We ordered the spicy noodle with minced pork and the non-spicy noodle with beef slices. The spicy noodle remained one of the best in Melbourne; very spicy, very oily, very flavourful with generous pork mince. The non-spicy noodle was a nice alternative if you were not into spicy food; the beef slices were tender and the soup was still packed full of flavor. Service was typical of those cheap Chinese eateries (which was pretty much non-existent) but the noodles were definitely worth it!
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One of my favourite noodle places in the city! The noodles here are super delicious, with generous portions and affordable prices.
My go-to choice here is the Dry Noodle with Pork & Peas. The sauce is so flavourful, and I really love the chickpeas which give a nice texture. The Chongqing Spicy Noodle with Beef is also another good option if you like spicy food! The broth is really delicious, and the beef is very tender. I also loved the Spicy and Sour Potato Noodle - the potato noodles have a very unique and slippery texture.
They also have a really nice selection of sweet dishes too. I loved the Chilled Jelly with Fruits and Peanuts - it was so light and refreshing, and the perfect way to finish off a spicy meal. There was plenty of different dried fruits and peanuts, and I really liked the sour plum. The Fried Glutinous Rice Cakes were really yummy too. They were crispy on the outside, sticky and chewy on the inside, and served with a nice and sweet brown sugar syrup.
Definitely recommend checking out Noodle Express if you’re in the city!
Thank you so much for having us.
Joanne | Melbournecitay
+4
I have always been a huge fan of dainty’s Sichuan offerings at South Yarra, especially during winter. With a @groupon_au voucher, we decided to have a quick meal at their branch. The soy bean deserves a mention because it wasn’t too sickeningly sweet and a great antidote to their spicy dishes. Highly recommended!
The fried chicken noodle soup ($10, originally $15) was massive. Couldn’t honestly finish it, which speaks volumes for a noodle lover like me. There was a bit of everything to keep the meal exciting - eggs, mushroom, vege slices and a large plate of fried chicken (!!!) The mushroom based soup was very heartening, but we found ourselves missing dainty’s signature spice dishes. I was especially hoping for more spice to accompany the fried chicken. Thankfully, you can add chilli oil to the meal!
We also found the spoon quite unwieldy. Apart from these minor gripes, the price was quite worth it at $10 for a bowl of noodle soup and soy bean drink! Would be back thanks to price and location!
*
Taste: ⭐️⭐️⭐️
Ambience: ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
Presentation: ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
Price: ⭐️⭐️⭐️
Service: ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
I love their noodle soup the one with pork belly. Perfect and very tasty. Very quick, you don’t have to wait too long to get your meal. Most likely people are in and out, you would get a sit straight away.
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Noodle Express is another offshoot of Dainty Sichuan, and here you can get your spicy fix satisfied quick and easy. As the name suggests, noodle is the star here, along with a selection of entrees and desserts to keep things interesting.
We had the noodle with fish flavoured eggplants, Chongqing spicy noodles with pork chitterlings and Sichuan cold noodles. All the noodles were cooked to perfection - chewy, yet with a firm bite. The fish flavoured eggplants was the most flavourful of the bunch, and it's not hard to see why with its bold and rich flavours. The pork chitterlings noodle had a nice kick to it, but could do with a bit more depth. I love the cold noodles too, somewhat acting as a palate cleanser between bites.
We also tried the veggie combination skewers in chilli oil. A good option for a snack, and to curb those chilli cravings.
Despite stuffing my face with all the noodles, I still ordered desserts to share. The fried pumpkin cake and chilled jelly with fruits and peanuts were a perfect sweet ending to the meal. The former had a beautiful golden crunch to it, belying the softness inside, while the latter was incredibly refreshing and light, cutting through the heaviness of the carb and chilli-laden meal.
Also refreshing were the beverages - strawberry oolong, pineapple oolong and fresh watermelon juice. Definitely a great pairing to the meal. Thank you for having me in.
Good thing about Dainty Sichuan Express is they will give you that hot-pot kind of fix without needing to sit there for a 2 hour session.
