Niu Dian Beef Noodles

One of the best beef noodle that I had so far. A Michelin star restaurant for quite some years and well deserved. The decorations is nice and foods are delicious. Yes it is pricey but we'll deserved it. Wii come back again before leaving Taipei.

This was a nice place to stop and eat. We didn’t go during the rush so we didn’t have to wait which was nice. Some of the reviews said the level 1 spice wasn’t very spiced but ours was plenty spiced. I got beef noodle soup and my friend got beef noodles. I suspect the broth is a quality and legit bone broth and is likely pretty good for you. It was good but I think being Michelin rated gives high expectations.

Well deserving of their reputation. Go there early and get a queue number from the printer at the door. And then wait. We went when it just opened so we didn't have to wait. The premium set was very worth it - we could try the 红烧 and the 清炖 versions. The beef was braised till everything can melt in your mouth.

I was a bit skeptical coming here because of some bad reviews. Turns out this place has probably the best beef soup in taipei. The beef tendons are probably the best i have ever had. The tripe & meats are cooked to perfection. This is not a tourist trap. This place is legit.

The food is good. There are braise broth (红烧） , clear broth and dry option. We tried all and we love love it. They also prepare chilli paste and chilli source for self service. Water and hot tea are self service too. We went during the weekday and the shop open at 5pm. Take note of their opening hour as it is not open whole day. The atmosphere is great , but the air conditional a bit too strong and our broth get cold so fast.

Beef shank & tendon 7/10 - it’s good but not wow-level Soup 10/10 - so flavourful for a broth this light. Probably one of the best beef broth I’ve ever tasted.

Has a simple queue system and you will only let them know the amount of pax once you are inside. For an enriching experience, it is recommended for the 300-yuan selection. Also caution, their mid-level spice (中辣) is actually spicier than you can handle. 吃得很津津有味。5 Star.

Really love their beef noodles! Been here at least 3 times since I started visiting Taiwan. Staff is friendly but sadly they seem to be short of manpower so they are slower than usual but you can’t blame them. When choosing spice levels, don’t underestimate it!

This is a popular place right across from my in-laws' place. We went at 2pm (they close at 2:30pm, and we barely made it in for the last seating. Get a number when you arrive, and then they'll come out to you to write down your order. They only have 6 or 7 4-tops and some other counter seating for maybe 4 people, but turnover is fast. Despite it being small, it's very well ventilated, and the AC is strong, which is always good for noodle soup. We got the 牛肉椒麻拌麵 (NT270 for large, NT220 for a small). We got one traditional 紅燒 (braised, slightly spicy) and one 清真 (the clear broth). The traditional one has a lot more flavor, but both were good. The noodles were just ok, but the beef was flavorful and tender. For side dishes, the marinated bamboo was well seasoned and super tender. Cash only. Note: Closed Mondays!

We wanted to get beef noodle soup for at least one of our meals while visiting Taiwan, so we decided to check this place out after seeing they were Michelin Bib Gourmand recognized. Grab a number outside by the entrance and wait for your turn. We had a group of 6 and waited maybe 20 minutes to be seated. The windows are frosted so it's difficult to look inside to see if any parties are finishing up, without opening the door to peek in. We ordered the beef noodles with shank and tendon. The soup was tasty and the noodles were just the right texture, although I wish the beef was a little more tender. My spice tolerance isn't the best so we got mild just in case, but I feel like there was barely any kick at all. They have some condiments including some kind of chili paste that you can add if you feel like you need more flavor. Overall, decent beef noodle soup, but I probably wouldn't go out of my way to come back here. This was our only time having beef noodles during our trip, so I can't compare to other places.

Micheline rated restaurant. Popular No take outs Pull a number at the door and wait. Wait is anywhere between 20-40min. Great food. But I think there are plenty of other beef noodle soup places that taste just as good.

30 min wait during peak time (closes between lunch and dinner), given michelin recommendation. clear vs braised broth, and the clear is lighter, clean flavor but not the strongest. great meat. good noodles, cold dish pickled cucumber.

Out of the many places I have had beef noodles in Taipei over the past many years this was average. The food satisfies. A bit long wait. Seating limited so sat with other customers. Not sure about Michelin rating. Anyway, you won't be disappointed.

Noodles were good, beef was tender, flavours were ok, service was very good, overall an above average average eating experience.

