This restaurant was pretty disappointing and....disgusting. The hand-pulled noodles were dry, doughy, and there were globs of dried hot peppers stuck unevenly all over them. The pulled pork sandwich was very bland - It was just pulled pork on bread with little or no seasoning. The chilled noodle has no vegetables or garnish, aside from bean sprouts (gross). .... shouldn't an authentic Chinese restaurant have Chinese chefs? I'm all for equal opportunities and everything, but having two Latina women in plain view cooking your Chinese food seems....off. Update: it's now 3 hours later and all I taste in my mouth is potent garlic. Ugh. read more

probably the most unique Chinese dish I had in the states. if you like noodles in general definitely worth a try. don't forget to add some lamb skewers on the side. read more

Ordered two bowls of noodles today. Noodles are very salty. The soup are even worse. Taste like they put two or three times more salt than normal. read more

how many places can you still visit that provide a sizeable portion of food that amounts to about $10 ? and from what I can tell over the past 2-3 years, they've not changed anything about the food orders, they remain the same and ingredients are fresh I can only speak to one specific dish (#16), because I am so pleased by and addicted to this one item that I fear trying something new might result in some disappointment, but if the other dishes are in any way like this one I'd keep the 5 stars without hesitation... and until / unless I try something different, I will keep this review at 5 stars but note that it is for this one specific meal (which I understand is one of the more popular items + for good reason) ... as for the reviewer giving 1 star for no flavor, maybe you should go see a doctor about that ? Perhaps that is not a problem with the food here but with your own anatomy ... : ) read more

Friday a group of 9 of us went to Gene's for their spicy chicken dish and no one left hungry. It's a huge dish of pulled noodles, chicken,potatoes, carrots and onions spiced with black pepper corns, Chinese five spice, cinnamon and love=) It's was a wonderful and delicious dish not to be missed if you have a large crowd with you. Just note; it does have quite a slow burn that builds as you eat and it's only done on weekdays. If you aren't with such a large group I would suggest either their dumpling soup which is a beef stock brown soup filled with meat filled dumplings not spicy at all. Also as a recommendation the pulled noodle dish (#4) which is a simple bowl of wonderful noodles also not spicy but lots of garlic. Finally their beef skewers perfectly juicy and quite spicy. I would most certainly return for their simple dish of noodles and garlic. read more

Gene's Chinese Flatbread Cafe - Spicy chicken and noodle dish - Chinese Near Me - Woburn, Massachusetts

I'm always skeptical everytime I try a new Chinese restaurants( cause most of the time there's always a problem every time I visit one) But Gene's is exceptional! My friend and I got #4 hand pulled noodles, #10 dumpling soup, and #16 hot and sour soup. My favorite was #16. The broth was just right, maybe a little salty but that's okay, the noodles were BOMB. So I highly reccomend new comers to try #16 Definitely coming back for sure! read more