There is a good variety of spicy noodle and skewer options as well.
• Mix Dry Noodle with Pork & Peas – I really enjoyed this dish, it’s like a Chinese spaghetti. There is a little bit of sauce at the bottom, which have elements of Sichuan pepper, garlic, spring onion, chilli oil, and soy. The yellow peas are almost like chickpeas (maybe they are).
• Spicy Stewed Beef – Good texture with the thin noodles, the soup is *just* beyond my threshold so I took my time with this. Very tender pieces of beef.
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Dainty Sichuan had a lot of different branches and this one was called Noodle Express and located within the Emporium, Melbourne.
The place was very spacious with nice decor. There was a shelf with a lot of cute pandas displayed along the wall! Love pandas :)
We started off with some drinks: Strawberry Oolong, Pineapple Oolong and Strawberry Yakult (this was my drink and omg it was so nice!)
For entrees, we had the:
VEGGIES COMBINATION WITH CHILLI - quail eggs, potato, black fungus, califlower, bean curd sheets, dried bean curd. It was served cold and the chilli sauce wasn't too spicy until you had a bit of the fresh chilli and then your tongue will start to tingle and be numb- but it was so addictive you try to eat more and then the effect comes back again. It's a vicious cycle lol.
For the mains:
BEEF NOODLE SOUP - The broth is really nice, as well as the noodles which were chewy. This was one of the non-spicy noodle choices. A bit chewy with some beef cuts though.
NOODLES MIXED WITH MINCED PORK - This was my favourite dish! The minced pork was so flavourful, tender and super yummy! The sauce is great when mixed with the noodles!
CHONGQING SPICY NOODLE WITH BEEF - This one was a friend's dish so I didn't get to taste it. She said it wasn't spicy at the start but gets spicier and she loved it.
We finished off with some desserts:
FRIED PUMPKIN CAKES - There were three pieces in a serving but they were a bit bigger than normal ones. The skin was really chewy with red bean filling inside instead of pumpkin/custard filling like they usually do.
CHILLED JELLY WITH FRUITS AND PEANUTS (COLD) - Surprisingly good as the jelly reminded me of those water drop cake ones, and perfect when matched with fruits, but didn't really prefer the peanuts haha.
FRIED GLUTINOUS RICE CAKES - These were sticky, chewy but crunchy outside. It was nice when drizzled in the sweet sauce.
Overall, really nice dinner and very filling. Thank you Dainty Sichuan Noodle Express.
We had spicy noodles and noodles mixed with oyster mushrooms, which is a new dish here. We loved it! Staff were super friendly. We will come back again.
Delicious Sichuan food, friendly staff and great location. As a fan of Sichuan food, I always come here for lunch when I have shopping in the city center.
Always into the Chongqing spicy noodle here and just saw some Spring New Dish is available in store. I ordered dried noodle with beef and oyster mushroom. Perfect for summer without hot soup and quite tasty! Always surprise me. 😆
The noodles is very good and I love it so much
A very good place for work day meals. Fast-serving and good service. The noodles are soooooo delicious that I must order every time. Really recommend people to try this one.
Very very yummy! Don’t miss it!
It is nice to have authentic Sichuannese noodles in Melbourne. A good memory before leaving Australia.
Love the food and always have new menu . The music is good . The environment was ok . Provide free mints and waters.
Came to try out the spring menu collection and I was not disappointed at all. Always been impress by Dainty Sichuan group. And this is another one that I like which specialize in noodle. High recommenced
Although the food is good here but staff is not friendly
This is the legit Sichuan joint from Dainty Sichuan. The food here uses lots of spices and the numbing Sichuan peppercorns.
The highlights are the spicy mince meat noodles, the meat sticks - chicken or beef, quill eggs, non spicy chicken and mushroom noodles, cold noodles and the spicy soup noodles.
Go try it. It is located on the lower ground floor of Emporium opposite Kyo tea house.
Good solid spicy Sichuan noodles 🥵🤤❤️ tried the spicy dumplings with noodles and found it to be pretty good. It’s a restaurant I keep coming back to, happy to recommend.
