One of Richmond’s most affordable noodle shops just expanded to Vancouver.
If you’re into $10 noodles, then you’ll like this spot.
Dao Field soft opened at 3524 Kingsway on August 31, in the previous Kingsway unit Master Bao left behind earlier that month.
The shop comes from the same team behind Geng Shi Ji, an award-winning Hunan restaurant in Richmond, and it was built to be the cheap everyday option.
The team confirmed the opening to Noms Magazine, and I went in anonymously.
If you have been to the Richmond outpost, you know the drill.
You order at a self-serve kiosk by the door, which takes cards, Alipay and WeChat Pay, then wait for your number at the pickup counter.
Then the side counter: chopped cilantro, soybeans slicked in chili oil, pickled vegetable and chopped red chilies, all self-serve.
When you are done, tray and waste go to the return station.
It runs sorta like a cafeteria.
The room follows the Richmond design too: terracotta walls, long communal tables in pale wood, and bundles of dried wheat hanging from the ceiling as light fixtures and lining the glass front of the counter.
The Richmond merch corner of tableware and accessories did not make the trip here though.
The menu runs six bowls ranging from $10 to $15, each available with Hunan flat rice noodles or alkaline wheat noodles, with extra toppings for a charge.
I got my usual, the $10 three delicacies bowl on flat rice noodles.
It is as satisfying as what I had at their Richmond location – all for an unbeatable price.
The broth is clear and amber and tastes like a lot more than salt water, and the wide rice noodles come out soft with a clean bite instead of turning to mush.
Shredded pork, ribbons of wood ear mushroom and strips of ham sit on top.
I know some people will poke at how little meat there is.
But at $10, what do you expect?
That price is RARE in this city now.
Kristen Wan from the Dao Field team told us the menu “will initially be largely the same as at our Richmond location, featuring our signature Hunan-style rice noodles, along with a few new items,” and that more dishes will roll out over time.
The board flags one new release right now: stir-fried pickled mustard green with shredded pork, at $12.
Now the noodle refill part.
For months, noodle refills were free.
That is now GONE, sort of.
“Noodle refills across all our locations (both Kingsway and Richmond) are now $0.38 per refill,” Wan told Noms Magazine.
“We introduced this nominal fee to help encourage mindful ordering and reduce food waste, while keeping refills practically unlimited and accessible for everyone.”
Thirty-eight cents a refill is still absurdly generous and it is hard to find a better deal in the city.
If you don’t have a huge appetite for lunch, you’ll also be just fine with one bowl like I am.
But if you need a bit extra carbs, just get a refill and be on with the day!
Dao Field Kingsway joins other recently opened Vancouver spots including French Creek Pub in Downtown, Bevel in Yaletown, and Chef Hyve on Commercial Drive.
For more new and upcoming food spots in Metro Vancouver, take a peek at our tracker here, and subscribe to our weekly newsletter here.
Address: 3524 Kingsway, Vancouver, BC
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