9 Noodle House - Chinese, Millbrae

9 Hillcrest Blvd
Millbrae CA 94030
(650) 552-9031
Parking: street parking and nearby parking lot

Last Visited: May 7, 2017

Food: 3 stars
Atmosphere: 3 stars
Service: 3 stars
Price: $ to $$

Bella first told me about 9 Noodle House and said she heard the beef stew noodle was the best thing to try, so of course, I took her advice.  Open since August of 2016, the kinks have been worked out mostly and word is getting out.  This little shop is located across from 7-Eleven and behind the butcher.   The decor is simple with a few individual tables on the side and a large communal table with bench seating in the center.  Bright green paint is a contrast to the large photos of the menu items on the walls.

Their menu offers a number of noodle soups with meat such as Beef Stew Noodles, Mixed Meatball Noodles, Curry Beef Brisket Noodles, Vietnamese Style Pork Chop Noodles, and more with each bowl roughly around $10.  Their accompanying dishes include pot stickers, boiled vegetables and fried dishes such as fried potato cakes, fried mackerel, spring rolls, french fries, and fried stuffed octopus balls. It was a bit reminiscent of Hong Kong noodle restaurants with their option to select the style of noodles, but they don't have a spicy soup base except the Hot and Sour Noodles. They have a few drink offerings and that seems to be where they make their money with each one costing just under $4.


Noodle options include egg noodle, rice noodle, udon, rice vermicelli, and ramen.  You can also order rice if you prefer.

- Crispy Fried Chicken Wings - While the wings had a crisp outside and were thoroughly cooked through, one of my wings was ice cold in the center which was not acceptable.  None of the other wings had this issue.  This seems to indicate that the chicken is cooked twice, but it's unfortunately, it appears that they still have room for improvement.  2 stars on this one because it was under temperature.   $7

- Flavorful Beef Stew - This photo is just after a small bowl of noodles was removed from the bowl.  The beef stew is tender and the broth is just a touch spicy.  I liked this one and would definitely get it again.  For both this and the other noodle bowl ordered, there was plenty of meat and noodles - good portion size so that most people would be full.  4 stars on this dish.  $9.99

- Flavorful Salty Chicken - Served with a dipping sauce of ginger and green onion, this chicken was tender and indeed flavorful.  I ordered udon for this bowl.  Again, the amount of meat was generous and this broth was lighter than the one that came with the stew. You can see that lots of green onions and cilantro come in the broth.  $10.99

Service was friendly and they came back to check on us mid-meal.  This is a good stop for lunch or a quick simple dinner.  I suspect that it gets noisy when the place is full, but we came early and there was plenty of space and we were able to have a conversation without any trouble hearing one another.  Great place for a casual meal - just watch the chicken wings.