Being a fan of the dainty sichuan hotpot, I always want to try this place. Noddle soup is delicus and very comforting. I tried the pork belly one and it was great.
came here after work due to some train delays and had the stewed chicken with bone & mushroom noodle, fried crispy chicken balls and Sichuan cold noodle..
being in emporium this place shuts shop at 7:00pm, however they did allow us to order and keep eating post 7:00pm which was great.. The quality of the food was decent.. cold noodles were exceptional.. and the stewed chicken was flavoursome.. portions were smaller than anticipated.. overall good for a quick meal especially if you can grab a EatClub deal too!
Love their noodle soups with either chicken or pork belly. Great value for the size. Guaranteed you will feel full! If you like something spicy, they’ve got some great ones.
We come every weekend if we are not working. Good tasty & spicy food. The Wantons and flat noodles are made in house and are awesome .Good service & price
Christopher Alex Pavlidis Garkinis
+4
Overall, an excellent food experience. I am not a big fan of the sichuan mouth numbing-spicy-sour combinations, yet their chicken soup wontons and mushroom wontons are to die for and excellent. I crave them sometimes! Silky, soft, delicious pockets of joy with minced pork inside, yummy earthy mushrooms, greens, comforting soup. All well priced. The only issue is the impersonal and sometimes rushed service, typical of Chinese restaurants in Melbourne. Food often arrives in a good time - not too quick or too long of a wait, well priced as well. I love this place and cannot wait for my next visit! Yummmmm :)
Love a good noodle soup from Dainty Sichuan.The favourite is the preserve vege & fish noodle soup. The soup base is really good and the noodles are chewy.Located at the lower level in Emporium and you might just want to walk across to Kyo tea house for your dessert after a meal 😉
Pricy but brilliant taste.Very spicy if u handle it.lol.We arrived around 2pm but still crowded.The veggie skewers was cold,it is better to consume when heated.Avoid pork belly.But CHONGQING chilli chicken I strongly recommend.I would like to have another bowl
This tastes very authentic. It’s very spicy, the service is very quick. I didn’t even get a stomach ache from the super Spicey soup that you would expect. They use good meat and fresh noodles. I would highly recommend to take your chinese friends there who are homesick. Or instead of going to Sichuan , you can just try this food.
This place is definitely our go to place for a great bowl of spicy sichuan beef noodle. Recently we tried their new chongqing beef noodle but it’s not as good as their regular sichuan beef noodle. We prefer the sichuan one better. We also notice that they have multiple locations in CBD but for some reason the Emporium branch has the best noodle. The broth and the overall taste is just better in this branch. Unfortunately because it’s located inside the mall, they have to follow the opening and closing time of the mall, so it’s a bit limited availability. Other than their great beef noodle, their cold dishes like the skewers and pork ears are also very nice and tasty. Should definitely order them to compliment your bowl of beef noodles!
My first Sichuan food experience! And I keep coming back!
Ambience : 5/5. Conveniently located inside Emporium. Spacious with a lot of room to move.
Food : 5/5. For anyone into spicy food, I highly recommend the Chongqing spicy noodles. The soup is enjoyable, rich with ingredients and the noodle is thin. Portions were generous too.
Service : 5/5. There is always a line outside the restaurant during peak hours. However, the longest I’ve waited for a table is merely 10 minutes. Great service and food came pretty quick.
Highly recommended!
Love it. First time trying Sichuan food and this didn’t disappoint. It was soo good and craving it again. We got the noodle soups with chicken and pork and they were both amazing. Service can be a bit better but the food is good so i’ll be going back
Went in as a busy weekday arvo snack. Food was great but quite spicy for my taste. Service was prompt and quick. Quite interesting experience. Would go back again!
