Shanghai Dumplings

This place isn’t *closed* — it *moved* back in 2012. It can now be found a little over a mile away at :
10 895 S Blaney, Cupertino.

I’ve seen a lot of reviews that let «bad service» completely ruin their experience regardless of what the food was like. In order to understand this place, you need to realize this is a Chinese restaurant actually run by Chinese people, and there is a huge disconnect between American and Chinese dining over «service», decorations, and how to run a restaurant. In China, most every restaurant doesn’t bother with decorations or service, if they do bother with it — they are catering to Westerners (and the food will probably be worse, and cost a lot more). I’ve lived in China for almost three years, and this same scenario seemed to play out everywhere I went. I took a sort of pride in trying to go where locals would go, and over time I took a pride in going to complete hole in the wall restaurants that would use folding tables and stools. Over time I realized that these places were actually where the best food was made, and every time I went out to eat with another westerner that didn’t want to try places like that I would go to restaurant with really nice decorations, a nice waiter/​waitress, pleasant music,. .. but at the end of the day the food tasted the same, or usually worse, and I’d paid 6 times as much. Maybe I’m just cheap, and I’d rather pay less than more, but I thought the food was always better in places that staked their business on how their food tasted and not on what their restaurant looked like, how the staff treated you, and how much they spent the furniture.
With that being said, having an enjoyable experience at a «Chinese Restaurant» requires some familiarity with these differences. First, The waiters/​waitresses are just worried about getting food out, they are usually so busy they aren’t going to pay attention to you unless you waive them down, they actually are going to wait until you do waive them down, they aren’t being rude, that’s just how restaurant service works in China. So you can put aside the usual aversion to waiving your hand in the air and flagging down the waiter, that’s exactly how the system works, and once you realize that and get used to it, it’s really liberating and more convenient to not be bothered until you want the attention. Second, often times the more spartan, ghetto, sub-​par, utilitarian the furniture is the better the food will be. Not always, sometimes the owners may literally have no money and don’t make any good food, but there isn’t the same concept in China that the nicer the food is the nicer you need to make your furniture and decorations. Third, the more fat in meat, the «nicer» the quality. So if you are given a super fatty piece of meat, that is often seen as a really good «cut of meat» — just so you have some reference. If you remember those things it will make your experience more enjoyable.
As far as Shanghai Dumpling itself, this place is completely geared around «broth filled dumplings» — xiaolongbao (). And most times Chinese restaurants are only really geared around one thing. They do this really well, but then because they feel like they don’t want to lack anything the place next door might have, they throw everything on the menu. So you are buried with a hundred different items, but the one thing they do well, could be hidden in all that.
Shanghai Dumpling is all about the xiaolongbao, you can try other things, but that is why you come here. For that I would give them 4 stars, they were quite good, and as authentic as you can expect in America. A word of warning to those who haven’t tried them, they are cooked until the «broth» inside the dumpling is pretty much boiling, and they will come to your table that hot. To save yourself from burning your mouth on the first one, and subsequently being unable to taste anything afterwards for a few days: you’ll want to hold the dumpling in a spoon while holding it in your chopsticks, and bite a small hole in the top corner and blow into the dumpling for almost a minute before eating it.
Besides the xiaolongbao, I also had a few other items that were also pretty good, so here is my list.
1. xiaolongbao ⁴⁄₅
2. shengjianbao () ²⁄₅ (I still haven’t managed to find any of these here in the U.S. that compare to places in China, these should be fried up, making them very similar to xiaolongbao but fried)
3. yang chow fried rice 3.5÷5
4. green onion pancakes ⁴⁄₅ (definitely worth it)
5. eggplant and pork spare rib in a clay pot ⁴⁄₅ (this is one of my favorite chinese dishes, but that being said it was really fatty pork (see point three above — the more fatty a piece of meat is the «better quality»)

This place moved here:
Everything is really new and the food is just as good!

While I am reviewing recent xiao long bao spots, I may as well review them all. This spot is like My Dumplings — solid local spot to satisfy my craving. 3.5 stars rounded up to 4! My favorite spots are too far (Canada and San Mateo), so in the meantime, Shanghai Dumplings and My Dumplings will be my go to!
I love that you can watch the lady making dumplings right in front of you. Love the freshly made wrappers from scratch. The dumplings come out thick, plump and juicy. Tons of soup inside, and flavorful meat. The other menu items are also pretty okay, but it is hard to tell from the menu what you’re going to order (other restaurants have better translations).
TLDR: Satisfying xiao long bao.

