Master Wei team opens new restaurant

Guirong Wei, the chef and founder of several Chinese restaurants, has officially launched her brand-new concept Dream Xi'an. 

The restaurant is now part of Wei's growing portfolio, joining established venues Master Wei and Xi'an Impression. Following its soft launch in mid-February, the site is fully up and running in a bright, modern space in Tower Hill, offering signature Shaanxi specialities and a number of brand-new, exclusive dishes. 

Both Xi'an Impression and Master Wei introduced Londoners to the regional cuisine of Shaanxi, especially the hand-pulled noodle dishes for which the province is well-known. While those restaurants were bound by small kitchens, Dream X'ian offers a far bigger space with a 70-cover dining room and large kitchen, allowing Wei to execute an expanded menu. 

Among the new dishes on offer is a selection of steamed dim sum, all made by hand on-site. Guests can choose from the Xi'an Empress Dumplings, filled with chicken, prawn and carrots; the Xi'an Special Steamed Dumplings, filled with pork, cabbage and spring onion; the Vegetarian Special, with wood ear mushrooms, glass noodles and egg; and Wei's Xiaolong Bao with pork, preserved vegetables and soup. 

Several classic Xi'an street foods have been added, including a special fried bao, a thick-skinned dumpling filled with beef and onion, and paomo soup – a hot stew of chopped up bread cooked with sliced beef and served in a rich beef broth. 

More familiar favourites include smacked cucumbers in sesame and chilli oil, cold beef tendon in spicy sauce, and cumin beef and pulled pork 'burgers' served in homemade leavened flatbreads. 

Authentic Shaaxi cuisine

The tradition of bread- and noodle-making in Shaanxi goes back centuries and distinguishes it from the cuisines of southern China, where rice is the favoured accompaniment to meals. Wei learnt the art of noodle-making from her grandmother. These fresh, hand-pulled noodles, in their many forms, sit at the heart of the chef's restaurant concepts. 

Dream Xi'an offers 'cold skin' liangpi noodles, made from springy starch paste extracted from dough, which is then steamed and hand-cut into noodles and served in many varieties including chicken and sesame sauce; Qishan hand-pulled noodles with braised pork and vegetables in a spicy, sour soup; and the signature beef, pork or vegetarian biángbiáng noodles, the most famous of Xi'an noodles, known for their thickness, chewy texture and ability to hold up well with hearty sauces and toppings. 

"My previous restaurants gave me the chance to bring my hometown food to London, and with Dream Xi'an, I'm so lucky to be able to offer many more special dishes," Wei says of the launch. "I hope people will love. it as much as I do – it means a lot to me."

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