I had the vegetarian chongqing spicy noodle and my friend had the spicy noodle with lamb.. They have lots of vegetarian options which is great! mine is less spicy and my friend's (the photos with super red soup color) is original... My friend was like sweating and kept saying that it's super spicy even tho it wasn't the highest level of spiciness he ordered haha...
mine cost like $12 and my friend's was $17, which is fair because I only got noodles and veggies while my friend got noodle, veggies and with lamb.. some places charge vegetarian and non-vegetarian food in the same price which is ridiculous
I like the soup base, which is very much seasoning happening and it gave me a lil sense of warm eating it.. they gave us egg braised as well ..love this place 👍👍
Good, no nonsense, reliable food served fast. My favourite is the chicken soup with pork dumplings. I like to add the homemade noodles to the soup when I'm really hungry.
Love their spicy beef noodles, although sometimes beef can be tough and other times nice and tender. Flavour is always on point and so satisfying!
A bit annoying that they have a minimum for eftpos though..
The restaurant looked good and nice services. I had lunch with my friends, they so enjoyed and happy with all the food we had. We ordered Chongqing Chilli Chicken, Stewed pork feet, Potato noodle and 2 cold rice noodle - so delicious, thank you 💋
Little Bit Of Everything
+4
Been to Dainty Sichuan at the Emporium quite a few times. It gets quite busy and packed during lunch time. It’s kind off disappointing that they don’t take orders for take away over the phone, on saying that the service is pretty quick.
My favourite are their Chongging Spicy noodle with Pork Chitterlings and Pork Ear (cold dish).
- One of my fav Sichun places in Melbourne.
- Delicious foods & efficient service (Don’t need to wait for long no matter how packed the place is ).
- Price is reasonable.
*Recommendation: pork legs*
(The gloves are provided so it is pretty convenient)
I wasn’t going to get noodles tonight but I walked past and saw new items on the menu and got sucked in. Anytime there is hand pulled noodles around I’m in, and the hand pulled noodles with Minced Pork and Peas didn’t disappoint! Noodles were wide and chewy, spice was just the right heat and the peas were really fresh. Would have been a 5 rating but I took a point off because of the price, didn’t need to be that expensive but I guess that’s what you get in a shopping mall.
I've always wanted to find a place with good Sichuan food and this is pretty good. I ordered the stewed pork feet and my partner ordered stewed beef. I was a bit hesitant about ordering anything over 3 chilli's (hotness level) because I know Sichuan food is known to be hot. But that was a mistake. 3 chilli's is like a mild hotness level for me and my 1 chilli rating dish was not spicy at all. So next time I will be aware. Overall the dishes tasted great, the food was decently price with relatively large quantities. You pay at the front and then you are seated. Service was attentive too, and I will definitely come back whenever I'm craving mildly spicy food.
Another good place for fast food. Like this kind of noodle. Friendly staff. If you like spicy noodle, here is a really good choice. Will come back again.
I’m a lover of spices, so this place had everything I needed. It’s sister shop is Tina’s Noodle Kitchen, and the tastes were similar, but I think this one has more entree choices and also different types of noodles (i personally like potato noodles, tastes a little zesty)
Never a big fan of Sichuan food but this place manage to convert me.
Went there during one of the busiest lunch time of the year for takeaway and they ran out of rice meal set.
The initial service or I should said manners of the person taking order was not great but it improved.
Atmosphere really noisy.
We had lamb ribs with hand pulled noodle. The chilli level is much milder then expected not sure I can increase the heat level. The soup flavour is good and deep. Lamb was soft and fall of the bone. Love the hand pulled noodle. Springy and well cook , worth the additional $3 for that.
Chicken and mushrooms soup - non spicy soup. Again good flavour with chicken and mushroom taste. Noodle were springy.
However those soup leave us quite thirsty after.
Will return.
Had to change my review from a 4 to a 5 recently because I’m addicted to the chongqing noodles! If you like chilli I recommend them. I like the pork and chickpea one. Also their fish slices whether as an extra or the noodles with pickled vegetables are so delicious 🤤
This is our go-to place when we don't know what we should eat for lunch/dinner. Our go-to dish is the cold noodle appetizer (with no chilli) which is utterly sublime. I keep saying I need to find out the recipe for it because it's so so sooo good. It's the one dish me and my guy do not share.