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Backpacking through China for 8 months means I made a mandatory stop in Xian for like 5 days. The food there was exceptional, especially the street food. Walking down Main Street Woburn I was surprised at the diversity of the cuisines on offer, everything from Indian to Brazilian to, yup, Xian street foods! A few notes: They are only open 4 days a week, Thur to Sun. That kind of limits things if you are looking for weekday lunches. The cold noodle dish that I wanted is only available on weekends. That also really limits things. I guess I should only come here on the weekend. But then again, I don't really want to be in Woburn on a weekend. The kitchen staff was not Chinese. Not sure how relevant this is but I feel that people come here for authentic Xian street food and if non-Chinese people can be trained to make amazing Xian street food, then more power to them. So it all comes down to the quality of the food. Lamb skewers were okay but they were super spicy. While I can eat spicy, it left me panting. I didn't see any water available but they did have a fridge for buying beverages. I was surprised that the person taking the order did not ask me if I wanted them spicy. The lamb "sandwich" was a HUGE disappointment. I had them in Xian and also in NYC's Xian Famous Foods. This one came out and not only was it small, the bread was not a "shao bing," the authentic lamb sandwich bread. On top of that, there was hardly any meat at all in the TINY sandwich. In fact, it was about half an onion chopped up and mixed in with a few sad pieces of meat. Why so much greasy onion??? Gross. Just because I'm not on a date does not mean I want to eat half an onion and have onion grease coming out my skin pours for the rest of the day. I almost never return food but I had to bring this back to the counter. I had to explain that I did not order an onion sandwich. In fact, I'm not a huge onion fan and I certainly did not want to eat half an onion. Furthermore, the photo they present to customers when ordering the food in the lit up displace shows NO ONION in that sandwich. It was ALL MEAT. So when I asked about that the cashier told me the photo was wrong. The photo is only for the pork sandwich and not the lamb one. Okay but you list both sandwiches next to the photo of two meat only sandwiches. What is the customer supposed to think? They then gave me another sandwich without the onions. It was pretty underwhelming even without the onions. Maybe two spoonfuls of chopped up lamb for $5.50. Sucks because I really really wanted to like this place and was stoked to have found an authentic Xian street food place so close to home. I might come back to try their noodles and see if that might result in a better experience. read more

The noodle and dishes are authentic. Used to visit very often before pandemic. Our recent take out was not very well. I feel the quality - maybe freshness of the ingredients - goes down. Hopefully they are keeping good food. read more

What else can be said about Gene's? It where Alton Brown's eats every time he comes to Boston! If you don't love Alton Brown, there is something wrong with you, but this is about Gene not Alton, so stop arguing with me! Now, Gene's serve's extremely authentic noodles from Western China. This isn't like Cantonese style lo mein or ramen. They are super wide, thick and toothsome. Several soup varieties all have incredible broth that is really the highlight of the dish. I can only imagine the time and effort put into the broths. Lamb skewers are probably the best meat-on-a-stick i have ever had. I don't find them overwhelmingly spicy (neither does the wife who tolerance isn't super high). Cold noodles served on the weekend are so awesome it's worth going just to try them. They are only open 4 days a week. Thur-Sun They only take cash it's true but there are like 30 ATMs within a block's distance. They have a bathroom, not sure where the person ate who said they don't but it wasn't at Gene's It's crowded because it's so good. The cooks are extremely talented, Who care what they look like? You know that "authentic" North End restaurant you love? I hate to burst your bubble but the cooks are all from Central America. read more

This place is a GEM...it is so, so, sooo good. My husband and I stumbled upon it while looking for a new place to grub hub and we can't get enough. I've been loving the pork hand pulled noodles (really unique flavor, and you can customize the spice level and pick your meat) and he gets the soups. We've also ordered the flatbreads, where are a nice little app to split, but the noodles are the prize. Can't recommend this place enough, delicious food, very reasonable pricing, and such fast delivery service! read more

Chinese is my traditional go-to whenever I'm sick. (Hot and sour soup for sore throat!) But I'll go out of my way to visit HERE even when I'm not sick. INGREDIENTS: The ingredients, especially the vegetables look and taste so vibrant, fresh, more wholesome; the seasoning is more complex, fragrant, balanced, and intriguing. This is not your father's Chinese food--unless you're from western china! Remember reading about the terra cotta army in China? That's the home of Gene's food. Chinese visitors traveling abroad in America eagerly seek out Gene's place for a taste of home, and I met one of those guys standing outside the restaurant waiting for it to open. He was grinning so wide, just waiting for an authentic taste of home, and I love that about Gene's. And well, any restaurant. That authenticity of home, wherever in the world it is from. We and our palates are so lucky to be surrounded by so many cultures! FLATBREAD: I haven't yet tried the eponymous flatbread, but I will some day. I'm still enthralled by those fresh noodles! FRESH HAND PULLED NOODLES: They are a soft yet chewy noodley dumpling goodness. I highly recommend gobbling them up to the last drop in one sitting--and do not save them for the next day! When left standing in liquid, the noodles soften to a texture that I guess I'd describe as wet Play Do? My first time I was surprised to learn that the noodles are not rice noodles. I love rice noodles, but I wonder if there even is such a thing as hand pulled rice noodles? I make two types of noodles at home, so I may have to experiment around with that at home myself. The only reason I'm docking a star is because one time, only one time, the noodles ALREADY began turning to that "wet Play Do" phase the moment I sampled a bite of noodles the minute I got back into my car. read more

