The Hidden Well is an Asian, casual dining expereince, located on St John's Road. Boasting both popular and unique Asian dishes that explode with flavour.
Their story...
Located on St John’s road (opposite St John’s Yard) The Hidden well it is a casual Asian dining experience which has become a popular go-to place for lunches and dinners with the locals. The family restaurant, owned and ran by Katherine and On-Mun. On-Mun was born in his grandparents’ restaurant in the East Midlands. He grew up assisting his parents in their Cantonese restaurant in Cambridgeshire. Food is in his blood, and it has always been his vision to have his own restaurant: he simply adores cooking food for people.
The couple met in Hong Kong and travelled together before settling in the Midlands. They fell in love with Tunbridge wells and decided to open up their own place here.
The Menu
Their menu is constantly evolving but at the moment you’ll find dishes such as cumin lamb skewers, a popular Chinese Muslim street food which is served across Western Northern China. JaJa noodles which is a Northern Chinese / Korean version of spaghetti bolognese. It is served with yellow bean paste rather than tomato sauce, braised beef noodle soup or of course chicken katsu. Our favourite is their barbeque pork bao buns and leek and beef dumplings.
For dessert, they offer Pandan cake, basque cheesecake or their famous bao bun ice cream. Both Katherine and On-Mun have picked up these exotic Asian flavours and techniques of cooking through their travels around Asia. They serve food that they love and that their families love cooking.
While there you can also try an array of Asian drinks such as soju the famous Korean shot, Korean rice wine, beer and Chinese teas.
Named the Hidden Well because of the old well located in the basement. When dining downstairs you can have a look into the well. It is said to have been the water supply for a brewery back in the day. According to the owners’ children love peering down the well to see how far it goes.
It’s a charming little restaurant with family and good food at its core. If you love authentic Asian food this place should be at the top of your list to try out. The atmosphere is extremely warm and friendly and the tables are cosy.
The Hidden Well is also part of the Tunbridge Wells loyalty scheme. The TN card rewards you for supporting local joints. TN card members who dine at the Hidden Well from 12 pm until 3 pm can enjoy a complimentary glass of wine, a shot of Korean Soju or a coffee with their meal. We recommend the Korean Soju!