Hello, I am going to NYC in a couple weeks for a very short trip, arriving on a Saturday morning and leaving Sunday afternoon. Flying into Newark and my main goal is to see the 9/11 memorial and museum first thing when i get there but I’m going to have to eat at some point and I always wanted to go to Chinatown and try good Chinese food. I loved fried dumplings and always wanted to try soup dumplings so looking for good recommendations. Don’t have a large budget, bought plane tickets at a good price a few months ago, $150, and this is the first time I’m taking a vacation for me in years. Usually when I’m on vacation, I’m taking it to help someone out or visit a family member for a wedding or something so I’m very excited. Wouldn’t mind a recommendation for some good pizza either. It’s gonna be a long day, gonna stay up overnight but I’m looking forward to seeing NYC, even if it’s only a tiny bit.
by DryTradition6576
24 Comments
I really like Nan Xiang Xiao Long Bao for soup dumplings, other people really like Xian Famous Foods.
If you’re in Chinatown then go to Joe’s Shanghai. It’s a few dollars overpriced but it is the best tasting for a reason.
I like north dumpling but they don’t have soup dumplings.
Crash course on some of the top soup dumpling (Xiao Long Bao, or XLB) places:
* Nan Xiang XLB – The old hotness, resurrected by a fan after it died. You can get it in Manhattan or Flushing, they have many flavor options.
* Shanghai You Garden – The medium-old hotness. Story goes that it’s a chef from the original Nan Xiang who opened it. There’s a place in Flushing and in Bayside (don’t go to Bayside). The fact that you can get individual roast duck buns is fantastic.
* Joe’s Shanghai – The OG. It’s a tourist trap. They made them popular here in NYC, but it’s just not worth the crowds/lines and the increased price.
* Supreme Restaurant (100 Mott St) and Deluxe Green Bo – The most utilitarian options in Chinatown itself. I’m a fan of Supreme Restaurant myself, but there’s plenty of proponents of both.
* The Bao – My favorite in Manhattan. A bit more expensive, and they give you shitty metal soup spoons (too shallow, pulls away heat to quickly), but they’re the finest I’ve had in Manhattan in a while.
* My favorite is Memories of Shanghai in Forest Hills Queens. They punch so far above their weight class, and everything else they do is fire as well. That said, unless you’re going to a show at the stadium, it’s not worth a trip out there.
You’re not going to get bad soup dumplings at any of the places I listed (well, super unlikely, I had bad soup dumplings from the Bayside You Garden once), so I’d suggest whatever is the most convenient to you.
If you’d like a little bit more elevated in a cool neighborhood, I love The Bao, but I’d suggest just getting XLB, then going across the street to 886 to get drunk w/ fantastic Taiwanese food (or to a million other amazing bars and restaurants).
If you want an old school Chinatown vibe, I’d suggest Supreme or Green Bo.
If you want to try weird/interesting/unusual flavor options: Nan Xiang.
If you want to go to Flushing, I’d say You Garden (some people will say Kung Fu XLB in Flushing, but that’s a trip and a half, and supposedly the quality has tanked recently).
The other option is hitting a few places. In Flushing you can easily get to Nan Xiang, You Garden and CheLi (they also have good XLB, but other things are more standout there), and get soup dumplings and a small plate of something at each (duck bun at You Garden, one of the sweet dim sum items at CheLi, beef in scallion pancake at Nan Xiang). Or you can do similar in Manhattan w/ a couple places in Chinatown, or The Bao and CheLi (they have 2 locations) on St Mark’s. (yes, I’ve done this more than once).
Not mentioned are some of the more high end places (Pinch, Redfarm), b/c I just haven’t been to them.
Deluxe green bo
Don’t go to Joes Shanghai because they’re not that great. Shanghai Heping restaurant/Deluxe green bo soup dumplings are pretty good. You will also find good soup dumplings in queens. Best boiled dumplings are in Flushing.
Hmm I live here and am bookmarking bc now I want soup dumplings 🤤
North Dumpling is great for all your dumpling needs except soup. It’s also incredibly cheap.
personally, i prefer fuzhou style dumplings (north dumpling for ex is good, but i dont like thick skins as much. obviously my personal preference, and don’t get me started on Vanessa’s…)
if you’re in chinatown, i highly recommend *King Dumpling*. you know it’s good because the inside is no frills… they do both fried and boiled. and they sell 50 frozen for like $12 if you want to somehow send them back haha
and if you’re there, i would also try the peanut noodle. add a bit of sriracha and you’re golden
Tasty Dumpling is another spot, but i prefer King Dumpling
pizza, you can search in this subreddit and get a good answer
These are all flushing.
