By Abigael T. Sidi
I’m keeping things pure and clean this week, and I’m on somewhat of a diet in preparation for hitting the big holiday meals again. However, “pure, clean and on a diet” does not have to mean bland, boring, and “thanks, but I’ll pass.” Quite the contrary, it can also mean tasty, addictive, and delicious, and Simply Noodles’ trendy scallion-oil-and-mushroom noodles (cōng yóu bàn miàn) are just that.
Simply Noodles is a tiny Chinese noodle shop located across from the 72nd Street 1-2-3 subway station; from the outside it’s seemingly one of those dime-a-dozen places, but the menu has achieved word-of-mouth status in recent months. The spot even made its way through Dish’s comments section on more than one occasion, with readers raving both about the noodles’ simplicity and their quality.
Most reviews, and the restaurant itself, will highlight the “Crossing-Bridge-Rice-Noodles” (“CBRN”) as the star of the show, a gluten-free and hard-to-find alternative to the traditional wheat-based noodles served at most Chinese restaurants. Yet what I’d been noticing again and again were Simply Noodles’ scallion-oil-&-mushroom noodles made with classic wheat dan dan noodles, a variation of which I had tried at my culinary discovery of the year, Nai Brother Sauerkraut Fish. I had given that dish an honorable mention in my piece – it had potential but lacked in fragrance and complexity – but, on that day, I had been tipped by Nai Brother’s customers that the real-deal version could be found further south, at Simply Noodles.
Scallion oil is a core ingredient in the culinary culture of Jiangnan (an area in greater Shanghai/Eastern China), which unlike Sichuan’s chili oils or Hunan’s fermented peppers, uses fragrant oils as seasoning. These oils can also be infused with shallots, ginger or dried shrimp, and probably date back to the Song Dynasty (10th to 13th centuries). They are commonly mixed with soy sauce and sugar to provide the rich and aromatic flavor basis of essentially every dish or condiment sauce in the region.
Fragrance and aroma are front and center, but also very well balanced, in Simply Noodle’s scallion oil & mushroom noodles. The dish is beautifully presented, with a refinement and elegance more typical of Japanese visuals, with the thin noodles delicately laid on an immaculate plate and topped with beautiful whole brown beech mushrooms (by contrast, Nai Brother’s version used stripes of dehydrated mushrooms.)
At first slurp, the dish may feel a little disappointing, almost restrained in flavor, but trust me, give it time. What is clear from the get-go, however, is that these are serious noodles. Thin, springy, and firm with a slight but real chew, clearly up there with some of the best I’ve tried in the city, including Jin Ramen. As you slurp more and more noodles, the ratio of sauce to noodles expands, accentuating the earthy, fresh and simultaneously sweet and salty aromas imparted by the scallion oil, soy sauce and sugar mixture. The slurps become tastier and tastier, bordering on punchy and pungent – the dish literally evolves to a point where the dish you end with is completely different from that which you started with; almost two meals in one, a really interesting experience.
Lastly, the mushrooms provide a great textural contrast to a dish that, especially towards the end, just exudes umami. There is also fried garlic there, for depth of flavor, and a perfect match for both the sauce and mushrooms.
As mentioned earlier, Simply Noodles also offers CBRN noodles served in a variety of ways (mainly soups, but also with the scallion oil!), and so gluten-free customers will be plenty happy. The scallion pancakes were feasted on by every customer but me and I’ll certainly give them a try in the future. The interior is very small, with six or seven tables max, but has a large cherry blossom painting on one wall and a warm lighting for a quite cozy atmosphere.
Simply Noodles is located on Amsterdam Avenue right across from Verdi Square, and is open every day from 11:00 a.m. til 9:00 p.m, with take-out and delivery available at these times. Vegetarian and vegan options abound.
Like many I’m sure, there are dishes where you just know right away: something addictive, it clicks. I felt it with Nai Brother’s naige sauerkraut fish, and I felt it again with Simply Noodles’ cōng yóu bàn miàn. They just earned themselves a new loyal customer!
The Dish: Scallion oil & mushroom noodles ($15.00)
The Restaurant: Simply Noodles, 267 Amsterdam Avenue (between W. 72nd and 73rd streets)
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