I understand that they are trying to sell an authentic cuisine here and no the gloppy sugar-forward Chinese food so apparently beloved by the Greater Boston palate. And I applaud that effort. In this review I'll suggest some things they could do to make the restaurant more customer friendly while still upholding their worthy goal. I'll start with the noodles, because it's noodles, not flatbread, which is the signature dish. They are lovely and chewy (gluten free people need to avoid them, I'm afraid). The standard version comes with a funky sour and spicy red pepper and oil sauce. It can be challenging on first taste but then somehow becomes addictive. I don't think it would be dumbing down or compromising to cut the noodles just a little smaller and cook them so they don't stick together in giant pasty clumps, so this bold sauce can be successfully distributed. And I love the chutzpah of the take-no-prisoners tablespoon of raw garlic sitting on top, but similarly I struggle to mix it into the long stuck-together noodles. My advice is to take-out, then at least you can put the noodles in a big salad bowl at home, and cut and toss them around in their sauce. It's not too much work and shows a little respect for what is a very good noodle. It's usually an auspicious sign to me when a restaurant has a limited menu--it means they are focused on what they can do well. Still, I think it might be nice to offer some vegetable dishes for those who aren't up for noodles, lamb, and pork. They serve great fresh vegetables on top of many of their dishes, so the ingredients are there. I'm not familiar with northern China but surely there must be some kind of a salad or cooked vegetable in the cuisine they could offer? The dumpling soup has nice dumplings and a good broth with some tea flavor (they seem to use tea a lot as a flavoring here, which I like) but sometimes you get a thick oily layer on top which I don't find appetizing. The hot sour soup doesn't seem to have this problem and is served with a great pile of vegetables on top. If you eat in, you avoid the black plastic container and get a bowl which keeps it hot and very satisfying on a cold day. But the atmosphere in the restaurant is awful. Orange paint on the walls, nothing to break up the echo of hard surfaces, nary a placemat even as a nod to beauty. A video loop on a screen over the counter shows how the noodles are made, which is interesting the first time you watch it. Fortunately the staff are friendly. Finally, it's cash only. Given how cheap it is, maybe its customers could manage a small across the board price increase if that's what it would take for them to be able to offer some electronic payment system? read more

Our once a week go to. We crave their #16 house soup with noodles. It's the absolute best. Nothing else like it out there.

So disappointed today as they are 5 stars but knocked you down only 1 when in fact should have been more. When offering take out only, remember we are not always going home to eat!! Excitedly picked up my dumpling soup and hand pulled noodles. Drove away to a park to enjoy only to find, no utensils, napkins, nothing to eat this delicious food. Epic fail my friends. Yes you are busy, I get that because WE are ordering but can you let us eat and enjoy it too and not have to drive the 60 minutes home to cold soup and noodles. I will be back but please take care of your everyday customers! Don't make your miss their reason to not come back. read more

Food is mediocre at best. Cost has gone up significantly while the quality has gone down. Service wasn't the best, and the plates and utensils were all plastic. The spoons were peeling plastic, and they were dirty. read more

Great little spot in Woburn. I had a free afternoon and decided to give it a try. Friendly and fast counter service. I got the regular hand pulled noodles, coated in a hot garlic and chili oil with herbs. You can see the chefs making the noodles in the kitchen! This stuff is delicious, and only $6.50 for a filling portion. I'd come back a hundred times. I've never been to their downtown Boston location, but I've heard great things. Heads up, they're cash only! read more

Gene's Chinese Flatbread Cafe - Hand pulled noodles! $6.50 - Chinese Near Me - Woburn, Massachusetts