For fried dumplings, I’m a huge fan of zhu ji dumpling house (suggest getting some tea eggs and soy milk while you’re there too). I’ve been going to her since she was just a cart some 2 decades ago. Any fried dumplings get compared to hers for me.
For soup dumplings, I prefer Kung Fu XLB (take the Q44 or Q20A or B from the 7 line) but will settle for Nan Xiang.
Do *not* go to North Dumpling, it’s cheap yes but the dumplings are flimsy, dry, and they don’t even make them fresh for you. They have them all sitting in a huge pot and just scoop them out.
Yes I know probably all dumpling places use their own frozen dumplings, but at least most spots boil/fry them for you after you place your order. Plus North Dumpling isn’t even really cheaper than other spots…
If you want fried dumplings I recommend Super Taste. Crispier and thinner skin than the King Dumpling spot someone else mentioned here.
I’m sad you don’t want to try boiled dumplings because Shu Jiao Fu Zhou is the best dumpling spot in Chinatown, fried or boiled. I did a video review of them if you want to see – https://youtube.com/shorts/zrMKu2gnDfw
One of the dumplings I compare them to is actually North Dumpling. You can just see the difference in filling! Go to Shu Jiao mate.
Try Nepali version – Momo in Jackson heights, Queens.
The most obvious, reliable place for soup dumplings in Manhattan is probably Nan Xiang. But note that it’s in Midtown (near the Empire State Building) rather than Chinatown.
For fried dumplings, I think that’s a tough call because they come in many different styles, and different people like different styles—big/small, thick/thin skin, etc. For example, the ones in your picture look like gyoza-style, which is not what you’ll get from most Chinatown dumpling shops (but can indeed be found in Chinatown). Personally, I don’t have a recommendation for you just because I rarely order fried dumplings. I’d rather get boiled dumplings or wontons (which I think Chinatown is better at in general). On the bright side, Chinatown dumplings are cheap, so you can easily go to a few different places, but one stomach can only eat so many dumplings.
(Some people mentioned places in Flushing, which indeed has more good options for everything than Manhattan Chinatown, but you don’t have enough time for it to be worth the trip, and Manhattan Chinatown is good enough for your purposes.)
Wonton Noodle Garden, 23 pell st
Not exactly what you asked but I seriously recommend the shrimp/pork wontons. They’re not even remotely similar to the typical American Chinese restaurant ones. And the place is very cheap.
Also no recommendation on where to go in that area but try dumplings at a Sichuan place that come with spicy chili oil.
Excellent Dumpling House in Chelsea has very solid xlb and steamed dumplings. I wouldn’t go out of my way to go there but if you’re in the area I’d recommend 🙂
There’s kind of a catch 22 here, which is that the hearts of Chinatown and Flushing are the cheap, authentic foods people in those communities are constantly eating. Once the internet and foodies start chattering, prices often go up, quality sometimes goes down, and weirdly enough, some of them go out of business.
So the best spot is a spot you’ve never heard of. Wander through Chinatown or flushing, walk into a place where they don’t speak English well at all, try your best to order what you want, and enjoy whatever happens. Not the most consistent method, but the most New York experience.
I like a few places. I like 456, but that is pretty mainstream now, I’m sure it’s not the best. I’m sure all of the recommendations here are good.
Soup dumplings are so damn good, it’s probably harder to find a bad one.
After the 9/11 memorial, walk east down Fulton Street, make a left onto Gold Street, Keste Pizza. Very good Neapolitan style pizza. Then continue down Gold Street, make a left onto Frankfort Street, and a right onto Park Row to Chinatown. Once there, make a left onto Mott Street. Go to Noodle Village for wonton noodles. Then continue down the street to Shanghai 21 for soup dumplings.
https://nanxiangxiaolongbao.com/
Near 33td and Fifth Avr
Noodle Village XLB are better than Joe’s and The Bao from recent experiences. The XLB at Noodle Village have an even thinner, chewier skin and aren’t flimsy or ripped so lots of soup stays inside.
Noodle village for soup dumplings.
Delicious and cheap boiled dumplings (they also have fried)—king dumpling.
You should also try a baked char siu bun from mei li wah. There’s always a line but it’s delicious.
Pizza—I like prince street pizza. It’s walking distance from Chinatown. It’s grandma/rectangular slices. Get the pepperoni.
Sanmiwago for fried and boiled dumplings
I like the shen jian bao in New world mall. It’s the stall in the back corner. Liu liu Sheng jjan wang.
Shanghai you in flushing
Theres a lot of good fried dumpling spots in Chinatown (and all of NYC) but my favorites are from tasty dumpling on mulberry street, Vanessa’s dumpling house on Eldridge street, and fried dumpling on Moscow Street.