Its name, if using a direct translation, is 'cow store'. Pretty accurate because this Michelin Guide restaurant is known for their Taipei comfort food, beef noodle soup. I love this stuff, and Niou Dien satisfies. Located at Ximending, this small place packs in a crowd. As expected, crowds and longer wait times are at the peak during meal hours, and apparently, Chinese like to eat late, so there's always a constant flow of people. Their beef noodle really hit the spot. Thick chewy noodles swam in a savory broth with mild spice. The bowl was topped off with scallions. excellent bowl. https://www.yelp.com/biz_photos/%E7%89%9B%E5%BA%97%E7%B2%BE%E7%87%89%E7%89%9B%E8%82%89%E9%BA%B5-%E8%90%AC%E8%8F%AF%E5%8D%80-2?select=Zv2HPZ56T72Ugq90g9VZ1A&utm_campaign=www_photo_share_popup&utm_medium=copy_link&utm_source=(direct) Also had a bowl w/ no spice nor scallions. Good, but not nearly as flavorful as the other. Various cold dishes are constantly being prepared, and placed on the counter. It's visible to anyone walking by, so we also got their spicy bean curds and pickled cucumber. Both were very good, and whet our appetites while we anticipated our beef noodles. https://www.yelp.com/biz_photos/%E7%89%9B%E5%BA%97%E7%B2%BE%E7%87%89%E7%89%9B%E8%82%89%E9%BA%B5-%E8%90%AC%E8%8F%AF%E5%8D%80-2?select=3aMf9hnnncoq3fs3eWZtIQ&utm_campaign=www_photo_share_popup&utm_medium=copy_link&utm_source=(direct) If your bowl is too spicy and you need water, get it here: https://www.yelp.com/biz_photos/%E7%89%9B%E5%BA%97%E7%B2%BE%E7%87%89%E7%89%9B%E8%82%89%E9%BA%B5-%E8%90%AC%E8%8F%AF%E5%8D%80-2?select=Ten1oiTrz9ub6rBtKrFhFw&utm_campaign=www_photo_share_popup&utm_medium=copy_link&utm_source=(direct) Interior is modern and industrial. One side is a cold, gray concrete wall, while the other is exposed bricks. Inside can feel tight. The seats are small stools. The tables are too close to each other and it's common to bump into the person behind you or walking by. The loud upbeat music of elecronica makes your heartbeat race and speeds up the turnover rate. It's definitely not a comfortable place to savor the moment. Rather it's a place to fulfill that beef noodle craving while in Taipei.

After training back into Taipei, I was hungry for something more substantial. After a quick search, I found someone's blog that recommended Niu Dian (roughly translates to bull shop). Hence the bull horns in the back of the shop. I dropped in on a Sunday (around 4:30pm) when they first opened. There was already a line of people waiting to get in. If there's a line, you can write your name down and party number on the sheet outside. The inside is quite nice and fancy compared to most beef noodle shops. They have an English menu but you need to ask for it. Write down what you want on the Chinese menu. They'll ask you how spicy you want it (1 being mild to 4 being extra spicy). I decided to go for 4 and the waitress double checked with me before going ahead with my order. In hindsight, I should have went with 3. More on that later. The menu is pretty straightforward and I was surprised to see they even had pictures on the back of the English menu. - Noodles with beef shank, tendon and tripe ($250 NT) - this was the priciest bowl of beef noodles I've had during my whole Taiwan trip. The broth was pretty spicy. Not in that "you'll die kind of way" but more like "I can feel it in the back of my throat" spicy. The best part was all three types of meats. The shank was tender but chewy while the tendon and tripe had a fantastic texture. Sadly, I wasn't too impressed with their noodle which I had read were handmade. No spring/chew to them. Overall, a decent bowl but there's better in town.

We ended up at Niu Dian after realizing that our first choice Lao Pai was closed due to renovations. We were hoping to beat the dinner rush but unfortunately arrived a tad late and ended up with a 40 minute wait. Good thing is you can order while you wait (I think they have an English menu but you have to ask for it), and there is a grocery next door where you can get a can of chilled beer if you find yourself caught out in Taipei's sweltering heat. My wife got the noodle with the clear broth, braised beef, tendons and tripe while I got the spicy version of the same thing. They asked me how spicy I wanted it and I went with medium. They followed up with a warning that even the medium was pretty spicy but I stuck to my choice. The best part of the dish were the meats. The tripe was cut differently from what I am used to and it was much softer. The braised meat and tendons were very tender as well. My wife's clear broth had good flavor while mine was somewhat overshadowed by the spice, but still good. And yes - the medium spicy was quite spicy but manageable. The hand pulled noodles were not up there with some of the best I've had which is why they lose a star. At 220 NTD, the noodle soup is on the pricier side by Taiwanese standards but given the quantity and quality of the meats, I thought it was fair.

Best Taiwanese beef noodles I've ever had . *Slow-cooked beef + bone broth* . The beef broth is from slowly braising the beef until it's very tender and melts in the mouth. The broth is strong in flavour. The broth in the handmade noodles are made from beef bones and lightly seasoned. You mix them up in a bowl and you can customise how strongly flavoured you want your broth to taste. So good!

