In the past few years, Jason Wang has helped his father expand Xi'an Famous Foods from a small food stall in Flushing to a mini empire in the city with several locations, including 81 St. Mark's Place, that serve their popular hand-pulled noodles.
Now Biang!, his family-style Chinese restaurant, is moving from Main Street in Flushing to 157 Second Ave. between East Ninth Street and East 10th Street.
Biang! is on this month's CB3 SLA committee docket for a beer-wine license. According to the questionnaire (PDF!) on file at the CB3 website, the restaurant will have hours of 11 a.m. to 11 p.m. Sunday-Thursday, until 11:30 p.m. on Friday and Saturday. The configuration shows 16 tables good for 32 seats, as well as one standing bar without any seats.
After two-and-a-half years in business, Chef Wylie Dufresne closed Alder, his well-regarded bistro here, at the end of August. The address had been on the market with an asking rent of $17,389 plus key money.
The December CB3-SLA committee meeting is next Monday night at 6:30 in the CB3 office, 59 E. Fourth St. between Second Avenue and the Bowery.
Updated 7:46 a.m.
Several readers have noted that Wang opened this Xi'an offshoot several years ago in Flushing. I edited the headline and post to reflect this.
Meanwhile, here's the message on the Biang! website (you can find the menu there too):
As of November 18, 2015, Biang! is closed until re-opening at a different location which is to be announced within the month. The current Flushing location will be converted to a Xi'an Famous Foods for fast-casual dining needs! Please stay tuned to this website for updates.
Here's The New Yorker on Biang!:
Unlike its sibling restaurants, with their lines and numbered food pictures on the wall, Biang! is a sleek, sit-down affair. (Biang, the name of the restaurant’s signature noodle, mimics the sound the noodles make when they are being snapped into shape.) Biang!’s menu has all the staples, including those cold-skin noodles, but with an even more traditional bent.
Image via CB3
