On my way up to Montreal, Canada, I stopped over at Kingston, NY for dinner. Yum Yum Noodle Bar did not show up when I googled Kingston but it was the only place bubbling with activities at 5:30pm on a Friday afternoon. It is an Asian Fusion type of place with a small college town vibe. The restaurant was filled with diners of all ages. I had high hopes for #noodles!
I apologize for all the red tinted photos below. We sat in a small alcove that is painted deep red with minimal lighting above the table. So please use your imagination.
Fried Vegetarian Dumplings: Although we went at 5:30pm, the food took around 30-45 minutes to come because the kitchen had only one cook. To compensate for the long wait, this dish was on the house. It was too greasy though.
Steamed pork buns & pickles: This was good! Two small open-faced buns with tender and well-seasoned pork that fall part easily. Tasted a bit authentically Asian.
Bibimbap -Korean rice dish: I went for my usual when it comes to Korean. Yum Yum Noodle Bar, although appears to be Asian Fusion, it is really more Korean than Japanese, Chinese, or Thai. I decided to stick to the cuisine the restaurant leans towards to ensure best quality of the food. Plus the waitress told me so. The verdict? It was fine. Still bastardized but fine. My added protein of beef was grilled well. Not as good as what bulgogi would have been for this dish but good enough. This dish was especially tasty after the long wait and the suffering.
This is the Make Your Own Noodle Bowl: we picked udon as the noodle, chicken broth as the soup base, and pork as the protein. Here is their explanation of the noodle options.
Ramen: Chinese style egg noodle
Rice: gluten-free rice flour noodle
Soba: buckwheat noodle (gluten)
Udon: thick wheat noodle
The pork was tender and delicious like the pork in the buns. But the combo left a lot to be desired. Instead of having the umami from a stewed broth with noodles like one would get from most street vendors in Asia, this bowl tasted like a combo of well-made components but lacked serious harmony with each other. The pork stood out. The udon was blend and too soft. The soup was ok. The nori was ok. But once you try to taste one ingredient with the other, you scream “Blah.” This is a perfect example of a bastardized version of Asian noodles. But in Kingston, I guess it is hip.
One interesting note, the Thai Ice Tea we ordered, although good in a weird way, we believe it was made with soy and not milk!!! It was gritty. Wish we had known. Sometimes too much of a good thing is just too much.
FYI – they have got a food truck for catering. Now, that is an idea.
This experience took place at
Yum Yum Noodle Bar
275 fair st • kingston, ny • 845.338.1400