I’ve got to give this place «neighborhood gem» status. It’s kind of tucked into the middle of nowhere (with several homes nearby). The first time I drove by, I completely missed it. The décor or lack thereof reinforces the hole-​in-​the-​wall concept. And the service is pretty haphazard, but c’mon… it’s a homey Chinese place!
Let’s get the food. The Xiao Long Bao are great. Plain and simple. Bursting with soup, thin skins… when I was there, I saw three people sit down and get 5 orders of the XLB. So, you know this place has its fans. I’ve also gotten the Garlic Pickled Cucumbers, which while easily made at home, are absolutely delicious. And the Shanghai-​style Rice Cakes are pretty good as well. The extra ingredients in the rice cakes kind of miss the mark, but all I care about are the texture of the rice cakes, and it passes with flying colors.
Great place for a quick bite. Will be a frequent return visitor.

The GO TO PLACE for some local xiao long boas. I live nearby here and try to make it out here often for my Chinese food fix.
Food: The xiao long bao here is a must get, obviously. For the small percentage of folks that have never eaten a XLB, I recommend *carefully* picking it up with your spoon/​chopstick, and then dipping it in the vinegar. Then, as it is on your spoon, shovel it into your mouth and bite down, as you let the delicious soupy juices flow through your mouth. Be careful though, sometimes it will be hot! Have a glass of water nearby.
Salty garlic fried pork: I love pork, and I love salty garlicky stuff. It’s really crunchy and I usually get this dish.
Sticky rice with braised pork (hong sau ro). Another Shanghai Dumpling specialty!
You can see a lady who stands in plain view making the fresh flour for the dumplings. Rumor is that she comes straight from a Xiao Long Bao master in the heart of China. My friends like to joke that there are shackles on her feet (not visible to the patrons of the restaurant), that will only be freed on her 1 millionth Xiao Long Bao.

4 stars for food, 2 stars for service and the ambiance. I’m always on the hunt for a good dumpling place and this one fits the bill food-​wise. We walked in around 7:30 on a Monday night. The place was pretty busy. There was only one guy (cashier/​waiter/​busser) there and we had to wait for him to bus the tables. We didn’t mind but a bunch of people started showing up.
It’s a good sign when the people of the ethnicity of the restaurant eat there I think and a lot of Chinese people were there. It seemed like they got better service — people that got there after us were munching on their dumplings before we got our food. It could have been a fluke but whatever. The waiter seemed overwhelmed and the place became even more packed as we ate.
Based on a family’s recommendation as they left the resto, we ordered the XLB, the pan fried pork buns, the salt and pepper fish and some steamed rice. We weren’t sure if that was enough but the the waiter told us it was. The XLB were bigger than other places and quite tasty. I need to practice my technique because I always get XLB soup leakage as I lift them from the steamer. The salt and pepper fish was pretty good, not as spicy as I’d imagine (no jalapenos) and would have been better if we had our rice. Our rice came way later. The pan fried buns were last and worth waiting for. Chewy, savory goodness. The waiter was right — it was all very filling. Our bill was $ 25, which is reasonable for the two of us.
Near the end of our meal, a lady showed up and started bussing the tables very quickly so perhaps it would be best for them to have at least 2 people on the floor during dinner.
With so many other dumpling options in the Cupertino area, I don’t know how often I’d come back. If you’re in the area, give them a try and see what you think.

You can see two women slaving away behind a plexiglas to shape up the dumplings. I also saw a kid with a modern bowl cut (he looked Spock-​like). After that, I saw an Asian woman in her late twenties asking the fobby waiter if her and her Caucasian friends could sit outside, adding passive aggressively, «we can help you move the table.»
Woman, this ain’t Sunday brunch. The two sweatshop dumpling workers over there can confirm this.
The waiter nervously told her that he didn’t have permission to move it, but he genuinely looked like he was contemplating dragging this heavy ass table for four through the narrow entrance. I was entertained.
We ordered the smoked fish (served chilled, $ 5.95), shrimp and tofu ($ 8.95), Yang Zhou style fried rice ($ 6.95), xiao long bao (XLB aka Shanghai dumplings, $ 5.95), and vegetable and pork wonton soup ($ 6.50).
Both the dumplings and the wontons were great, everything else should be skipped. The XLB in particular were a pleasant surprise. They were solid. I’m going to give them four stars for those, because those dishes were a great value and I wouldn’t have ordered the other dishes myself anyway.

