Halal Chinese food in London has come a long way. If you’ve followed me for a while, you’d know that I moan about the lack of authentic halal Chinese food a lot. But change is happening, finally. Our visit to JWD Lamian has been a delightful surprise and marks a new chapter in London’s halal dining scene for Chinese food.
The name JWD is short for Jin Wei De Beef Noodles, a well-known brand from China founded since 1986 for its Lanzhou-style Beef Noodles, and has a global presence nowadays. From Australia to the USA, it’s finally London’s turn
JWD Lamian Offers Halal Lanzhou Beef Noodles in Liverpool Street
At JWD, it’s all about freshly made hand-pulled noodles, served either in a clear beef broth, i.e. Lanzhou-style Beef Noodle Soup, or in the form of Biang Biang Noodles tossed with chilli, garlic, and Sichuan pepper. Noodles aside, the menu also features other typical Northwestern Chinese dishes, such as Chinese barbecue skewers, Rougamo, etc.
You can find JWD Lamian Noodle Bar at Bishopgate near Liverpool Street station, a few steps next to Eataly. It’s a casual eatery, with a self-ordering and self-collection setup. A large glass window allows you to peek into the kitchen, watching the chef skillfully making and pulling the noodles from scratch. There are also various toppings & condiments available at the collection counter to top up your noodles.
Yes, all meats served are halal at JWD Lamian. No pork, but alcohol is served at the restaurant.
Liverpool Street station (Central Line / Elizabeth Line / Circle and Hammersmith & City Line) is the nearest Underground station. JWD Lamian Noodle Bar is located at a 2-minute walk away from the station.
The Food at JWD Lamian (What We Ordered)
Date of visit: December 2024
*This was a complimentary PR meal, but all thoughts are our own.
Spicy Braised Beef Brisket Noodle Soup (£12.80)
In my opinion, the broth is everything about Lanzhou Beef Noodles. JWD has certainly nailed it with its clean-tasting but flavoursome broth. The broth was already lightly spiced, but load it up with more chilli oil and black vinegar, and the flavours really popped. Overall, it was one big hearty and moreish bowl of noodle soup that felt like a massive hug in a bowl. However, the noodles were slightly softer than I would’ve liked and were just missing an al dente bite.
Spicy Braised Beef Brisket with Pickled Cabbage Noodle Soup (£13.80)
But if you’re asking for my personal recommendation, I’d tell you to go for the one with pickled cabbage. Made with Chinese Napa cabbage and mustard greens, the pickled cabbage add another flavour dimension to the broth and giving it some additional texture.
Grilled Lamb Skewers (£6)
Moving on to the barbecue dishes, JWD can do no fault with this pricing for five lamb skewers. They were well-seasoned to taste and tender in texture. Whilst it doesn’t beat those we had in Hong Kong and Shenzhen, they were still pretty decent and we certainly enjoyed them.
Grilled King Prawn (£2.40 per skewer) & Grilled Chicken Wings (£2.40 per two pieces)
The same barbecue seasoning was used for both the grilled king prawns and chicken wings. Both were decent, but weren’t anything particularly memorable. The prawns were served whole with shells on, but they weren’t of the freshest quality.
Beef Rougamo (£5.50)
You can think of Rougamo as a Chinese hamburger, featuring crispy flatbread filled with braised meat. These ones from JWD were reasonably generous with their filling, but the overall sandwich was a bit dry, in our opinion. We recommend to grab lots of sauces and garnishes from the counter to give the rougamo an oopmh.
Garlic Cucumber Salad (£4.80)
Last but not least, the Chinese way of making cucumber salad ought to be the best way ever. You can’t go wrong with a side of garlic cucumber salad, which was refreshing and palatable. They seriously make a great snack on its own.
JWD La Mian Restaurant Review Summary
Finding food that comes in great portions at a good price feels like a rarity these days, so JWD La Mian Noodle Bar was a refreshing find. The noodles portions are huge, so you’re guaranteed to be filled up and have your money’s worth. Moreover, it’s a decently good representation of Chinese cuisine, which was something sorely missing in the London halal dining scene. If you’re in the area and fancy a good hug in a bowl, I’d certainly recommend you checking out JWD Lamian.
