"You were going that way anyway. You needed to come to Bloomsbury for that trip to the British Museum. You’re just a big fan of hieroglyphics. Always have been. These are some of the excuses you will tell yourself as you go an hour out of your way to get back to Master Wei in Bloomsbury. This place is from the people behind one of our favourite Chinese restaurants in London, Xi’an Impression, and if you like that place, you’ll like Master Wei because the food here is just as excellent. One trip to this laid-back Xi’anese restaurant and you feel like a cold liangpi noodle has wrapped itself around your hippocampus, squeezing out pretty much everything else you care about. All you can think about is how the texture of those noodles is as springy as a kid at trampoline club, or how that chilli oil is spicy, and tangy, and just a touch sweet in the best possible way. Rent due? Heartbroken? Forget about it. This place is totally affordable and the smacked cucumber salad will never let you down. photo credit: Giulia Verdinelli photo credit: Giulia Verdinelli photo credit: Giulia Verdinelli Inside, there’s some exposed brick, some lit-up portraits of Xi’an landmarks, simple black chairs, and a bar space with a couple of beers on tap. It’s casual. But sitting down at Master Wei, knowing that you’ve made it back for another bowl of London’s best beef biang biang noodles is a feeling you’ll go out of your way to recreate. The space is low-key, but the food isn’t, and that’s really what takes this place from nice to a serious obsession. photo credit: Giulia Verdinelli photo credit: Giulia Verdinelli Everything from the location and the prices, to the quality dishes and friendly yet speedy service, make it somewhere that becomes a long-term fixture in your life. Come here with friends to catch up on each others’ lives, or for a solo dinner to catch up with the cumin beef ‘burger’. You were going to this part of town anyway, right? Food Rundown photo credit: Giulia Verdinelli Salt And Pepper Squid Think of this salt and pepper squid as your warm up act. You’re not specifically here for them, but you won’t regret giving them a bit of your time. Smacked Cucumber (Spicy) Order this for the table, even if you’re the only person at the table. You’ll be nibbling on it between all your other dishes. photo credit: Giulia Verdinelli Xi’an Liang Pi Noodles In Traditional Sauce Without Chicken Words can’t really do these cold skin, chilli oil-covered noodles justice. Just go ahead and get involved. Buy six portions to take away and keep in your fridge so that you can live off them for the next week. We’re completely willing to go a bit Fatal Attraction to get to these. Stir Fried Potato Slivers With Vinegar And Chilli On one of London’s rare sunny days this salad is like a high five. It’s crunchy, fresh, and the hit of vinegar will probably cause you to make a face like you’re halfway through a gobstopper. It’s worth it. photo credit: Giulia Verdinelli Spicy Cumin Beef Burger This burger is quite spicy and a lot delicious. photo credit: Giulia Verdinelli Xi’an Stewed Pork Burger Not quite as good as the cumin beef burger, which doesn’t mean this is bad, it just means the cumin beef burger is really great. A solid order if you happen to be, or be with, someone who isn’t that into the higher end of the spice spectrum. photo credit: Giulia Verdinelli Steamed Pork And Vegetable Dumpling You’ll find better steamed dumplings in London, but these are still pretty decent. If you’re in the mood for some, go for it. photo credit: Giulia Verdinelli Beef BiangBiang Noodles If the beef biang biang noodles had their own profile, we’d manically stalk their account, entirely in love, and scared shitless that we accidentally like a picture from four years ago. So yeah, you could say we’re obsessed. Some of the very best biang biang noodles in London. Chicken Hand-Pulled Noodles In Xinjiang Style You can get these for one person or two. Truth time, the one-person portion will feed two of you, the two-person portion will feed four of you. And they deliver a serious hit of chilli." - Heidi Lauth Beasley
