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I have written quite a bit about affordable halal restaurants in London so far, and if you’ve been here before, you are probably always looking for the best HMC halal restaurants in London as well. Some time ago, I have been invited to try Oodles Chinese in Holborn, one of the halal Chinese in London with a complete HMC halal menu.
A halal Chinese fast food located right in the heart of Holborn, just a few minutes on foot away from both Tottenham Court Road and Covent Garden, Oodles Chinese offers flavors from China, it’s true – but not only.
On the menu – very easy to make sense of, you’ll see below, we have flavors from Malaysian cuisine, Thai food, and Singaporean flavors all mixed with Chinese sauces. Oodles Chinese, even before visiting the Holborn branch, seemed to me one of the most eclectic HMC restaurants in London, and I was really excited to visit the small restaurant!
So, if you’re looking for a halal Chinese in Central London, keep reading! You’re going to want to try out Oodles Chinese for yourself when you see the huge portions and the affordable prices, especially if you’ve been craving some good old halal noodles in London!
HMC Restaurants in London: Oodles Chinese Review
Oodles Chinese has three branches across London; one in Holborn, one in Walthamstow, and one in Kilburn. There is not much halal food in Holborn, to be honest, and most of the halal restaurants in Central London are rather located in tourist areas like Covent Garden and Leicester Square, although there are plenty of halal restaurants in Mayfair as well.
From what I’ve seen, Oodles Chinese in Holborn is a small restaurant with just a few tables. I have eaten there for lunch, and most people coming seemed to be on their break from work. Plus, since the lunch menu retails for only £8.99 with a free drink, I can safely say this is one of the most affordable halal restaurants in London.
The restaurant is HMC certified, and there are lots of options for vegetarians to choose from as well. The focus is mainly on the meats; chicken and beef. However, there are vegetarian stir-fries on the menu, with a fish fry also available should you want to go meatless that day.
READ: The best Chinese buffet in London at Max Orient Camden
Oodles Chinese Holborn Atmosphere
Upon entering the restaurant, I understood straight away that people come for a quick lunch, although there were a couple of people eating at a table next to us. There are only three tables in the restaurant, each with four chairs, so if you’d like to visit with friends while roaming the city doing all kinds of non-touristy things in London, that’s definitely a perfect place. Or for a quick, laidback romantic date.
Oodles Chinese is more of a takeaway/fast-food type of place; one of the halal Chinese in London that focuses on quality food, a bit less on a really comfortable setting. However, I do understand that the area is perfect for that kind of restaurant, and since it’s one of the most affordable halal restaurants in London, I also think it is normal that there would be just a few seats in the restaurant.
Nevertheless, we managed to have a table and enjoyed our food for as long as we wanted without being disturbed, which I greatly appreciated. Upon reading the Oodles Chinese menu, we quickly understood that the lunch would be filling.
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HMC Restaurants in London: Oodles Chinese Menu
When you visit Oodles Chinese, you choose a box size: small, medium, or large, for a final price ranging between £8.49 and £9.99. At lunch, there’s an offer that knocks one pound off your bill, and if you order the biggest box, you’ll get a free drink on top of that.
It’s really all focused on lunch, lunch, and more lunch at Oodles Chinese – you won’t find any afternoon tea or brunch in this Central London joint. But what they do, they do well – so you’ll more than likely enjoy that!
HMC Restaurants in London: What We Ordered at Oodles Chinese Holborn
Here is what we ordered at the restaurant, with the total bill amounting to £25 for two people:
- Udon noodles, egg fried rice, sweet and sour chicken, and Teriyaki chicken
- Egg fried rice, garlic rice, sweet and sour chicken, and crispy chicken
- Vegetable spring rolls
- Chinese Wok wings
- two drinks; one Iron Bru and one Rubicon
First off, the crispy chicken and sweet and sour chicken – what I ordered. I found that the mix was very nice. In particular, the crispy chicken topped with sesame was especially flavorful. Given the number of people visiting Oodles Chinese and all the orders placed, I found that the food was hot and beautifully prepared.
