A restaurant that serves delicious pho and ramen is hard to find, especially in Fairfield County. We’re fans of Mecha Noodle Bar and have been to Fairfield location, so when we found up a sister restaurant opened in SoNo, we had to stop by and slurp up.
Mecha Noodle Bar exterior
Mecha opened in December and they just started serving lunch in January. Eighty percent of the core menu in South Norwalk is similar to the Fairfield location, with the remainder of the menu debuting new dishes with a Mecha twist.
Hot Sake anyone?
As I enjoyed my spiked bubble tea called Temple of the Sun (African nectar tea, pineapple, passionfruit, and Nuestra Soledad Mezcal), I had a hard time deciding what to order. Now, that’s one of the good things about dining with others – you can order several dishes and share.
KFC Bao
So what did we get? Bao. If I see that on the menu, I’m ordering it! Pillowy doft, warm buns hugging savory goodness. There are four on the menu, and we sampled three:
- KFC Bao – No, not the fast food kind. This is Korean fried chicken with gochujang, pickled daikon and carrots, and kewpie. Crispy. Delicious. You must order this when you’re here. Sharing, optional.
- Shrimp Roll Bao – poached shrimp, yuzu mayo, and black sesame. Light, and delicious.
- Shiitake Mushroom Bao – you don’t have to be a vegetarian to like it. It’s awesome and has a lot of great flavor.
Shiitake Bao
The Red Oil Dumplings were amazing. Made with pork, shrimp, sichuan vinegar, cilantro, and shallots, each dumpling is packed with rich flavors. But that sauce…ridiculously good. Save it, especially if you’re ordering soup. I also asked the server to pack some home for me so I could douse it on my rice at home. No shame here.
Red Oil Dumplings
Whether or not you like blood sausage, and maybe if you want to be a little adventurous, I recommend trying the Brussels Sprouts (nuoc mam, peanuts, mint, boudin noir). The Brussels sprouts were tender, and sausage was soft and delicious.
Brussels Sprouts
The Kim Chi Fried Rice is a must. It’s one of our favorite dishes served at both locations. The fried rice is made with chicken, bacon, scallion, and a fried egg on top.
Kimchi Fried Rice
There are four types of ramen on the menu. We shared the Tonkotsu Ramen, made with tender, flavorful pork belly (chashu), ramen, spicy sprouts, soft-boiled, egg, and scallion. Pour some of the leftover sauce from the Red Oil Dumplings for extra flavor. If you still have broth in your bowl, you can get an extra serving of fresh noodles by telling the server “Kae-Dama please.”
And for the kids, we recommend ordering the Pho Ga, a Vietnamese soup made with sliced chicken breast and rice noodles. My daughter (only 3 years old) loved it, and asked for lime to add to the soup, like the way you should eat pho, along with bean sprouts and basil.
For dessert, try the Japanese mochi rice cake, topped with sesame buttercream, black sesame, mint and toasted peanuts.
Japanese Mochi Cake
Mecha Noodle Bar is open daily; Monday through Saturday from 11:30 to 10pm and Sunday from 11:30-9pm. There’s a Late Night Menu 10pm til 1am.
Mecha Noodle Bar
116 Washington Street
Norwalk, CT 06854
Tel: (203) 295-8718
Check out our review of Mecha Fairfield.
Mecha Noodle Bar Interior
Disclosure: We were invited to sample Mecha’s menu. The opinions expressed are my own and I received no further compensation from Mecha or their representatives. We left a cash tip.
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