228 Second Ave.
Seattle, WA 98121
206-728-0463

I can’t believe I’ve never noticed this place. The Noodle Ranch, in Belltown right next to Mamma’s Mexican Kitchen, is an eclectic combination of really tasty Vietnamese/Thai inspired Asian with a slightly grunge setting. I personally liked the hole in the wall feel, a refreshing break from the overly stylized Asian restaurants you find outside of the ID, and the service while very casual, was quick and friendly (even when we managed to knock over a whole glass of water and were pretty much just camping at our table).

I was having a fairly light lunch, and stuck with the Fresh Spring Rolls (ie, summer rolls) and a spicy cucumber salad. The summer rolls were really fresh, with the rice paper still slightly moist and stretchy. They were stuffed with a cool, slightly-fried tofu with a nice bite, mung beans, cilantro and lettuce. The hoison/peanut dipping sauce was fantastic managing not to just taste like soggy peanut butter. The cucumber salad had a nice bite, both in terms of the crispness of the cukes as well as the hotness of the red peppers. This dish is a better to share than just to eat as your main entree however, and after eating about half of us, I was just tired of eating the same thing… it was just seasoned cucumbers after all. I wish I had also ordered the veggie gyoza.
Other highly recommended dishes (although I haven’t tried them yet) were the green curry and the Mekong Grill (like the traditional vietnamese Bun dish).

Here’s what CitySearch has to say.

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