Frannywanny

Mien-San Noodle House has been around since I was still in Grade School. I remember spending Friday afternoons there with my parents as we enjoy their delicious noodle soup and dumplings. They have been a permanent fixture along Granada Avenue that their bright yellow signage just makes up the over-all look of this semi-commercial/residential area. Not so long ago, I blogged about Mien-San being our go-to place whenever hungry strikes late in the evening . It has been a regular hang-out for guys after a basketball game and families who are craving for some warm noodles before they head to bed. Recently, Mien-San had a little face lift where the little yellow signage was replaced by a bright red store facade signage that spells out M-I-E-N S-A-N which can easily be read meters away. The size of the store doubled as compared to its old located and they have added more dishes to their menu. It's a good thing though, our favorite choices were all still available. For Paul...

Just a couple of months ago, I wrote an article sharing how San Juan is rapidly turning into the next Chinatown . With its numerous Chinese restaurants opening here and there, it is truly a perfect place to live in for a Chinese food lover like myself. After welcoming a well-loved Binondo chicken house , a Taiwanese-inspired tea store and a Taiwanese restaurant ; we witnessed the arrival of yet another Chinese food stop, this time specializing in hand-pulled noodles and dumplings -- Beijing Hand-Pulled Noodles ! So what makes eating hand-pulled noodles so special as opposed to the machine-made ones? For one thing, hand-pulled noodles are made right after you place your order. The noodle dough are made in advance then stored under a certain temperature. Upon receiving your order, the noodle master , who came all the way from China, will then begin the entire process of pulling and cutting the dough using his bare hands in order to create long strands of fresh noodles. We ordered the B...

It was almost close to midnight when we entered the doors of Mien San Noodle House but still we were given a warm welcome and were quickly ushered to our table. This is one of the reasons why Mien San continues to be one of our neighborhood favorites. It's homey, no-frills interiors, the delicious food and the friendly service... no wonder Mien San has been around for more than a decade already. Since it was pretty late, we agreed to go light and to just share on our favorite Fried Porkchop Rice (Php. 148) and a steaming platter of Kutchay Dumplings (Php. 68). Oh how I miss the days when the porkchop rice was only for Php. 99. This goes to show how things have changed and every single commodity has gone up up and up! Luckily, Mien San's Porkchop Rice was still a winner. It's served in a bento box set-up complete with two vegetarian side dishes and a bowl of steamed rice. I love how Mien San cooks their vegetables, they can really make it so tasty that even non-veggie eat...