In our neverending quest to find yummy soup dumplings, we ended up here to catch up for a buttday lunch.
What we swallowed:
CRAB DUMPLINGS: These dumplings were probably the BEST soup dumplings I’ve tried so far in the Bay Area. The skin was thin (although not too delicate that it would break when you pick it up), the soup was plentiful, and the crab meat was loaded with flavor. EVERYTHING a soup dumpling should be. Delicious!
PAN FRIED PORK DUMPLINGS: The meat had a good flavor, the bottoms were crispy, but the dough was a bit thick and there was no soup in these at all. Bummers. I like the pan fried dumplings over at Shanghai Flavor Soup better.
PORK AND SEAFOOD DUMPLINGS: The skins on these dumplings were a bit thick and not as soupy as the crab ones. They were more the shape of potstickers then dumplings. The filling inside was just alright. I don’t think I would order these again.
PORK BELLY WITH BAMBOO SHOOTS OVER GLUTENOUS RICE: I’m not a big fan of fatty meat. This dish came served in a cute hollowed-​out, oversized bamboo. The flavor was a bit on the sweet side but it was loaded with bamboo shoots and pork belly and surprisingly, I really liked this dish. It was flavorful and delightful to eat.
Our waitress didn’t speak any English so ordering consisted of pointing to what was on the menu and then being pretty much ignored the rest of the time.
Three stars for the dumplings. and extra star for the crab dumplings alone. Make sure you order some ‘cuz those things were outta this world!

If you were to only order the dumplings, most likely a 5-​star. But add on the service and other entrees = 3.5 stars…
Such a shame! This place has really good xiao long bao’s but horrible service. Not only did our server looked like a straight-​up bitch (not smiling, not even saying hello, etc.), but she acted like one, too. Good thing part way through the meal we got a different server. Anyway, she neglected us for a bit and I asked for soy milk. She said she’ll get it and then 10 min later I asked again, and she said let me check, I’m sure we have some left. And nope, she came back saying they ran out. Aggravation.
Anyway, get ANY of the dumplings. I personally really liked the vegetarian one. Don’t get anything else. My family also ordered this weird shrimp/​egg dish that tasted bland and gross… Their pork/​tofu dish & soup we got were alright, but not as good as the dumplings. They were pretty oily… I can definitely tell that because I’m soooo thirsty now. Gahhh.

If you coming to Shanghai Dumplings, then you need to order the Xiao Long Bao. The wrapper is just thick enough to hold the soup inside. To avoid getting any soup all over your face, I recommend puncturing the wrapper with your chopstick and pour the soup into your spoon.
I also recommend the pan fried XLB.

This place has the best XLB’s in the bay area, by far. I was first introduced to these wonderful little bundles of goodness at Din Thai Fung in Singapore, and have been searching for them high and low, from SF to SJ ever since. I have tried many dim sum restaurants, and found them to be disappointing. In desperation, I almost booked a trip to Seattle, just to eat XLB’s at the Din Thai Fung that opened up.
Finding THIS place has saved me the trip. This is my third time here this week. Soooo happy to have found Shanghai Dumplings:)

With so many good dumpling shops opening up in the area, I have trouble narrow down my top tier list. Shanghai Dumplings in this quiet Saratoga neighborhood has a lot of potential but just missed the mark of excellence by a thread.
I think their xiao long bao is beautiful. Small dumpling with delicate skin, good dough to filling ratio and everything is made to order. The ladies don’t even start rolling the dough until after you place your order. Dumplings don’t get fresher than this. However, there are still a few things that needs to be improved. First, the dumplings stick to the wax paper too much. About half the dumplings had the soup leaked out because of that. I am a native chopsticks user and I am pretty confident with my skills. I think that might have something to do with the fact that the dumpling was just made. Perhaps switching from paper to lettuce would be a better choice. Second of all, and most important, is that the dumpling filling tasted too sweet. I can’t say if it’s because of too much MSG or plain old sugar. That sweetness just doesn’t belong.
Their steamed dumpling is more memorable than their XLB. Love the texture and the juiciness. Vegetable with Pork Wonton Soup was good too but unfortunately all dishes seem to suffer from the same sweetness problem.
I did feel slightly thirsty afterwards so I am suspecting the MSG. If that is the case I hope they go easy on it. The food is good. Just needs to straighten out a few more things.

Good stuff. I came here looking for xiao long bao and I wasn’t dissapointed.
I ordered
two different xiao long baos. The pork and the crab
wonton soup
green onion pancake
hot soy milk
I thought everything, but the pancake was tasty and it was great to see that the baos were made to order. You can see two ladies standing there just making dumplings. The XLB was soupy, hot, and tasty. The pancake was a cheap appetizer so I wasn’t sad that I tried it, but I can skip it next time. Soy milk was okay. I didn’t have an extra spoon or anything to stir the soy so i had to lick my spoon clean and just swirl. Fresh and a hint of sweetness.
The place can get crowded on the weekends. I got lucky and was able to get seated right away, but maybe 15 minutes after, there was a queue. I got there a little before noon. I saw some other dishes that look pretty good so will have to come back to try some of their fried stuff as well as noodles.