READ: The best pho in London at Pho Ta Kentish Town
The sweet and sour chicken could have used more spice, but for the rest; rice and crispy chicken, my box was delicious from the beginning to the end.
The box my fiance ordered contained both udon noodles and garlic rice. I’m not a fan of udon noodles at all, but I can recognize when they’re cooked well – and they were. I preferred the mix I chose for my box, but the Teriyaki chicken was really good. I do like some Teriyaki chicken, and when you can find them with halal noodles in London, why not?
I think you’ve got to be especially careful in that type of halal Chinese restaurant in London, as you can quickly mix items that don’t really go well together. However, to help out, Oodles Chinese has another menu with the chef’s suggestions, so you can’t really go wrong.
Read: Good Friend Chicken Chinatown Review
I especially appreciated this, as usually, affordable halal restaurants in London don’t go that extra mile and it showed me that Oodles Chinese cares for their customers. When it’s your first time there, as it was for us, if you feel lost, you can always refer to that special menu created for first-timers.
On another note, when building up the boxes, Oodles Chinese does not mix the meats you get. You can choose to mix them yourself, or do as I did: eat them separately. I feel that this way, you can really enjoy the different flavors, and that’s something really important to me, so I liked that a lot.
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I forgot to take a picture of the Chinese Wok wings, but let me tell you one thing: if you like spicy food, you’ll be well served! I usually avoid spicy food as you can find in halal Thai restaurants, or in certain Chinese restaurants. Just to be clear – I do not like spicy food. At all.
I could only have a small bite of the chicken wings, but from what I remember before I felt like my mouth burned off, the sauce was really well crafted. As in, some of the best halal wings in London hands down. So go for them if you’re into spicy food!
READ: The best bagels in London at Beigel Shop Brick Lane
As for the vegetable spring rolls, while my fiance was relishing the chicken wings, I was eating them and wishing there were many, many more. They were some of the best I’ve eaten in London, and I order spring rolls in quite any Asian restaurant I visit. Oodles Chinese nailed these down!
HMC Restaurants in London: Oodles Chinese Review & Final Thoughts
My final thoughts? If you’re looking for affordable HMC restaurants in London, and especially a halal Chinese restaurant, you’d do well to try Oodles Chinese. Whether you’re in East, West, or Central London, there’s going to be an Oodles Chinese restaurant near you. It’s pretty cool to be able to eat halal noodles in London and be sure that they’re completely halal!
At the moment, the restaurant only offers chicken and beef in their meat selection. Still, if you’re a vegetarian, you also have some really cool options to try. I’d say one of the best features of Oodles Chinese is how fast the food is served, and the affordable price. It’s not halal fine dining food, but the food was good, and the price point was also amazing given the location.
Once we were done (and I couldn’t even finish my own box entirely), I felt nicely full – but not too much. Plus, I know that when I go out, it’s in Central, so if you’re looking for halal restaurants in Central London, that’s a top pick!
If you’d like to try Oodles Chinese Holborn for yourself, here is 10% off when you visit the restaurant or that you can use on the website, kindly gifted by the restaurant for you guys:
I’ll come back soon with more reviews for you – I can’t believe how many restaurant pictures I have, and always forget to write the reviews! In the meantime, if you’d like to discover more amazing food in London, here are some guides on The Working Line you might want to read:
- the best halal steak in London
- the best halal cafes in London for breakfast and brunch
- Ore Cafe Brompton: The Most Instagrammable Halal Cafe in London
- and the best Moroccan restaurants in London with halal options
Until next time!
I was invited to eat at Oodles Chinese. All opinions are my own.
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The Working Line
Sam is a certified fashion makeup artist, a freelance writer, a blogger and a digital nomad. Since 2019, she roams around the world, from London to Rome and shares her knowledge about makeup, scented candles, travel, blogging and the digital nomad lifestyle.