Dream Xi'an

Guirong Wei brought Shaanxi cooking to London in 2015, and this is the room where her hand-pulled biang biang noodles finally got proper space.

Why go

Wei co-owns Xi'an Impression, which opened in north London in 2015 with her husband Yong Song, and founded Master Wei in central London in March 2019. Dream Xi'an arrived in spring 2024 in a Tower Place unit that used to be a Gourmet Burger Kitchen, and it is the largest of the three. The menu runs hand-pulled noodles, cold liangpi with sesame sauce, dumplings, fried bao and steamed dim sum, with a dozen biang biang variations. Harden's puts a full meal at about 32 pounds a head. The Infatuation scored it 8.5 and rated the cooking level with the two older restaurants.

Order this / avoid

• Order: beef biang biang noodles first, then the Xi'an liangpi with sesame sauce and a cold combo of beancurd skin and tripe. The qishan hand-pulled noodles with pork in soup are the other house format.
• Avoid: drifting into the rice and stir-fry section. The Infatuation warns that tourists wander in without realizing the noodles are "the real crown jewels."

What locals & experts say

• Grace Dent, The Guardian (7 Apr 2024), quoted by Harden's: "I have yet to leave any of Wei's places not delightedly flecked with umami, sweet, hot and vinegary sauces," and "Once eaten, biang biang become a compulsion." ref
• The Infatuation (Daisy Meager, 17 Jun 2024, 8.5): "The standard of excellence at Dream Xi'an is just as high as it is at the restaurant's sister locations Xi'an Impression and Master Wei," even at what she calls one of the city's most annoying junctions, where tourists wander in without realizing the noodles are "the real crown jewels." ref
• The venue on its chef: Guirong Wei "stands as the co-owner of Xi'an Impression and the founder of Master Wei Xi'an," with over 25 years in the trade. ref
• Local rec: Jeff's note points at the Guardian, which is Dent's April 2024 column.

Good to know

• Timing: Monday to Saturday 11.30am to 10pm, Sunday to 9pm. Continuous service, so a late lunch works.
• Booking: worth booking at peak. It is a large room by Xi'an-restaurant standards and takes groups.
• Price: about 32 pounds a head for three courses with a drink, per Harden's.
• Hygiene: FSA rating 5, City of London, inspected 12 March 2024.
• Getting there: Unit 2A, Tower Place EC3R 5BU, in the plaza between Tower Hill station and the Tower of London.

Jeff's take (his words)

• Note: "Strong rec from guardian." REAL. That is Grace Dent, 7 April 2024, on the biang biang noodles.

Verdict (Chef Jeff ladder)

should-visit — Guirong Wei has been cooking Shaanxi food in London since Xi'an Impression opened in 2015, followed by Master Wei in 2019, and this is the third and biggest room, in a converted Gourmet Burger Kitchen unit by the Tower of London. Grace Dent wrote in the Guardian that once eaten, biang biang become a compulsion, and The Infatuation scored it 8.5 and rated it level with the older sites. Hand-pulled wheat noodles, cold liangpi with sesame, tripe and beancurd combos, at about 32 pounds a head. The setting is a tourist plaza, which is the only thing wrong with it.