Wild Noodles

[tommy]

looks like a Wild Noodles is opening in Ridgewood on Chestnut street a store or two down from the still-not-opened Blend.

just what that town needs: another mediocre restaurant.

if someone gave me the 300k in capital it required to open that franchise, i could have opened a nice restaurant with a small but well-selected menu. or maybe i would have blown it all on drugs and cars. not sure. but it definitely would have been a lot better than Wild Noodles.

edited to get the street right.

Edited January 28, 2004 by tommy (log)

[Double 0]

Bet its packed a week after its openned.

[tommy]

Bet its packed a week after its openned.

no doubt. seems family friendly.

[menton1]

Pasta or Asian?

[Rosie]

Oak St or Chestnut St. I thought Blend was going to be on Chestnut?

[tommy]

Oak St or Chestnut St. I thought Blend was going to be on Chestnut?

chestnut. sorry boss.

[menton1]

Looks like a displaced mall food court place;

Probably some good opportunities to catch people slurping noodles while trying to be discreet!!

(At least Joel's Malibu is right nearby, always a good meal there......)

[tommy]

wild noodles opened this week.

[Rosie]

So I called Wild Noodles to see if they were BYO. I was told "no." So I said "you have a liquor license?" I was told "no." So I said "then you are BYO." I was told that "you need a license and insurance for people to BYO." I said, "that is not the law." I was told I was wrong. So if you are going to Wild Noodes and BYO let us know if you weren't allowed to drink your wine or beer.

[tommy]

So if you are going to Wild Noodes

there's little chance of that happening.

what's wrong with people? is the entire industry completely freakin incompetent????

[pbrodsky]

Any chain that lists Beef Stroganoff as an American pasta dish has to be really strange (its on their web site).

[LJC]

I was in Westfield yesterday at lunchtime and decided to check out the Wild Noodles. I walked in, had a tuff time figuring out that I should approach the counter, took a look at the menu and walked out. I could not believe the menu "Asian", "Italian", "American".... didn't anyone tell them that you can’t be all things to all people. There were a few customers eating but the food didn't look at all appetizing.

[GoodEater]

I ate at the Wild Noodles in Ridgewood and I was not too impressed. My wife had a rice noodle dish that had no flavor. She added soy sauce and the red chili paste they had on the table and that helped her dish. I had the Bangkok Peanut Noodles and they had more flavor than the rice noodles but the problem was that it was swimming in oil. I got an extra bowl and poured off several extra tablespoons of oil. Everything is stir-fried in woks and I guess the "chef" thought the more oil the better. The ingredients were fresh and the place was clean-but it is true what LJC was saying about trying to be all things to all people. It simply doesn't work most of the time and sadly that is the case with Wild Noodles.

The set-up is that you place your order at the counter, they give you a number that you place on a stand on a table and then food runners bring the food out to your table.

Soft drinks and iced tea are self-serve from a fountain station. The runners were very hospitable as they offfered to refill drinks and asked if they could get you anything.

The design and set-up of the restaurant and service is very kid friendly so that might be their saving grace as parents can bring kids of any age here without worry.

[tommy]

the "kid friendly" aspect is obviously a major selling point.

let's not forget that this is fast-food, and should be judged as such. i'm guessing they have a few selections that are better than McD's and Wendy's.

that said, i doubt that i'll ever waste a meal there. i hate wasting meals.

[GoodEater]

I took a chance and wasted a meal. I can look at this as research/recognaziance for E-gullet! It was better than most fast food but I could have picked up some really good cold noodles in sesame sauce for about 1/2 the price I paid for my noodle dish. Fortuantly for me this research only cost $20.00 . With some of the prices restaurants are charging I go away easy on this mediocre meal

[tommy]

make no mistake, goodeater, we all appreciate you taking a hit for the team.

[slkinsey]

Do the noodles taste "gamey" compared to regular domesticated noodles?

[tommy]

Do the noodles taste "gamey" compared to regular domesticated noodles?

i'm not sure, but i do know that they're pierced and have tats.

[zhelder]

I'm really surprised at all of the negative feedback this restaurant is getting. I have been to the Ridgewood restaurant a few times and I really like it. As Tommy said, it is essentially a fast food or "fast casual" restaurant, and therefore it shouldn't be compared to fancy full service restaurants. The food is of decent quality and the portions are large. It's a bit more expensive than a typical fast food restaurant, but the quality is much better. My favorite dish is the Thai rice noodles with chicken, which is nice and spicy and very filling. I think it's an original concept for a fast casual restaurant, and when I can find parking, I'll continue to eat there. I recommend it.

[Rosie]

Welcome to eGullet zhelder and thanks for your post. Let us know other places you like to dine.

[chefdavidrusso]

the "kid friendly" aspect is obviously a major selling point.

let's not forget that this is fast-food, and should be judged as such. i'm guessing they have a few selections that are better than McD's and Wendy's.

that said, i doubt that i'll ever waste a meal there. i hate wasting meals.

Tommy, you pretty much hit it....it's kid friendly, slightly better than McD's and very much not worth it. I tried it a couple of weeks ago under tha doctrine of "I'll generally try any place once" and was unimpressed. The flavors were just ok, the noodles were overcooked, it was on the oily side, and it was in no way memorable.

[Randi]

Went to Wild Noodles in Westfield today for lunch. Our intent was to go to Thailand in Clark but it was closed, despite the fact that their takeout menu says they are open on Mondays. (Didn't Tommy say that every time he's tried to go there it was closed??)

Then we headed to Westfield to go to Panera's. But it was packed. We parked nearby and noticed Wild Noodles across the street. We should have known it was a bad risk when it was EMPTY (except for 2 people at one table).

My friend got a salad and thai rice noodles with chicken. He claimed it didn't suck when he put the hot chili paste on it. But it wasn't good.

My meal was just plain BAD. I got the beef stroganoff - half of the beef actually was very tasty - a nice char-grilled taste - but the other half tasted old - and should have been thrown out the day before, in my opinion. The sauce was unpleasant. The egg noodles mushy.

Bad, bad, bad.

[menton1]

Yeah, I don't understand the appeal of this place. Passed by the one in Ridgewood, and glanced around. Menu looked well overpriced, and the environment looked something like the McDonalds seating area! They won't be seeing me there..

[CiriloE]

Went to Wild Noodles in Westfield today for lunch.  Our intent was to go to Thailand in Clark but it was closed, ...Then we headed to Westfield to go to Panera's.  But it was packed.  We parked nearby and noticed Wild Noodles across the street.  We should have known it was a bad risk when it was EMPTY (except for 2 people at one table).

My meal was just plain BAD. Bad, bad, bad.

←

You should have eaten at Cosimos next door. The brothers, Perry and Lee, are doing a great job running the family business since mom, Angela, slowed down a bit. They serve light and tasty home style Southern Italian. My favorite in Westfield. Or was it packed, too?

I wonder how a bad place like WN can stay in business for so long? Will never go there.

Cirilo

[jerobi]

I've been to the WN in Westfield and you guys summed it up nicely. It's a weird vibe for a chain - it blends the "stand in line and order" aspect of fast food with the "you get the first drink, we get refills" system of a restaurant. Plus the added confusion of the expected tipping procedure.

My meal was okay. It seemed to me like they just had a ton of woks, a bucket of noodles, and squeeze bottles of sauce. Mix, heat, serve.

I probably won't be back, with all the better options in Westfield.