Food: 4.5/5 Price: 4/5 Service: 5/5 Ambience: 5/5 ** MICHELIN Guide 2018 *** A hip beef noodle shop at Ximending, the epicentre of Taiwanese youth culture; it sports a faux industrial interior with distressed brick walls, bare concrete floor and wooden furniture. The signature Manchurian-Chinese beef noodle soup is a deluxe combination of beef ribs, shin and tendon in a clear broth with spiced soy marinade on the side. For fervent beef noodle soup lovers, it is even available in vacuum packs for you to take home. The wait is quite long. On a weekday 12pm, there's a line out the door. Leave your name on a board, and you will be seated approx 40 minutes later. Niu Dian's secret ingredient is some sort of mustard coloured paste - It's very spicy!!! Slowly, add the paste onto the soup and mix well. The paste adds intensity to the beef broth so remember to add according to taste. 牛肉麵 Beef Noodle - The broth was clear and made from beef bones and simmered over a gentle flame for 16 hours it looked like a consomme it was so clear and golden. It had a subtle rather than strong flavor. The Australian beef was sliced and slightly marbled. Noodles can be adjusted to your preference of firmness - I went with "slightly firm". These noodles were very nicely done. Al dente and just the right amount of bounce in the noodle. Small size was decent for a girl, with 4 thick slices of beef and around 2-3 cups of noodles. Favorites: * 牛肉麵 ($200, small)

During our short trip to Taiwan we knew that we had to eat Beef Noodle soup! We only knew of the famous YongKang Beef noodle soup and we actually tried to go there... however, we had just purchased large tubs of milk tea to cleanse our thirst and we were disappointed to see the sign "no food, no drink from outside." There was no way we could finish the milk tea FAST.. (and there was actually no line which is unusual, perhaps because it was rainy and it was around 3pm-not a prime meal time when we got there). We decided to continue walking and ended up eating something else (we didn't want to walk back and din tai fung, another must eat in Taiwan was nearby at other side of the street). So the next day, I googled about beef noodles soup and came across several online blogs and articles about how Niu Dian has taken the 1st place for the best beef noodles soup in Taipei...so we came here as it was in a good proximity from Ximending where we could also sightsee... There were a small line already forming when we arrived around 6pm ish but the restaurant was actually not full.. they just seemed to "hold" on the flow of customers going in to the restaurant (not sure if it was more like a marketing strategy so that people walking by would think it was the most wanted place to eat with the long line and swarms of people in front of the store). We put down our name on the small board by the door....and later the waitress came out and showed people the menu and placed the orders for you (even before you're escorted into the restaurant). Language was quiet a barrier which I found it a bit surprising since most places in Taiwan seemed to understand the "english" of what they're selling. Eventually, thank to photos on Yelp.. I managed to order the noodles soup. I ordered the combo (tendon, beef and tripes) noodles soup... there is only 1 size (large) for the combo and I asked for "medium spicy" since people said their level of spice is quiet stronger than other places. Well, let me tell you... if you like spicy, the medium is pretty plain... so order extra spicy if you really want spice! Hubby ordered Large of the beef noodles soup, mild. And since people were also raving about their DRY noodles.. we also ordered small size of the beef dry noodles. Once we were seated, we grabbed tea from the tea counter (self-served) and the food came out soon after. First slurp of the soup/broth and hmmmm... honestly, I was really disappointed. It was pretty plain, not enough flavor and richness. I even added a lot of the famous marrow butter, it helped the flavor but not much. The meat had flavor but when you eat a bowl full of noodles, you need the broth to also be flavorful. They gave a brown colored (like soy sauce but a tad sweeter and a bit sour) sauce to dip the meat... and it added extra flavor. The dry beef noodles had more flavors. It was saltier and yes it was tasty but way too much noodles and I got tired fast eating the one dimensional flavor. I also didn't enjoy the large thick noodles as it was a bit too doughy. It is unfortunate that we didn't have time to try YongKang Beef noodles soup so we really cannot compared the two.. but really if this is the #1 beef noodles soup... I would probably rather eat something else in Taiwan as there are far much more delicious food to eat.

A sanitized and modern beef noodle restaurant. Place is very small so often there's a queue. Just put your name on the clipboard hanging on the outside and wait for your turn. Ordered a half beef half tendon noodle. Braised beef was super soft and flavorful as with the tendon. I could do with another portion! Free to add the bone marrow butter available on the table for more rich taste. Also a couple of hot sauce (different level of heat) on the side for your selection. Free tea available at the back of house.

