People have been sending me messages about this place and wanting me to give it a try. I was going to wait a bit, but discovering that they serve xiao long boa made me want to try this place sooner rather than later. I knew that they had opened before Christmas. However, I had to wait a bit because I was away in Taipei. Now being in Taipei only a few days earlier and trying this place, I am not sure if it was fair on this place and doing a disservice to this eatery.

I ordered the Noodles with soybean paste & pork mince with thick noodles and their xiao long bao. Talking to a few people, I had not expected too much from this place. However, it is great to have variety in Wellington, which is lacking but slowly getting better. The noodles came out first, and I have to say, I was slightly disappointed with the amount I got and the lack of soybean paste, pork mince and noodles, but I did later find out the bowl was a bit deceiving with the noodles as I felt comfortable after finishing the dish. Overall, more soybean paste and mince would have benefited the dish as it lacked the punch of flavour I wanted. I also wanted more chilli punch but later discovered I ordered mild. After adding some vinegar, it improved the dish, but I wanted more of the umami flavour that more soybean paste would have added. I also liked the cucumber and bean sprouts, but I thought they could have added more.

The Xiao Long Bao were ok. This is the first eatery in Wellington that really does make a xiao long boa or ones that look as closely as you can get overseas. They looked nice, but I was disappointed with the lack of soup in the dumplings, and that was mostly due to the dumplings having small holes at the bottom and the soup leaking out during the cooking process. Flavour-wise, these dumplings were under-seasoned. They lacked the depth in flavour of the pork, and a bit of extra seasoning in the filling would have benefited.

Overall, I would give this place a four out of five. I will go back and try their other options on the menu. I am not going to dismiss them, they are still new and may underestimate what Wellingtonians want with their food offerings. They could be still trying to work it out. I just want a bit more seasoning and depth in their flavours. If I have never had these food offerings before, I may say they are great. However, after just coming back from Taipei, there are some improvements they can make to make it a bit more genuine.

Update: After posting this and putting some thoughts on Instagram. Jinweide Beef Noodle Wellington got in contact with me and wanted me to elaborate on my thoughts and experience. I replied back and elaborated on my thoughts. They were very open to my suggestions and said they would address it with their chefs, which impressed me. I returned a week later, and I didn’t order the same items. However, my dining partner and I were impressed with the other dishes we ordered, and I will definitely go back.