No.8 Noodle Bar 绽放.中餐馆
chinese restaurant — Frankton · Queenstown
About No.8 Noodle Bar 绽放.中餐馆
No.8 Noodle Bar is a Chinese restaurant and noodle bar inside Queenstown Central in Frankton, serving hand-made noodles and real Sichuan cooking. Every plate leaves the kitchen the way it would back home - noodles worked by hand, a beef bone broth that starts early each morning, and shared dishes built big enough for the whole table.
Owner Pamela and her team run the dining room seven days a week, from a quick bowl on the way through Frankton to a long table of shared plates on a Friday night. The kitchen covers hand-made noodle soups, dumplings and small plates, Sichuan specials like boiled fish and mapo tofu, wok dishes, and rice, with vegetarian options and adjustable spice levels available on request.
No.8 Noodle Bar offers dine-in and takeaway, seven days a week from 10am to 10pm. Tables are booked by phone, and groups of eight or more can arrange a set menu by email. Daily prices and specials are kept on the board in the restaurant rather than published online.
No.8 Noodle Bar: Hand-Pulled Noodles and Sichuan Cooking in Frankton
Inside Queenstown Central in Frankton, No.8 Noodle Bar serves hand-made noodles and real Sichuan cooking, with every plate leaving the kitchen the way it would back home - full colour, heat and aroma, not a toned-down version. Noodles are worked by hand, the beef bone broth goes on early each morning, and the shared dishes come out big enough for the whole table.
The Dishes Queenstown Keeps Ordering
Among the plates regulars come back for and reviewers name most often are the mapo tofu, a silken tofu in chilli bean sauce with Sichuan pepper that's numbing rather than just hot, and the chilli oil hand-pulled noodles - wide noodles finished with hot chilli oil, crushed peanuts and greens, and the bowl people photograph. The beef noodle soup, built on that early-morning bone broth, is what regulars order without even looking at the menu, while cumin lamb and pork mince noodles round out the kitchen's most-loved plates.
A Full Sichuan Menu
Beyond the headline dishes, the menu runs to hand-made noodle soups like braised beef and wonton noodle soup, dumplings and small plates including pan-fried pork and vegetarian dumplings, and Sichuan specials such as boiled fish and boiled beef in a numbing chilli-oil broth. From the wok, sweet and sour pork and Chinese BBQ lamb ribs have both been singled out by reviewers, and the signature fried rice is served wok-fried with egg and spring onion in a wooden barrel.
Run by Pamela and the Team
Owner Pamela runs the floor and takes bookings, while the head chef builds Sichuan heat in layers rather than tipping it in at the end. The small front-of-house team seats guests, keeps the tea coming, and is happy to help steer first-time visitors through the menu. Portions are generous - reviewers often suggest ordering fewer dishes than you'd think - and heat levels can be adjusted on request. Vegetarian options are available, including the vegetarian dumplings, tofu and greens.
Visiting No.8 Noodle Bar
No.8 Noodle Bar is open seven days a week, from 10am to 10pm, at Shop A12/19 Grant Road, Frankton, Queenstown. Tables are taken over the phone, walk-ins are welcome, and groups of eight or more can email ahead to arrange a set menu. Daily prices and specials are kept on the board in the restaurant rather than published online, so it's worth calling ahead to check.
Signature items
- Mapo Tofu
- Chilli Oil Hand-Pulled Noodles
- Beef Noodle Soup
- Sweet & Sour Pork
- Chinese BBQ Lamb Ribs
- Vegetarian Fried Dumplings
Menu
Rice
- Signature Fried Rice — Wok-fried with egg and spring onion, served in a wooden barrel
- BBQ Pork on Rice — Char-grilled pork, jasmine rice, greens and gravy
- Steamed Jasmine Rice — By the bowl, for the table
From The Wok
- Sweet & Sour Pork — Crisp pork, glossy sauce, onion and pineapple
- Beef with Onion — Sliced beef in a rich brown sauce
- Braised Duck — Slow-braised, sliced, served with its braising liquor
- Chinese BBQ Lamb Ribs — Cumin, chilli and sesame, eaten with your hands
Sichuan Specials
- Sichuan Boiled Fish 水煮鱼 — Fish fillets under dried chilli and Sichuan pepper in chilli oil
- Sichuan Boiled Beef 水煮牛肉 — Thin beef in the same numbing chilli-oil broth
- Grilled Fish Hotplate — A whole fish brought to the table on the hotplate
- Chilli-Fried Chicken — Diced chicken with dried chilli, leek and sesame
Signature Dishes
- Mapo Tofu 麻婆豆腐 — Silken tofu in a chilli bean sauce with Sichuan pepper and spring onion, served with steamed rice
- Chilli Oil Hand-Pulled Noodles 油泼面 — Wide noodles pulled by hand, finished with hot chilli oil, crushed peanuts and greens
- Beef Noodle Soup 牛肉面 — Sliced beef and hand-pulled noodles in bone broth that starts early in the morning
- Fried Noodles 炒饭 — Wok-fried noodles with pork, cabbage and carrot, tossed hot and fast
- Cumin Lamb 孜然羊肉 — Lamb through the wok with cumin, chilli and spring onion, dry-fried rather than saucy
- Pork Mince Noodles 杂酱面 — Noodles under slow-cooked pork mince with shredded cabbage and peanuts
Hand-Made Noodle Soups
- Braised Beef Noodle Soup — Beef bone broth, hand-pulled noodles, braised beef
- BBQ Pork Noodle Soup — Char-grilled pork over noodles in clear broth
- Wonton Noodle Soup — Pork wontons folded in-house
- Oil-Splashed Noodles — Hot chilli oil poured over fresh noodles and spring onion
- Dan Dan Noodles — Sesame, chilli and minced pork, tossed at the table
Dumplings & Small Plates
- Fried Dumplings - Pork — Pan-fried until the bases turn golden
- Fried Dumplings - Vegetarian — The one reviewers keep naming
- Wonton Soup — A lighter start, or a small bowl on its own
- Barbecued Pork Bun — Steamed, soft, filled with sweet char siu
- Stir-Fried Cabbage — Wok-blistered with garlic and a little chilli
Frequently asked questions
- Where is No.8 Noodle Bar located?
- At Shop A12/19 Grant Road, Frankton, Queenstown 9300, inside Queenstown Central.
- What are the opening hours?
- Open seven days a week, from 10am to 10pm.
- Can I book a table?
- Yes, tables are taken over the phone; walk-ins are also welcome.
- Can I book for a large group?
- Yes, for groups of eight or more, email ahead and a set menu can be arranged.
- Are prices listed online?
- No, daily prices and specials are kept on the board in the restaurant - call ahead to check.
- Does the menu have vegetarian options?
- Yes, including vegetarian dumplings, tofu and greens.
- Can the spice level be adjusted?
- Yes, just let the kitchen know when ordering and the heat can be dialled up or down.
Tips
- {"body":"Reviewers note portions are generous - it's easy to over-order.","title":"Order fewer dishes than you think"}
- {"body":"Repeatedly named by reviewers as a standout dish.","title":"Try the vegetarian dumplings"}
- {"body":"The kitchen can dial the chilli up or down on request.","title":"Ask for your preferred heat level"}
- {"body":"Groups of eight or more can arrange a set menu by email.","title":"Call ahead for large groups"}
Good to know
- {"dietary":"Vegetarian options available; spice levels can be adjusted on request"}