The noodles dishes are all delicious - highlights are the chicken and mushroom noodle soup and the tomato and egg soup. Note that there's +$3 for handmade noodles (which is a bit steep), but worth it.
As for drinks - plum juice or watermelon juice are the way to go.
Consistently going back there. Not very exiting like their hotpot, but won't disappointing too. Yeah, recommended for a simple express lunch/ meal.
Bright airy cafe on the lower ground of Emporium. Made it in just before the lunchtime rush. Ordered the seafood noodles. No skimping on the seafood which was nice. The dish looked exactly as it was pictured in the menu and was even a bit larger than I was anticipating. Price was good too. The broth was lovely. Noodles were great too. The vegetables in the dish still had a hint of hardness as well which I always like. I enjoyed the dish and the place and wouldn’t hesitate to come again. It’s a 3.7 for me.
Tried the Duck soup with pickled chili with rice. The broth was awesome. Had a deep layer of flavor. Duck was tender. Pickled chili only accentuated the flavor profile. Amazingly delicious bowl of rice.
Sichuan cuisine is one of my favourite types of food. Dainty Sichuan Noodle Express has a wide range of tasty noodle dishes, cold appetisers and specialty drinks. Plum juice is definitely worth a try!
Located at emporium food court, as usual firstly the customer service not bad , and secondly the atmosphere dining is good, lot of space to seat provided, thirdly the food not bad very tasty , lastly price reasonable and thumbs up !cheers
My husband has taken a real liking to Sichuan food recently so one night we decided to give Dainty Sichuan Noodle Express a go! We had always walked past this place in Emporium and there’s usually a line outside but we had never tried! Until recently. You need to order at the front before you go in and before you sit you need to pay at a different counter, a little strange but as you do.
We've been to Dainty Sichuan Noodle Express quite few times. This time I ordered the chicken and mushroom noodle. Its flavour is quite rich though oily, and was a pretty big serving, I couldn't finish it in the end. The service is just average but pretty fast. Overall it can be a pretty good place if you want something quick to eat.
I had the potato noodles with stewed lamb. Beautiful presentation and flavour, served fast. the staff were friendlly and welcoming as it was our first time here. My friend was impressed. We will return.
First time at Dainty Sichuan, ordered the stewed chicken with mushroom noodle soup. Love the flavours of the soup and the chicken. I find the chicken was a bit too boney for me. Some pieces had no meat on it. Portion size is ok. Would love to have a few more pieces of chicken.
It was a regular joint for me on dates, as I wanted to introduce different foods to my new found friends. Then the divorce happens. It's ok, that's just life. Not going to lie Dainty doesn't impress all, but it does let you know which ones like the spice ;)
Their skewers are really good, seasoned properly. But if you are not that type of person who can really enjoy and bear the spice of Sichuan Level, please make sure you avoid all “noodles” marked as “spicy” at this place coz they would probably make your stomach burning at once then you would hardly finish your dish. If you've got a mate who ordered spicy noodles, ask him/her to share a little bit with you to see if you can bear it.
This branch is definitely better than the one in chadstone shopping centre, it's not just because of food, also service, I love spicy food, watermelon juice is also good matches with spicy food
I haven't had many good experiences with Chinese food in the city, but this unassuming little lot on the lower ground floor of Emporium was a refreshing change. The ambience was bright, busy, and noisy, and a good number of their clientele were Chinese, which tipped me off to the authenticity of their food. I ordered the stewed beef Sichuan noodles, which came with a generous helping of stewed beef and soft yet springy noodles. The broth was rich and flavourful, albeit not as spicy as I had hoped. Instead of reeking of MSG like other noodle joints I've visited, theirs tasted delectably of broiled bones and some other herbs. For a cold winter night, I'd say Dainty Sichuan hit all the right spots.
nice noodles in Sichuan style and friendly stuffs. Atmosphere is nice and clean also
But the quantity of the noodles is a little bit small and kinds of expensive.