Great food and quick to get it , dumpling soup is fantastic ,also lamb skewers could use a little less fat , but otherwise decent

SO GOOD. Hands down the best food I've ever had. The hand pulled noodles (#4) is a must. Been coming here for years and it never misses! read more

Gene's Chinese Flatbread Cafe - #4 Hand-Pulled Noodles - Chinese Near Me - Woburn, Massachusetts

These hand pulled noodles are to die for! We got the dry version with hot oil and one with hot and sour broth. Both were delish! The noodles were thick, chewy, and filling. It was hard to finish even when the flavor was so good. We'll be back to try more! read more

Gene's Chinese Flatbread Cafe - Chinese Near Me - Woburn, Massachusetts

Visited Xian and had this type of noodle there. You can't get any more authentic than this if you are looking for Xian noodles

Love the hand pulled noodles, but without the scoop of raw garlic on top. For spice lovers, order with extra spice and you'll be delightfully burned. Also try their Pork Flatbread Sandwich and Tea Egg! read more

The noodle dishes are very good. We ordered a House noodle soup, a hot sour hand pulled noodle soup, and a hand pulled noodle. The flavors are very good and nice portions. We also ordered pork flatbread sandwich and tea egg. The price is great for a quick lunch stop. Make sure you bring cash to this place. read more

Gene's Chinese Flatbread Cafe - Chinese Near Me - Woburn, Massachusetts

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I think I got pranked... I drove way out of the way to try this place because the photos looked fantastic. I ordered the "house" noodle bowl , a skewer and a tea egg. The tea egg was good, you could really appreciate the flavors infused from whatever tea was used to marinate the egg. Ok that was the good part... and then less good was the skewer... it was cooked well and overall wasn't offensive but it walked the line as it was so caked with salt and other seasonings that I could barely identify it as a piece of meat at all. ... and then... the comedic "piece de resistance"... the noodle bowl I was so excited for. This noodle bowl was literally nearly indistinguishable from a can of Campbell's canned beef and vegetable soups. It was full of overcooked potatoes, gelatinous carrots, grey green beans and peas just like your favorite lunch you ate when you were five years old. It tastes like a can of soup and a few squirts of Sri racha. .. but the "hand pulled" noodles were great, right? Well, maybe at some point they were noodles but what was served to me was almost mush, they had been over cooked or perhaps sitting in water for too long... not sure but they tasted like... well like the noodles from a can of soup. Then it occurred to me- maybe this is a play in the classic childhood bowl of soup meant to tug on the nostalgic heart strings of a weary traveler like myself... nope- I looked on the restaurants website and the photos of the dish looks very different. Something went wrong here, very wrong. Don't risk it and certainly don't make the mistake of going out of your way to try what sounds like an exciting Chinese style dining experience- it wasn't even a dining experience for me because I couldn't barely finish 10% of the dish before I threw it in a bus box. read more

Gene's is a true treasure. It is not a "Chinese restaurant" in the way that most American's will imagine. Many a person probably walks into Gene's, skims the menu on the wall, and leaves upon noticing the lack of General Tso's, lo mein, or egg rolls. What Gene's does have is REALLY GOOD FOOD. It specializes in Chinese street food, and it feels a bit like comfort food- warm, simple, fresh, and delicious. I am not an adventurous eater that will embrace the pork intestine option... but I can tell you that the #4 (hand made, hand-pulled noodles that are thick, chewy, and slathered in garlic sauce) would be my last meal choice in the unlikely event of a death row conviction. The #8 noodles (cold, fresh, vinegar-y and covered with fresh, sliced veggies) are light and perfect. The food is divine. Please trust me when I tell you that I do not use this word lightly. Gene's is a treat that is well worth the hour+ journey for me. Please give this hole-in-the-wall a chance! Good news! There's a second location in Boston, and Gene shared that there will be a third in Westford by mid-December! read more

