Overview
TamJai Mixian is huge in Hong Kong, with the city home to over 50 stores serving big bowls of cheap and totally customisable noodles. And now, it's finally coming to Australia.
But instead of opening just one store and seeing how it goes, the team already has four planned to open within the next few months. The first Melbourne TamJai is slated to open on Swanston Street on Thursday, November 28, followed by a Melbourne Central location in December. Come 2025, there will also be TamJai noodle shops in Box Hill and Glen Waverley.
For those not in the know, what is TamJai Mixian all about? Simply put, it's a fast-food noodle shop that pairs rice noodles (cooked al dente) with a myriad of spicy soup bases and toppings. It's garnered huge popularity in Hong Kong thanks to its generous portions of cheap and boldly flavoured eats.
The team boasts that over 10,000 units of its TamJai Supreme Mixian dish are sold every day in Hong Kong alone, with even more sold at stores in China, Singapore and Japan.
But the Australian TamJais will be a little different to its Asian counterparts. The brand is using these sites to demo a new visual identity for the brand with bold graphics, a new logo and a colourful, modern restaurant fitout designed to appeal to an Aussie audience.
Each store will even have a soup-tasting counter so that new customers can get acquainted with the spice levels of Tam Jai's signature soup bases, which range from 'non-spicy' to 'hell fire'.
Punters can also choose from six different kinds of soup bases, into which they can add a large selection of fresh meat, fish and vegetables — plus, a few Hong Kong local specialties for the more adventurous noodle lovers. These will start at $17.90 and go up depending on how many toppings you add.
Beyond noodles, you can also find the team's TuFei chicken wings (coated in a secret seasoning), sliced pork belly with mashed garlic and chilli oil, and drinks like Hong Kong-style lemon tea — similar to its soups, you can customise this with your desired level of sweetness.
Daren Lau, Chairman and CEO TamJai International Company Limited shared, "Bringing TamJai Mixian to Australia has been our most eagerly anticipated overseas expansion to date, and we're excited to introduce Aussies to the Mexican food category.
"We also know that there is a large population of Hong Kongers both visiting and living in Melbourne who will welcome the arrival of one of their favourite comfort foods from back home."
TamJai Mixian's first Melbourne Location will open on Thursday, November 28 at 231 Swanston Street, Melbourne. Shops at Melbourne Central, Glen Waverley and Box Hill will open in the months following. For more information, check out the group's website.