Colourful Yunnan – Melbourne – huge bowls of noodles with heaps of soup and chili

On busy Swanston Street in Melbourne’s CBD is Colourful Yunnan. It’s got a white, polished and marble décor. It’s very modern and slick. The venue is usually full of patrons during the lunch hour rush. I was served relatively quickly and was surprised and happy with my choice of noodle soup. For me, I managed to be in and out within 30 minutes.

The main items on the menu are noodle soups, but they also have items on the menu where you get can mix your ingredients however you want with their “Ultra Crossing The Bridge Rice Noodle” where you get a big bowl of boiling soup which is separated from the noodles and the other toppings. The idea is that the soup is boiling and you cook the already lightly cooked ingredients to your preference. It seems like an interesting way to eat, but probably not a great idea for lunch time. This menu item would set you back around AUD$30.

The noodle soup menu consists of various meats with pork, beef and lamb toppings on offer. The range for these noodle soups were around AUD$16 to $19. They also offer some offal and other similar toppings if you into these things.

I ordered the Beef Tendon and Brisket Rice Noodle for $18.80. I had to order and pay for my dish before it was served at my table with a cup and bottle of tap water.

The beef was piecemeal and okay. I thought the crunchy chickpeas added a really nice texture and the flavor of the soup was oily and spicy. I didn’t think much of the rice noodles. I managed to finish most of the bowl without breaking too much of a sweat. But it was a huge bowl in comparison to other establishments. What I really liked was the amount of color in this dish and how it had a decent soup flavor. Unlike some other establishments, the soup wasn’t just some tongue killing soup.