I thought this would be a good store when I walked in, but boy was I wrong. First of all, the things they said on the menu- they didn't even have! Also, the customer service was horrible. The kid at the front was on his phone the whole time and didn't speak to me with any sort of respect. My daughter can't deal with spice, but all their dishes were spicy, so I asked them to give her water but all they said was " sorry but your gonna have to buy water." We we're so frustrated, and we had to do everything. No waitressing, and even had the gut to ask for a tip. Note to you guys- don't give them a tip. You pay for the food in beginning so you'll leave a tip when they don't deserve it. Don't recommend this store to anyone in this area or on vacation read more

I was there today 7/23/19 at 7:35pm and tried to order some noodles soup for to go. The lady on the counter had the most nasty attitude that I have seen in my life. The way she talks to customer was very rude!!! I I was a regular customer on this place. Everyone was very nice before. This lady is new, she seems very not happy about her job. I work for customer services, and I never , ever treat my clients like this. I walked out the door without order anything, and I also told her in Mandarin how rude she is. This is ridiculous!!! read more

A little hunk of heaven! Always delicious, fresh and fast!

This place is excellent, I am a huge fan of both the sandwiches and the flat noodles (either with or without the lamb). It is sad to see they had to leave Chelmsford due to developers pushing them out. Glad to see they were able to find a better location in Woburn. Now I just need to look for a job in Woburn so I have a good excuse to go here a couple of times a week! I highly recommend this place to anyone who is looking for something a little different than mainstream American Chinese food. With this new location, they are likely to get a lot more foot traffic than the Chelmsford location, so watch out, it's probably going to be very busy once word gets out. read more

Omg. Welcome to Woburn! So far I had the #9 earlier this week. Fat noodles and delicious lamb and veggies. Nomnomnom. Just stopped by for some takeout and got 1 of each of the sandwiches. The pork one is simple and the bread is yummy. The beef one comes with nicely carmelized onions. Both are made even better with a thick layer of their chili oil. I am used to chili oil that is seeds with a red oil but theirs is crushed so it makes a thick paste. Delicious. Everything is better with chili oil. I also tried a lamb skewer. Small nuggets of juicy lamb with a nice flavor and slight spice. Even better with chili oil! I got the cool noodles (forget the number) for dinner later on. This place is so close that I fear (look forward to? ) becoming on a first name basis. Small menu just means I get to try everything! They have"cold weekend noodles" but they were already sold out. Going to have to get there earlier next time. Hand pulled noodles makes one closer to god! read more

Gene's Chinese Flatbread Cafe - #9 Nom - Chinese Near Me - Woburn, Massachusetts

I previously lived in Lowell and used to go to their Chelmsford location... but once I got settled in Woburn, I realized they had just moved down the road! Awesome coincidence! The hand pulled noodles are amazing! Simple, yes, but still amazing. The pork flat bread sandwich is also great. Those are my go-tos. Check this place out even if you're not nearby, it's worth it. read more

This place is unbelievable. Go there now. Go 'head. It's great food in your mouth. What are you waiting on? read more

So glad we made the trip to Woburn for Gene's because it really was amazing. We were the only non-Asian patrons and from the get go we knew that was probably a good sign. I had the pork sandwich and the #4 hand pulled noodle. Not sure which one I liked better. My husband had spicy pork stomach which was a cold dish. He also had one lamb skewers, very tasty and the lamb soup with hand pulled noodles. The broth was super flavorful. I would definite recommend stopping in. This is a unique experience that can't be had other places. read more

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LOVED Genes Flat bread hand pulled noodles when it was a 45 minute drive. Now they are walling distance! Gad I am going to get FAT! BEST OF LUCK IN THE NEW LOCATION! read more

Don't let the name fool you, Gene's Chinese Flatbread Cafe is probably best known for their noodles (although, I would certainly not discount their pork flatbreads). Their noodle dishes feature their hand pulled noodles are of a perfect texture and consistency, their sauces are flavorful (although not for the faint of heart, or for vampires), and their owner is quite a friendly guy. It's a bit of a hole in the wall type of place, but something about it makes me want to come again and again. Food was awesome! I don't know much about Xi'an style cuisine, but I do know that they apparently have amazing noodle dishes. Highly recommended! read more

