in for an order. Some things are worth the risk.
I get the spicy beef noodle soup. Whoa. This is the real thing. The noodles are al dente with a great bite. Clearly house made. The broth is wicked hot and the spicy oils are rich. The beef is very tender but maintains its form. The garnish is light. Just some cabbage which is nice and crisp. No tendons sadly. The soup is hot! I am literally wiping my face dry. People on the street are looking at me like Im having a cardiac event.
I wish I could had another spontaneous trip. There are a ton of menu items that I could never find in Long Island. Lamb meat sandwich? Oxtail noodles. Cold seasoned cucumbers.
Observations:
We are on 78 st and 2 Ave but the place is filled with Asians. It's no secret with us.
Seating is sparse
Popular bathroom
Note: they discourage take out because it decreases the quality and freshness of the food but I had to because we were in a rush and I still thought this place was amazing! I've dined in before and definitely agree with their warning though.
We ordered
– the spicy cumin lamb noodles (4.5/5). Large enough portion to share between two people. It was delicious! Definitely has a Szechuan spice to it so avoid this if you can't handle spice. The noodles are amazing and it's pretty to cool to watch how they make them.
Will definitely want to come back to try some of the other items!
I was in town visiting the fam and hanging out with my Meetup group. One of my friends from the group who's a total foodie told me that she was headed to Xi'an's Famous Foods because she couldn't do Whole Foods (the group organizer wanted to go to whole foods for dinner which seemed crazy when you're in NYC–I can go to Whole Foods anytime). I went somewhere else with others from the group but I bookmarked this place to try another time. Well, that time was the next day as I happened to be a few blocks away.
I went by myself and I was concerned about not getting a place to sit–I read that it's fairly small and at times challenging to get a seat. I hoped for the best and headed on over. It wasn't too crowded when I went in, I was greeted by an employee and after telling her that I'd never been, she suggested the N1 (spicy lamb noodles). I love spicy food and I like lamb so I went with the N1. I was so concerned about getting a sit that I barely signed my name after paying and ran off to look for a seat–without my debit card, the lady gave it to me…lol.
The food:
This is not Panda Express Chinese–know that!
I've had my fair share of Chinese food but I've never tasted anything like this. Heed their warning about spice levels–spicy actually means spicy (which accounts for most of their dishes). The noodles are handmade and delicious. They highly recommend that you eat the noodle dishes inside–in fact, when I placed my order, the employee asked "you're eating in, right?" The lamb was perfect. it was tender and not gristly. Also, I love the cumin flavor. I know some people don't like the gamey taste in lamb but I think between the chili spices and the cumin, the gaminess is all but gone. It was a little tricky eating the noddles so I had to get my face really close to the plate to pick them up without making a mess. I thought that I might look weird but when I turned around, I saw others doing it too. The portion size large enough to where I didn't eat dinner and it was less than $10.00 dollars.
As I was enjoying my meal, I noticed a newspaper article about the owner and realized that I saw him on Bizarre Foods when Andrew Zimmern went to Flushing, Queens.
The service was good–when I was leaving, I said thanks and she said bye then she yelled out "how was it?" I responded with a thumbs up.
Try this place (or one of their other locations), you'll be happy you did.
Not quite amazing as I remember it to be, but then again, the last time I had it, it was still located under the Manhattan Bridge in an obscure part of Chinatown, so may have been more "authentic" at that time (i.e., not watered down to suite a western pallet). I ordered the lamb dumplings, and while it says that it's spicy, it really wasn't that spicy at all…The lamb wasn't gamey, which I appreciated, but the dumpling skins were a bit too thick for my liking. I think that maybe it's a preference thing. I suspect that they use the same or similar dough as their hand pulled noodles, making it a bit thicker…
I read great things so I grabbed some takeout. I ordered the spicy cumin lamb noodle soup and lamb dumpling in broth. It took maybe 7-10 minutes for my food to be prepared. Both items were good! I enjoyed the spicy cumin lamb more. The lamb and broth were super savory and spicy just enough. I wish there was more meat and vegetables but if you're a noodle lover, you'll probably enjoy this dish. The dumplings were super good! Each order came with 5 fat dumplings. The broth was an unexpected vinegary taste which was just okay with me but I didn't mind. Overall, I will definitely be back but I'm not in a rush since there is so many other asian spots I want to try first.