Tasty food with fast service. If you can get past the spiciness then you taste some pretty complex flavours in the broth. The noodles are a great texture but the servings were a little small. The beef tastes good but was a little dry. If you're adventurous then the pork chitterlings were delicious and soft.
A quick, cheap dinner for a Sichuan chilli fix in Emporium with the whole package: the bustling, Asian vibes, quick food arrival but neglectful customer service. It’s a very fast-paced eating environment without table service as you line up and place your order immediately before being seated. The food came extremely rapidly but we had to ask for cups about 3 times and still had to resort to using water bottles. Overall, the flavours were super chilli, powerful and really authentic - no wonder it's always packed.
Order chicken with tiny noodles and also quail egg on the side. Probably ordered too much- oooppppsssyy! I love how the chicken and noodles, which is served separately, have different kinds of numbing spiciness. The chicken has more of a fragrant sesame oil spicy kick while the noodles are just numbing.
I find in general the dishes a bit oily and I am not a huge fan of the chicken with bone shards and mediocre service but that IS the authentic Chinese experience I guess 🙄
My favorite noodle place in melbourne!
food are in really generous portion with reasonable price, my favorite is fish with pickled veggies, a lot of fish slices inside ;)
Sometimes it could be a bit too oily, but doesnt stop me from enjoying it.
Omg! Spicy as!! I can handle chili to a degree. Had the minced pork potato noodles and they almost blew my head off! Delicious though! Nice amount of mince porn and tasty soup/broth. Will definitely come again!
Possibly, the best experience in a food court I've ever had.
The fact that 80% of the clientele were Chinese speaks loudly enough.
Man, these meals were insane!!
I had a Pork Belly soup and my partner - a Chicken & Mushroom soup.
Both meals were simply outstanding - the flavour was impossible to describe and it has to be experienced.
I can't wait to go back or try one or their other outlets as I understand they all offer different meals.
Very highly recommended.
I'm a bit weak on the spice spectrum so I got the chicken and mushrooms (noodles). Flavoursome broth representing, noodles could have been more firm, chicken was cumbersome to eat. I don't have a problem with chicken bones but it was pretty fiddly in public, I could see people who ordered chicken also place their bones next to me (communal tables) and it seemed that the pieces I got weren't very meaty. Will try the lamb ribs next time as my friend quite enjoyed them.
Line up and order and pay upfront no fuss, this place is my to go places for Sichuan goodie. Been coming here since 2014 and I would always just order the spicy stewed beef noodle, however been eating here often I could tell the flavour is starting to losses it's original flavour that I tasted years ago. It's not same but it's good.
Great location in the shopping centre for a quick meal. They are very fast, quick order and get the noodles quickly. They have the spicy choices food and few normal food choices.
Quick, no nonsense service. You arrive, join the line in the front, pick your noodles whilst you're in line. Order when you reach the counter, pay, take a number, find a seat, wait your meal and then be ready to have your senses blown away after the first bite.
I had the beef and pork chitterlings which was an adventure to eat. #dramatic
But it was really good! Beef that was melt in your mouth tender, as well as bouncy el dente noodles. And that broth... spicy yet not mind numbing crazy hot. The fresh coriander was a great garnish that enhanced the dish as well. Overall great dish. Would be back for more!!!
Express it is! Order eat go!! :) had the Chongqing Spicy Noodles and the Spicy Beef Rice. Both were great! Beef were stewed very nicely soft and succulent! Preferred the chongqing bit different to your typical Sichuan style. As for the spicy beef rice... it was good but somehow reminded me too much of the HongKong style beef brisket. Yummy all the same!! :))
The noodles were both quite enjoyable. Served in huge bowls, the noodles were generous and silky smooth. At just the right softness, they were accompanied by flavoursome and bold broth that wasn’t overly salty. The Fish within the noodles were well prepared. With each bite, the fresh and tender meat protein simply melted in your mouth. This was well accompanied by strongly flavoured pickled vegetables which provided a kick in flavour and saltiness.
While the food was generally quite enjoyable for the most part and flavours authentic, the overall experience was very much hindered by the staff on duty.
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