This is the first stop out of Kevin from City543 and my 7 scheduled destinations. We arrived at 11:30 am and we were promptly seated in the restaurant. Like most casual noodle shops, "Cow Shop" (Niu Dian) is packed tightly and we share tables with other patrons. There is small bucket of oil on the table that the store labeled it was made from bone marrow. I tasted the secret recipe while we waited for our classic noodles (牛肉麵) and it was flavorful without being overpowering and it was not revolting despite the idea of consuming lard of some sort. We ordered mild spicy noodles and it was actually spicier than most establishments I've been to but wow the broth is a solid 10/10! The beef was the perfect tenderness: it was not flossy at all. Super flavorful and cooked just right. The noodles are chewy - ultimately this was such a delicious bowl of noodles where each element worked with the others in harmony. I finished everything and LOOOOOOVED using the bone marrow oil as a sauce for dipping the meat. 湯頭：好吃。微辣=小辣 牛肉不塞牙也不會太爛 麵：點的是一般所以覺得有嚼勁～彈牙好吃 骨髓牛油很讚！非常香。加不加在麵裡都好吃，配肉也不錯～ 絕對會再回來！

A short walk from Taipei Metro Ximen station, there is often a line at 牛店精燉牛肉麵, the beef stew noodles is one of the bests in the city. The dining room is rather small, casual, and minimalist. It's clean, and the staff here is pleasant. The muted tones and traditional decor says it all, the star here is the food. Order by marking what you want on a menu order sheet. The left side items are noodles dishes and right side contains soups, followed by sides on the bottom right. The waiter will ask how spicy you want your broth - (be warned, they will not take it back if you ask for extreme spicy and you unable to handle the heat) Drinks and side dishes are self-serve and the waitress will add it to the tab at the end (hot tea is complimentary and also self-serve). House special beef stew noodles (top left on the menu) contains beef shank, tripe, and tendon. It's served with a soy garlic sauce on the side for dipping (not necessary IMO). The amount of ingredients, broth, and noodles were perfectly balanced. They skim off the oil from the beef broth but the beef soup is still rich and hearty. On the table is also a home made spicy lard made with bone marrow. I know it doesn't sound appetizing but I suggest that you try it, the lard enriches the broth and takes the savory flavors to another delicious level. Although the beef stew noodles here costs 2-3 times as much as typical restaurants, it is worth the splurge and I will be back again.

Great hole in the wall restaurant ^_^ the noodles and dumplings are home made it's so delicious!!

牛店(Beef Shop, also called "Niou Dien Beef Noodles 牛店牛肉麵") is a relatively new Beef Noodle Soup Restaurant created/managed by young people with surprising success. It's always busy: you first mark down your name on a sheet of paper hanging outside the Shop and wait for your turn. The server would call you and ask you write down what you want. Unfortunately, the menu does not display English. The Shop closed on every Monday (we've been burn before). If you take MRT, exit @ XiMen MRT Station, out exit #1, heading along ChengDu Rd, toward KunMing St, and turn left on KunMing St, you would see the sign "牛店". A mere 5 minute walks from MRT. After I first wrote a review(on TripAdvisor) in April, 2013, we've come to this place a few more times and were impressed as the first visit. And now it's February 2017. I would report that I was disappointed somewhat: Cost of the noodles, etc., inched up and the quality dripped down slightly. I have to give it a 3-star rating, down from my previous 4-star. Their business is "red hot" (紅火) as usual. We ordered 1. Stewed beef noodles 牛肉麵 (it's stewed 清燉, not braised, even though the menu did not spell it clearly. The noodles are soft, not in any way chewy. The beef shrank as always: soft, delicate, juicy and succulent. The soup was yummy, so to speak, but not as tasty as it was. And the size of noodle soup? Even though they called it "big bowel", it looked like a small. $7.50) 2. Beef Tendon Noodles 牛筋麵 ($6.00, tasted virtuous) 3. Beef (dry) Noodles with spicy hot pepper 牛肉椒麻拌麵 ($6.00. The whole stuff was scrumptious after mixed with spicy numbing hot sauce (麻辣). But need extra work on it: add soy sauce here and there and may even more hot sauce. Otherwise, too plain.)

I ordered a regular spicy noodle (they have different levels of spiciness), and it was way too spicy. I barely could eat noodles and meats. My companion also ordered very light spicy noodle, and it was also too spicy to eat. Would not recommend this place if you are not good at eating spicy foods.

A short walk from Ximending station. We ordered the three type of mixed beef noodles (on the menu it's located on the top right corner). It's a 3 and half star for me.

Stayed near this restaurant on our visit in Taipei and had a good experience. You write your name down in front of the store and the host will take your order. No worries, they will provide an English menu if you need it. The food was delicious and service was fast. After your meal, you pay at the small counter near the front of the store.

We had plain noodles in beef broth and the spicy noodles with beef shank. They were at best, ok. The beef broth is my very beefy, but it is very oily. The noodles seems more like thin udon than what I'm used to with beef noodle soup. And the sauce for the beef shank noodles had an almost store-bought BBQ sauce flavour. Overall, not bad, but I've had way way better. And for the price in Taipei these should have been better as well