Hot juicy pork dumplings that gives me a burnt tongue every time. Love the fresh made dumpling and you can see them making it in the front counter. Too bad their service is horrible and very slow. They need to teach their waiter to not be sitting on customer seat looking at their cell phone and walking around doing nothing. Other than that, this place has a potential for improvement.

I’m a huge xiao long bao fan and haven’t been able to find a place that has really good XLB around the San Jose area but this place is pretty decent. Their XLB are better than My Dumplings that just opened up in Mc Carthy ranch but not as good as Shanghai Dumpling King in SF. The dumplings are filled lots of soup but the pork meat is a bit on the bland side. I would rate their XLB as 3.5 stars.
The dish that we particulary loved was their pork belly in bamboo over sticky rice. The pork belly was so tender, flavorful and just perfect! The bamboo was filled with lots of meat and the sticky rice was just as delicious. I just wish there was a bit more sticky rice! I wouldn’t mind coming back here for dinner to try some of their other dishes.
The resturant is clean, small with just a few tables and the staff is friendly.

Big UPS to all the Unilocalers!
Yes, this place rocks!
S.O. and I were thinking of driving all the way to Millbrae to get some dumplings when the laziness attacked (cue in «Lazy Song») thus… onto the Unilocal to search for some near his hood (PA).
Lo and behold… this popped.
We came in around 5:30 and there were a few people eating already (considering they opened at 5).
We ordered the following:
— baby bok choi = not a big fan… but I’m always intrigued at what each place offers.
— onion pan cakes = wow they do theres really light… but could be more crispy hopefully next time around.
— Shanghai noodles = S.O. devoured and loved this. It was good and tasted light and not as oily as the others I’ve eaten.
— house special fried rice = Delicious. Again, tasted light and not oily with tons of chicken, beef, and shrimp.
— Pan-​fried buns = yes, you must order this for it is good. The bun is really fluffy that it gets stuck in your teeth! Will definitely order this next time around.
— pork soup dumpling = YES and YES! It is so juicy… it tasted so well with the pancakes!
Overall… I think we’ll definitely be back … it’s good and definitely wallet friendly.
Service: folks… go early to beat the crowd so you can actually get service. We went… we ate… we left all in 45 minutes. Our server even told us to have a nice night and that’s rare from any Asian spots at this level.
Check it out… early!

This is a 3.5 star review.
The place is called Shanghai Dumplings. This is why you should go. I’m not trying to go here for good service, or good ambiance. I want to gorge myself on juicy, meaty, dumplings, and on that, they were solid. Yes, the service was very meh, at best. We got there just as they opened, and we had to grab our own menu, but again, I didn’t really care. I wanted one thing, I got it. I will likely go back as there are not a lot of xiao long bao that you can write home about in the south bay. Most steam too long and the soup soaks into the dumpling. These didn’t have that issue. Probably because they are made fresh. I’m sure that has something to do with waiting for the dumplings right after you order, but if that’s the reason, I’m okay with that.

Xiao long bao.
Soup dumplings.
Hen hao chi.
DELICIOUSS.
Their Singapore noodles are good too, so I would just order the noodles and the soup dumplings. The soup dumplings are fun to eat as well! Try to see who can eat it without popping it :)

It’s a wonder why, in a place where Chinese is probably the most represented ethnicity, there really are no decent Shanghainese soup dumpling (xiao long bao) places around.
Those who rave about this one little hole-​in-​the-​wall Shanghainese soup dumpling place in the Richmond District must be the same bunch that never venture outside of the 28-​mile-​perimeter of San Francisco, in order to realize that substantially all of the better authentic Asian places are outside of the said perimeter.
After my weekend trip to Seattle and the unexpected visit to Bellevue’s Din Tai Fung, most of my friends are sick of hearing me lamenting about the lack of good quality xiao long baos in the immediate locale. Thankfully, one friend who did hail from Shanghai and shares the same food obsession told me about the «creatively» named Shanghai Dumplings.
The hub and I shared 12 xlbs and one Yang Chow fried rice (which I just realized after my random visit to Yang Zhuo last December, does NOT exist there!).
5 stars for the xlbs. Pastries were exactly how I like it — thin and moist, there was abundance of soup and the pork was über-​plump. The trick is to be extra careful so as to not rip the pastries and spill the precious soup on the plate.
3 stars for the fried rice — while it was decent, the chicken shreds were tough and stringy, with a consistency of a kangaroo jerky (I kid you not). I couldn’t help thinking how long these poor chicken shreds have been lying on the kitchen counter before making their way to our fried rice.
No star for the service — the waiters were rude, condescending and not at all pleasant.
Guess for $ 11 per person (tax and tip included), you can’t really expect too much by way of service.