Just wonderful! This inconspicuous place is worth a stop if you're heading north or south on 95. Gene's focuses on Xi'anese food. Never had that before? Neither had we. Never even heard of it before? Neither had we. Don't let this deter you. Specifically, Gene's features delicious hand-pulled noodles and also flat bread sandwiches. The noodles are perfectly cooked. They are prepared with lamb or in a soup. Or plain. The flatbread sandwiches are filled with beef or pork. Our daughter enjoyed some hot and sour dumpling soup. There are cold noodle dishes as well. Very friendly owner. We will be back when we are near Woburn. read more

Gene's Chinese Flatbread Cafe - Lamb hand pulled noodle soup - Chinese Near Me - Woburn, Massachusetts

For me the litmus test on good noodles is if I'm more excited about eating the noodles than I am the meat. Awesome place, nice people and delicious food at a good price. Cash only read more

By far the best noodle restaurant I can find in Boston. I haven't been to their downtown Boston location, but rumor has it that it's got fewer options than the Woburn store. The staffs are friendly and food gets served fast. I always try to go on the weekend because that's the only time you can get their chilled noodle. My personal favorites are their lamb hand pulled noodle soup and lamb skewers. It's surprising how well they make their lamb skewers here and it's done consistently. The meat's never overcooked and is always tender. There's a reason why this place gets such raving review and gets featured in food magazines. It's a must try if you are in Boston! read more

Cash only, small Chinese place. We decided to try this because of the name. There are about 8 dishes on the menu so i was excited because that can imply they are really good at those 8 dishes. Also, the flatbread part of the name is just one dish, literally plain pulled pork on flatbread. It was pretty regular tasting pulled pork. I ordered the lamb noodle soup. While the broth was good, the noodles was one giant and fat hand pulled noodle. Wayyy too fat. Nothing much else in the soup besides the lamb chunks, which was okay. The place was pretty messy, with dirty tables. The lunch room setting implies you clear your own place, which is fine, but the dish bin on the trash can was overflowing and I had to balance a thing of soup on it. Not chill. Probably won't be going back, though the soup is nice, just not into giant noodles. Id probably go to HMart for similar soup. read more

They were honestly the best thing that made visiting Chelmsford bearable. Then they moved which could've been bad news for me but travel time is still the same so I'm not complaining. Delicious chewy doughy noodles, exactly what I love. Very simple but powerful Asian flavors of garlic, chili oil, vinegar and cilantro. If you don't dig this kind of flavor profile, stick to your unoriginal burgers and pizzas. I love their #4 and I think the #9. One is just the dry house noodles and the other is also dry house noodles but with lamb. The lamb has a very strong cumin and coriander flavor - it tastes like something you get at a Mediterranean restaurant. They're both really tasty. I also enjoy their pork flatbread. It's much better than the beef, I found the beef dry and small in the amount of meat. I'd recommend that you eat the foods there. The noodles tend to congeal and harden the longer it sits. I usually have to cut the noodles up and microwave in 30 second intervals with constant stirring until the noodles get soft and malleable again. With the sandwich I prefer microwaving in intervals also as I found that putting it in the broiler makes the bread hard and dry. I didn't get to visit this location but BD says the layout is much better than the old location. I'll be back next year! read more

I used to go to this restaurant when it was in the westford/chelmsford location in some abandoned motel and yet even there it was thriving, now it is in a much more convenient location in Woburn and every bit as good as it was at the old location. The hand made flat noodles are seriously great and the spicy lamb and beef sauces that adorn them the perfect complement, especially when the weather gets cold in MA (pretty much 11 months out of the year!) The beef filled flat bread sandwichs are a little oily but very good when the bread is fresh. Gene and his wife are very nice people but Gene seems to be gone now in the Boston store most of the time. read more