Ai Mien will Make You Love Thy Noodles

Those working in the CBD area can rejoice, because there's a new spacious 4,200 sq ft Chinese noodle restaurant in town with ceilings as high as 7 metres, located only a few minutes away from the Tanjong Pagar MRT for you to add to your list of restaurants to patronize anytime of the day, whether for breakfast, lunch, tea or dinner,and for any type of occasion, such as quick business appointments, entertaining clients or just chilling out with your colleagues.

Ai Mien Bar, loosely translated from Chinese, means "Love Noodles" and love noodles it is, with its a la carte menu offering 16 quality noodle options such as the wheat-based noodles from the north of China, and the rice-based ones from the south - each type arriving with, or in, their own distinct sauce, gravy or soup. Ai Mien ensures that noodles served are nothing short of the best quality (meaning not overcooked and mushy) with fresh ingredients and flavourful soup. Taking it a step further, Hong Kong born master chef Cheung Wing Keung pays attention to the components of each dish, such as using only fresh river prawns to make wontons. No big deal? What about this one - they boil their spare ribs noodle base soup for 8-10 hours to reach the milky white color and rich aroma. Now, that's what we call true dedication and patience, all of which is needed to attain perfection. The Noodles

With such variety, which one should you order? The Ai Mien Regional Creation ($18.80), one of the three signature noodle dishes, would be a good start for your adventurous tastebuds since the dish is like a sampler, comprising of four mini portions of noodles that represent the taste and style of those you'll find in China's north, south, eat and west regions. Specifically, there's the blanched wheat noodles with sliced beef in pork ribs soup (north), blanched egg noodles with wanton in XO sauce (south), chilled spinach noodles with shredded chicken and prawns (east) and braised handmade noodles with minced pork in Sze Chuan spice (west). The other two signature dishes includes the Chilled Mien ($18.80) that comes accompanied by mounds of shredded chicken, shredded vegetables, shredded egg, prawns and scallops, which are to be tossed together with a deliciously tangy peanut sauce and the Ai Xin Mien ($10.80) which is pan-fried thin rice noodles accompanied by a rich spinach and dried scallop sauce. Noodles are well done, not overcooked or mushy, and ingredients were fresh. The Desserts At Ai Mien, it is not only the noodles that take the center stage, but the desserts as well. The Chilled Fresh Milk and Coconut Soft Cake ($3.80), a scrumptious custard pudding that is covered with desiccated coconut and sesame seeds is one of them, and the other one worth leaving some stomach space for is Avocado Puree with Aloe Vera and Walnut Ice Cream ($5.80), and I'm not just saying this because I have a bias inclination towards avocados in general, but it was a truly harmonious texture complemented with the studded chopped walnuts, one left everyone at the table "hmmming" and "ahhhhing with gastronomic pleasure. All of what is mentioned is great for lunch and dinner alright, but what about after work drinks or high tea? The Tapas

Their varieties also span across their Tapas where they have 18 Chinese-styles tapas available from 3 pm to 11 pm such as the Fried Beef Cube with Pine Nuts ($6.80), Deep-Fried Toast with Prawn Paste and Fish Roe ($5.80) and Deep-Fried Prawn with Crispy Noodles and Green Mustard ($8.80). The Teas and Designer Drinks Wash down the noble noodles and tapas treats with Ai Mien's range of gourmet teas ($6.80 to $8.80) such as their Jun Cha (Emperor's tea), Fei Cha (Empress' Tea), Zhan Cha (Battle Tea) and flowering teas that are as fragrant as much as they are also good for health. The breakdown of some of their signature teas are as follows: - Jun Cha or Emperor's Tea, a red tea with a long, smooth, lingering after-taste that helps lower blood pressure, prevents heart diseases and aids weight loss. - Fei Cha, or Empress' Tea, an intensely bitter tea with medicinal properties that helps ward off common colds, relieves headaches, eases stomach discomforts and is known to be highly effective in aiding weight loss. - Zhan Cha, or Battle Tea, a top-grade green tea from Henan province that helps lower cholesterol and has anti-oxidants that combat ageing. The tea menu also boasts 3 types of Flowering Teas ($6.80 per pot). Each blend contains two or three flowers, such as chrysanthemum, globe amaranth, carnation, jasmine or lily, which are hand-sewn together and compacted into a ball. When popped inside a see-through pot of hot water, the flowers slowly bloom and impart its show-stopping petals, colour, perfume and healthful properties.

Not forgetting their 4 signature cocktails ($16 each) whose marriage of Western liquors like cognac and gin to Chinese ingredients like wolf-berries, chrysanthemum and ginseng are whimsical as they are named. There's Love Potion No. 9, One Night In Beijing, Love Takes Time, and Endless Love. Whiskey connoisseurs will be pleased to know that Ai Mien has also brought in their specially bottled Highland single malt Scotch whiskey, the Glenfarclas ($268 per bottle), which is aged 15 years. Complementing the variety of authentic Chinese dishes of noodles and tapas, designer drinks and professional crowd is Chinois-inspired interior of neutral beige and brows with dark wood finishes, display shelves showcasing Chinese musical instruments, ceramics and masks.

From Left: Folks from CR Media, Chairman Harry Woo himself, myself and Eevon from OpenRice.com and JobsDB.com respectively Craving for more of Chinese food? Discover more dining options in the CBD area