The Bao (New York, NY)

Next up is the Bao. Anywhere that is known for their dumplings is a top priority to taste and get on the blog. Obviously had to go with the classic pork pan fried dumplings, and threw in some soup dumplings because I do what it takes. Although I have no problem dinning in alone, I've been hitting the take out game hard. 

Any place where they are hyping up their dumplings instantly comes with that much more scrutiny. First we'll start off with the soup dumplings. Admittedly, soup dumplings just don't give me that special feeling that a classic fried does. They are still extremely delicious if executed properly, but its not the same. These soup dumplings were not bad. the dough wasn't overly thick which some spots do to keep the dumpling from breaking. The insides where a little bit spicy but enjoyable, and I respect the inclusion of a spoon, don't make me have to walk all the way home and to enjoy my 'lings. I'd rather eat 'em on the side walk with my peeps.  The bao delivered with these xiao long bao, good job.

Now the main attraction, the fried dumplings. These were a solid dumpling.dough the proper amount of thickness, which always a point of contention in these posts. The crisp was proper, still a little chewy for that slow pull bite. The insides where tasty, spiced right, and combine that with the sauce, we're looking a pretty impressive dumpling.

Good Job Good Effort the Bao.

soup dumpling 3.9 out of 5 

fried dumpling 4.4 out of 5 

Eric 

Off the Wall (Hoboken, NJ)

I'm still searching for a go to dumpling spot in the Hobizzle, for a hot minute. Tonight's audition tape is 'Off the Wall," on Washington St. Walking into this place, I already had high hopes, the dishes on the menu pictured on the wall behind the counter, the lone fat goldfish swimming in a bowl, the door making a horrendous squeaking noise, it was heaven. Obviously, had to scoop up some fried pork 'lings, for the trial test. 

The order only coming with 6 is a slight knock on these guys, These 'lings look pretty close to the classic ones I've been searching for, golden fried dough, not too thick not too thin. The dough to filling ratio was on par with some of the better dumplings. The filling was not to shabby either. The fact I had to walk home from the train station 15 blocks only added to the overall taste. 

As of now, Off the Wall has the number one spot in the Hoboken dumpling power rankings

4.7 out of 5 

Eric 

This is an action packed week fur the blog so look out for more posts, including an international post from when Tuck thought it would be a good idea to put all his trust in a giant rubber band and jump into a quarry. 

Xi'an Famous Foods (Nolita, New York, NY)

So these lil guys are another recommendation from my dumpling plug, she knows who she is, Holla. They are the Spicy & Sour Lamb Dumplings from Xi'an in Nolita. First, impressions walking into this little restaurant was this is about to be some great dumplings made here. The place is tiny, and decorated with big pictures of the menu items, which I'm always a huge fan of. The divey-er the better when it comes to me and Chinese places. 

Xi'an is famous for it's noodles, but this ain't a noodle blog, so I'm bringing in the lamb dumplings. The presentation alone is spot on for this little hole in the wall, I mean look at that pic. Either they know I'm a big deal in the dumpling circuit or they are just OG's in the game.  They come already sitting in the sauce, so one might expect them to be soggy, Wrong. The dough was a bit thicker than the more recent dumplings I've been eating. This wasn't a bad thing at all though because it helps them stand up to the drenching of sauce. The filling was great, and the sauce definitely added that little bit of heat to jazz 'em up.

If you're going to Xi'an to grab noodles, do yourself a favor and try the dumplings, they are worth it.

4.8 out of 5

Eric 

Nom Wah Tea Parlor (Chinatown, NYC)

Another Thursday, and I'm back in NYC. This time I had a nice insider scoop into Nom Wah Tea Parlor deep in the heart of Chinatown. If you're looking for the genuine, I want to feel like I just got lost in Beijing feeling then Doyer St is where it's at. Nom Wah is a perfect low key laid back vibe on the inside, and a ton of dumpling options. Starting off with the classic pan fried dumplings, and the house special fried dumplings, I knew we were in for a treat. They were both crispy and definitely a sign of things to come. 

Now venturing off the dumpling train, we had to order an order of egg rolls, and these things were monsters. They blow every single frozen egg roll you get when you order  special combo at a classic Chinese restaurant. These things were crispy and definitely lighter than those other ones. Mixed reviews though, but I highly recommend them (Some people weren't a fan). 

Now to the main event, I  went big. I got them all, as if anyone should be surprised. We went with the fried dim sum platter, which had all sorts of fried dumplings on it, and it was amazing. Also got an order of soup dumplings, and shrimp and snow pea leaf dumplings. I know, I know these two orders were steamed but trust me worth it. The fried dim sum platter was amazing, and I would recommend everyone try it at least once, but the two steamed dumpling orders easily stole the show. 

In a tough second place, are the shrimp and snow pea leaf dumplings. These things were packed with shrimp. The flavor was light, but the bite of the shrimp, and how packed they were definitely added some heft to a steamed dumpling offering. Get them.

Finally, the showstopper, the soup dumplings. These things are amazing. the broth and the filling were full of flavor. Don't worry, its not as messy as you think. If you're contemplating getting into the dumpling game these should be high up on the list. If you are even just in the mood to step out of the NYC bustle and want some good food, than definitely stop in to Nom Wah. 

They have the crown so far in NY, but it can easily be taken. 

On to the next,

Pork fried 4.1 out of 5

House fried 4.1 out of 5

Fried dim sum platter 4.4 out of 5

Egg rolls 4.2 out of 5

Shrimp and Snow pea leaf 4.8 out of 5

Soup dumplings 4.9 out of 5*

* I'd give it a 5 out of 5 but I was waiting on water for a while, hey gotta be perfect to get that illusive 5 out of 5.

