A Taiwanese Beef Noodle Soup Specialist Opens May 9 in Andersonville | Eater Chicago
"Housed in the 1,775-square-foot former home of chef Jennifer Kim’s celebrated restaurant Passerotto, this Andersonville spot led by chef Rich Wang—who immigrated to Chicago from Taipei as a teen and worked at restaurants like Bokain in Lincoln Park and Fat Rice in Logan Square—debuts with a family-friendly, come-as-you-are neighborhood ethos. The menu’s centerpiece is a traditional beef noodle soup brimming with warm aromatics, loaded with fresh, hand-cut noodles and cuts of beef shank (a relatively modern inclusion given that beef was a rarity in Taiwan before World War II), and there’s a vegan alternative with a kombu and mushroom broth topped with Southern Chinese pickled mustard greens. Alongside the bowls are lu wei—snack-size servings of eggs, meats, and tofu (sourced from local Taiwanese-owned purveyor Phoenix Bean) braised in the soup’s master stock—while a small cocktail menu keeps Taiwanese flavors front and center with choices like a Sichuan peppercorn–infused gin and tonic, and a brief dessert selection features ice cream in flavors such as taro and red bean. Wang grounds the restaurant’s distinctive culinary style in juàn cun, the "military dependents’ villages" where he grew up in Taipei’s Minyoli until age 14, and the bright, airy design pairs exposed Chicago brick, light natural wood, and pops of an aquamarine hue ubiquitous in juàn cun; he says they are "really just starting out," has received lots of feedback (including two pages of notes from his very typical, straight-shooting Asian parents after a friends-and-family event), and plans to develop more as the team clicks into high gear." - Naomi Waxman
