Minyoli

Food was pretty decent. As a Taiwanese, I appreciate having this restaurant in Chicago. Most of the food we had today was pretty authentic except for the fried dough, which could’ve been less floury and much crispier. The highlight of the day was definitely the rice noodle with pumpkin and mushrooms - never thought I could find a Hakka cuisine here!

I’ve been wanting to try minyoli but it’s just hard to get to for a suburban guy so.. we snuck in for brunch at 1:30 on Sunday before Xmas. It was still quite busy and people came in after us as well. Unfortunately today by that time they were out of ShaoBing which eliminated one of the three main brunch options. We had a Dan Bing egg crepe with shrimp and basil, liked both the sauces, this dish was very good. The Fan Tuan rice roll was inhaled by my teenager, though she’d never had anything like it before. We also had the Taiwanese fried chicken, which tasted sweet like its breading was the same as the fried dough youtiao. Different, good, but heavy and we didn’t finish. Taiwanese natives at the tables to both sides of us who were very happy, and it did bring me back to the month I spent there as well. What I don’t get is why no beef noodle soup on Sunday brunch. It’s the name of the restaurant and the most emblematic dish they could serve. I just don’t think of it as dinner food, so I’ll have to find a lunch opportunity in the city sometime soon. Minus one star on service for no water refill and no check by the waitress after she took our order, didn’t ask if we wanted dessert.

I am a lover of noodles and the noodles were delicious (pictured). The texture, just the right mix of chewy and soft, sauced but not too saucy, was perfect. The braised beef on the noodles was absolutely scrumptious as well. Cooked in fat; the flavor was excellent. My nephew loves their fried chicken, and man oh man, he ate it, put it in his beef noodles; would roll around with it if he could. The vegan noodles I did not try but was told they were very good. The only thing I wish is that the hot sauce (ordered on the side for half a buck) was spicier. This is very personal I realize, but even my nephew who does not eat nearly as much spice as I, did not think it was at all spicy. Finally, I greatly appreciated that they took one of the signature cocktails and make it a tasty dessert like mocktail for me. Go try for yourself! It’s really worth it.

Wonderful experience! The food was delicious and sitting at the bar I got a full explanation of the nuances and particulars of what make this Taiwanese noodle soup unique and flavorful! I enjoyed the consumé with the added 10 year aged shaoxing wine shot and chili sauce! Delicious, herbaceous and light with the tender beef shank, paired with the tallow washed Taiwanese old fashioned!

If you're looking into learning the flavors of Taiwan, this is a good introduction; but if you're a Taiwanese person looking for a taste of home, you will probably be a little disappointed. The space is clean and comfortable, the background Taiwanese pop music isn't overwhelming, the overall dining experience is pleasant. The fried appetizers are unfortunately, flavored towards the more general public and not a direct import from Taiwan. The addition of plum powder is more off-putting than creative, sadly. Maybe have the plum powder on the side instead of mixed in? The cold wood-ear mushroom salad (seasonal item) is very good, the saving grace for my meal today. The braised beef noodle soup is sub par, the smell is good, but the flavor tastes muffled in a cloud of flour, and the noodles are either overcooked or overworked, they end up being too sticky and not flavorful. Zhajiangmian is decent, if not the most cohesive dish tonight. The cocktails are pretty fun though, worth trying out, just make sure they mixed it well. Overall still worth coming, but don't have high expectations and you'd enjoy your meal.