Eric 

Vanessa's Dumpling House (Chinatown, NYC)

This week I headed on down to Chinatown, because where else does one go to get dumplings. I got a little tip to head on over to Vanessa's Dumpling House because the price per dumpling is crazy cheap and the interior is as bare bones as it gets, and that just sounded like music to my ears. 

Vanessa's Dumplings definitely delivered the decor was perfect, tables and chairs and the extra soda they cant fit into the refrigerator lying around. Spare all that bamboo and koi fish crap, I'm here for dumplings not to feel like I am an extra on Crouching Tiger Hidden Dragon. I stepped up and was met with my favorite person of all time, a tiny, angry Chinese woman with the sourest look on my face. She doest want any nonsense, just give her your order and take your food, no funny business. Definitely my kind of place, I'm here for dumplings, if your in front of me asking a million questions, this lady would definitely just straight up kick you out, and it's that dedication to customer service that I love. 

So to the dumplings, I obviously had to order all three style of fried dumplings otherwise I wouldn't be doing my job. So I got pork and chive, pork and cabbage, and chicken and basil. All the dumplings came out, and they were all identical which is perfect. Who doesn't love a little game of guess that dumpling.  The pork and chive where the best, the classic go to at all places and here that rang true as well. The chicken and basil, would be second, followed in last by the pork and cabbage. The pork and cabbage where definitely the under-performers of the group. The sauce was ehh, but the price unbeatable, if you're a baller on a budget I would definitely say head on over to Vanessa's. the dumplings were fairly good, nothing crazy just a good old fashion quick, crispy package of happiness.

Pork and Chive 4.35 out of 5

Chicken and Basil  4.15 out of 5

Pork and Cabbage  3.9 out of 5

PS. Make sure if you have a set day to get dumplings like every Thursday, you invite the usual suspects, or they will in fact be a little ang. Just sayin. 

Eric 

Mimi Cheng's (New York, NY)

As most of you guys know we have moved our headquarters to the big apple, but have yet to crush a dumpling spot in Manhattan. So when some friends wanted to grab some dumplings, you know I was immediately down. So we stopped on down to Mimi Cheng's. 

Obviously had to start out with a Brooklyn Summer Ale, before moving on to my order. Had to get both the chicken and the pork, because what kind of dumpling critic would I be if I didn't give you all the scoop on a few of their offerings.

Let's start with the pork, obviously I always go pan-fried, and these were perfectly crispy. The filling was a pretty standard take on the classic dumplings we have all had. Through in their secret soy sauce on it was a marriage made in heaven. The filling was great with flavor, but not full of useless hipstery vegetables that people sometimes throw in. These were an overall very solid dumpling by my girl Mimi.

Now let's move on to the chicken, and what I am going to say might be a little controversial but I think I preferred these to the pork. The dough was crisp like the pork and combined with the same secret sauce, these dumplings definitely fit the bill. The flavor on the filling was on point, and again devoid of all that garbage vegetables they sometimes sneak in, I'm not saying vegetable dumplings are bad, what I am saying is when I order meat, thats all I want. 

If you're down on 2nd and 11 and are looking for a low key place that is reminiscent of a beach bungalow on some island even though you're in the middle of the city, I'd pop into Mimi Cheng's, they also have special dumplings but I'll leave that for another time. Also gotta a hot scoop on another low key dumpling spot that I will obviously check out.

Pork 4.4 out of 5

Chicken  4.7 out of 5 

Eric 

Aroy-D, the Thai Elephant (Food truck) (Hoboken, NJ)

It's no secret that every Sunday, I devour brunch, preferably bottomless manmosa brunches. This Sunday was no different, however, after brunch we decided to go to Pier 13 in Hoboken and enjoy the rays while simultaneously getting sauced on watermelon punch. I obviously had to get dumplings, because someone has to give the people a verdict on whether or not to order from The Thai Elephant food truck.

Pier 13 has a ton of food trucks, but the only food truck food that matters is dumplings. Aroy-D Thai Elephant fried dumplings fit the bill perfectly. Now, you all know fried dumplings are the far superior dumpling and these pups where deep fried making 'em even that much better. The filling was moist, the crunch was on point. Throw in a nice tangy soyish sauce,  and I think its safe to say these are a great complement to a day out getting boozed up while relaxing in the sun. 

Booze, check. Sun, check. Lawn chairs and Jenga, check. Dumplings, double check. 

I'd order them again that's for sure.

4.4 out of 5

Eric 

Giving me a fork for street food, who do they think I am, pfft. 

Kao Sandwich Shop (Brooklyn, NY)

Brooklyn's Smorgasburg is a weekly food flea market held at the East River State Park in Williamsburg, Brooklyn. Every Saturday hundreds of vendors flock to the seven-acre waterfront park in search of that perfect deep-fried oreo, mozzarella-basil pizza, ramen burger, or in our case, the perfect dumpling. It is a constantly evolving search -- our efforts becoming more and more addicting, our standards higher and higher. We are like the cat chasing the laser pointer. We may never find the perfect dumpling. But if we look a little harder and keep our ears to the ground, claws extended, that perfect dumpling may fall into our paws.

The dumplings came from a tent rented by Kao Sandwich Shop. The dumplings came out swiftly and steaming. These dumplings were clearly the work of fine craftsmanship and attention to detail. Each dumpling was wholesome, artfully put together and cooked to perfection. The light sprinkling of cilantro was the perfect touch. They were delicious. And yet, the problem upon serving was their heavy hand in the soy sauce. They might have found more success in keeping the soy light as well, but alas the dumplings found towards the bottom of the bowl were drowning in sodium. If not for that, these may have been a perfect five

4 out of 5 stars

Until next time

Tyuck!