MIÀN Gourmet Sichuan Noodle opens first Orange County location at South Coast Plaza

The Michelin Bib Gourmand award winning MIÀN Gourmet Sichuan Noodle will open at South Coast Plaza on Thursday, Oct. 13. The popular Sichuan concept from the San Gabriel Valley hosted friends and family for its soft opening on Oct. 12. The restaurant is located on the ground floor of the Din Tai Fung wing and replaces the former Casa Barilla Pasta Kitchen.

MIÀN, meaning “pulled noodles,” signifies the restaurant’s specialty. The spicy beef rib noodle soup is served with tender bone-in pieces of meat and baby bok choy. A zajiang noodle dish is topped with ground pork and a fried egg. Though the focus at MIÀN is on noodles, the menu features several authentic Sichuan-style appetizers such as pickled wood ear mushrooms, chilled spicy beef jerky and delicate steamed egg topped with minced pork.

Diners definitely shouldn’t skimp on the appetizers, suggests owner/partner Sean Xie. The different textures and temperatures add to the experience and pair well with the noodle dishes and dumplings. MIÀN’s recipes were developed by James Beard Award-nominated chef Tony Xu, who will oversee the kitchen in Costa Mesa. Xu also manages and trains the chefs at all seven of MIÀN’s locations and its sister concept, Chengdu Taste, which opened in San Gabriel Valley in 2013. The South Coast Plaza location is MIÀN’s first Orange County location.

Xie mentioned that the partners have wanted to move into South Coast Plaza for some time. Xie and his business partners were approached a few years back to replace another tenant. Unfortunately, the kitchen was too small, so when this space opened up, Xie and his partners jumped at the opportunity.

The new restaurant now has two kitchens, which are divided into a wok/hot cooking station in the back and an open glass-enclosed kitchen in the dining room where visitors can watch dumplings being prepared. A large pizza oven left over from Casa Barilla will be used later to prepare other Sichuan dishes. One of Xie’s favorite dishes is the chili oil chao shou dumplings. The shrimp filled dumplings are tossed in a well-balanced sweet and savory chili sauce.

The restaurant’s décor features dark wooden cases filled with dried spices and chilies. A large mural on one wall is painted with anime-style fish, woven light fixtures hang above, and large glass windows give passersby a fishbowl view of the dining room. The mural artist’s illustrations are also adorned on decorative bowls perched on shelves near the kitchen. The pillars have bright neon signs with Mandarin characters that list different streets and “food hotspots” in China.

The menu at MIÀN pops up with QR codes. The mobile order technology was developed for the restaurant, says Xie, and features large detailed pictures with brief descriptions.

A separate counter located at the front of the restaurant is dedicated to serving boba drinks and takeaway desserts. Iced mung bean and smashed lemon beverages are served along with a peeled whole coconut filled with chilled coconut jelly. It doubles as a refreshing dessert and ideal vlog content for social media. The coconut jelly soothes the palate and isn’t overly sweet.

MIÀN will debut more dishes in later month, including Orange County specific menu items that will utilize the kitchen’s large pizza oven.

Find it: MIÀN Sichuan Gourmet Noodles, South Coast Plaza, 3333 Bristol St., Costa Mesa, 714-265-7997, miantaste.com

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