I've been hearing great things about
Xinji Noodle Bar since it opened in Ohio City not too long ago, so Mr. H and I finally made our way in to try it for ourselves. On a cold night, it hit the spot right away.
The space is larger than I had thought it would be, spilling over into two storefronts with table seating and a bar area. A family-friendly atmosphere too, so that means ramen for everyone!
We wanted to try a little of everything, so we split the
kimchi balls (
select 3 for the trio tasting, or order by piece). These were certainly decent, but maybe not really my thing. I missed the creaminess of a risotto ball, so I'd pass next time and do more bao.
We also each got to try the
Fried Chicken Bao ($7), as one order comes with two steamed buns. The chicken was super crispy and the other crunchy textures were awesome, but I had wished the bun itself was warmer to really make this pop.
Lastly, we had to order the ramen. I went for the
Shoyu Ramen ($12) and added a
Soy Egg ($1). The noodles were cooked perfectly, with a nice chew to them. I also thought my broth was wonderful. Mr. H's seafood special ramen wasn't quite as good as mine, but he still enjoyed it.
Overall, we really liked the meal and restaurant, and want to go back. They also serve brunch!
Cleveland seems to be on a ramen kick recently, and I'm not mad about it.
Xinji Noodle Bar
4211 Lorain Avenue
Cleveland, OH 44113
216-465-2439
6 comments:
I loved Xinji & would love to get back there soon. I really liked the mozzarella kimchi balls, which seemed surprising because that sounds like a weird & gross combo. I also really enjoyed my spicy ramen, though my friends all said their plain ramen wasn't as flavorful; they recommended getting half regular/half spicy next time around.
Skip the Bao and get the dumplings, which are made from scratch by the owner's wife and are the best dumplings in the CLE! You can see my Flickr album featuring the Crispy Veggie Dumpling and the steamed spicy pork dumpling. https://www.flickr.com/photos/nancyheller/36389382194/in/album-72157685181078732/
I've been wanting to try this place! I was hoping you were going to say everything was fabulous, but I'm glad you think it's worth a visit.
I was afraid the spicy would be too spicy for my stomach, so that’s a great tip to ask for half and half!
Thanks for commenting because that’s one thing we wanted to try but didn’t get to!
Definitely worth a visit and it’s certainly better than any other similar restaurants that I’ve tried around CLE so far.
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