But what makes the perfect bowl of Lanzhou noodle soup?

Some say it's the steaming piquant broth that suspends soft pieces of tender beef and vegetables, like daikon radish, green onions, garlic, ginger, and coriander amongst the silky strands of hand-made al-dente noodles that steep and soak in the aforementioned broth.

I'm no expert, I must admit. In fact, I'm pretty sure that Franky's Lan Zhou noodles are the first Lanzhou noodles I've ever tried. But, if his particular brand of noodles is any measure for what constitutes a decent bowl of Lanzhou noodle soup, then I might be tempted to say that perfection begins here.

You can see Hua Fan, aka "Franky" (his English name), work his noodle magic straight through two huge illuminated window panes at the front of the shop. At a long bench, he leans over the noodles, folding them and rolling them in between his palms, before picking them up to pull them, stretch them, spin them and twist them into one long, thick noodle-bound rope.

Once the rope is ready, it's cooked in a pot of boiling water until silky smooth and utterly slurp-able.

It's the kind of intrepid epicurean novelty most often reserved for gawking tourists who stare wide-eyed at the sheer skill of the street-food stallholders dotted throughout the bustling lanes and alleyways of Asia. Except, it's right here, in the Hunter - over the bridge into Carrington, to be precise.

Forced to move from their initial Beaumont Street location last year, Franky's Lan Zhou Noodles have taken up residence in the old location where Antojito's was - on Young Street, Carrington.

The kitchen and dining room space haven't changed much. There is some cool new art on the walls, featuring wavy Chinese dragons, and banners with Franky's Lan Zhou branding, all lit up by hanging Chinese lanterns. From the front to the back there's plenty of room to play, sip and slurp, munch and crunch on noodles, dumplings, and spring rolls with friends and family, from two to many, for date nights, catch ups, weddings, parties, anything.

If it isn't obvious by now, just about everything is made in Franky's house, from scratch. The noodles, the dumplings, the spring rolls, the pancakes, the deep fried ice cream . . . OK, not the deep-fried ice cream. We'll get to that in a moment.

On a cool Saturday night, my partner and I sat out the front of Franky's with a couple of cold (BYO, $5) Tsingtao's from the bottle shop next door, watching the man work his Lan Zhou magic at the noodle station . . . folding, rolling, pulling, stretching, twisting, spinning.

We ordered a series of plates to share; the seasonal greens from the specials board ($8), pork and cabbage spring rolls ($8.80 x 4), a mixed dozen of the dumplings, featuring pork and fermented veg, chicken and mushroom, and tofu, mushroom, wombok and rice noodle (v, $26), a bowl of Lan Zhou Noodles with beef, radish and coriander in a bone broth ($19), and, for dessert, a bowl of deep-fried ice cream drizzled with a warm caramel sauce ($8).

Franky says the dumplings are life changing, but I reckon so too, are the spring rolls. Super fresh, and so crunchy. I could eat them all day, every day. The pork dumplings were a firm favourite between the two of us; chewy pockets packed with flavour. The seasonal greens were fresh and nourishing, soaking in oyster sauce with chunks of nutty garlic. The noodles, soft and pillowy with the texture of fresh pasta; the beef chunks, tender with a deep flavour.

I hadn't had deep-fried ice cream since I was about six. It's not a fond memory, to be sure. Franky's is, though. Creamy vanilla ice-cream caked in a donut-like batter, deep fried for crunch, then soaked in warm caramel. A novel contrast of temperature and texture, super yum, delicious fun.

What to expect from Franky's Lan Zhou Noodles? Fresh Chinese food, super casual . . . I can't wait to go back with a bigger group of friends and a few bottles of wine.