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Header images courtesy of Frank Zhang (via Unsplash) and Northern Dumpling Yuan (via Facebook)
Originally published by Inés Fung. Last updated by Jen Paolini and Catharina Cheung.
Some know them as baos, some call them gyoza; some are filled, some are sweet… Our beloved dumpling comes in many shapes and sizes, and words cannot express our fillings for these moreish pockets of deliciousness. From traditional Chinese jiaozi (餃子) to Polish pierogi and everything in-between, we have rounded up the best dumplings in Hong Kong and where to find them.
Northern Dumpling Yuan (北方餃子源) is a long-standing chain of restaurants serving up traditional Shandong cuisine (one of China’s eight classic cuisines) for uber-affordable prices, and they rightly deserve a spot on our list of the best dumplings in Hong Kong. Each restaurant prepares three thousand (!) thick dumplings by hand each day before they open for lunch, and their recipes omit lard and MSG from their flavouring to let the ingredients shine on their own. Go for favourites like the fried mutton & green onion dumplings ($36), the abalone, asparagus & pork dumplings ($43), or the fried leek & pork dumplings ($34).
Run by an old couple and their son from northern China, Traditional Beijing Dumpling House (老北方餃子館) is a hidden gem inside the hectic Queen Street Cooked Food Centre. Offering a limited daily selection of homemade dumplings that don’t break the bank, we recommend you head to this stall early to both snag seats and get a dozen of your preferred Northern-style dumplings. We love the prawn, chives & pork dumplings ($42) as well as the fried mutton & green onion dumplings ($52), washed down with unlimited helpings of a simple tomato & coriander egg drop soup, which you can nosh for free with any orders of dumplings.
Traditional Beijing Dumpling House (老北方餃子館), CF11, Queen‘s Street Cooked Food Market, 38 Des Voeux Road West, Sheung Wan
Cheung Hing Kee (祥興記) is a chain of takeout spots specialising in one delightful dumpling straight from the streets of Shanghai—the shengjian mantou (生煎饅頭), a common Shanghainese breakfast item since the early 1900s. Technically, this is less of a dumpling and more of a bao, but bear with us—it is just as delicious. Available in pork, shrimp, and truffle flavours, the bun is filled with a rich and meaty soup and pan-fried to perfection. Similar to the xiaolongbao (小籠包), you must carefully bite into the top or side in order to sip some of the hot soup first, before attempting to eat the dumpling. Cheung Hing Kee’s black truffle buns ($36) are surprisingly tasty and not overpowering, but it’s hard to beat the signature pan-fried buns ($34) with just a bit of vinegar and spicy broad bean paste.
Cheung Hing Kee Shanghai Pan-fried Buns (祥興記上海生煎包), locations across Hong Kong
Noodles and dumplings are Shandong staples, and Ah Chun Shandong Dumpling (阿純山東餃子) does it so well that they have been featured on the Michelin Guide as a Bib Gourmand restaurant! Owner and chef Wang Hong-chun is an experienced Shandong cook, and the substantial dumplings here are handmade fresh every day and can satisfy even the hungriest diner. Those in the know usually order their boiled spicy leek & lamb dumplings ($52) or tomato & egg dumplings ($42), served with a side of the starchy cooking water and raw ground garlic mixed into soy sauce. If you’re on the hunt for dumplings, Ah Chun is about as authentic as it gets.
Ah Chun Shandong Dumpling, 60 Lai Chi Kok Road, Prince Edward | (+852) 2789 9611
Any mention of dumplings would be amiss without Din Tai Fung. As quasi-royalty hailing from Taipei, Taiwan, this xiaolongbao concept has garnered cult followings around the world and the quality of their dumplings remains top-notch. At most of their shops, you can catch a glimpse of the chefs hard at work, pleating xiaolongbao with exactly 18 folds in lightning speed and weighing them before they meet their final destination: the bamboo steamer baskets. Din Tai Fung’s steamed pork dumplings ($64) remains their signature offering, though the steamed black truffle & pork dumplings ($190) also come highly recommended.
If you have lived in Hong Kong long enough, you will know that the queues and crowds do not lie: Nom Nom Dumpling (餃掂手工餃子雲吞專門店) serves up some of the best Chinese dumplings in Hong Kong. If you are dining with friends burdened with all sorts of dietary choices (vegetarian, pescetarian, and more), we’re sure that something on their extensive menu will be a good fit. Handmade dumplings are the speciality here, and you can have them in two ways: fried or boiled. From vegetarian wild matsutake pan-fried dumplings ($55) and tongue-numbing Chongqing pork wonton ($40) to limited-edition cheese dumplings ($20) and classics like the boiled pork & chives dumplings ($43), there are enough options to turn your head and delight everyone’s appetites.
Who’s down for cheap dumplings? At the Tsuen Wan branch of Chorland Cookfood Stall, the owners have recently carved out a side business selling dumplings for takeaway, punnily calling themselves “餃撚店,” which sounds similar to the Cantonese phrase for “f***ing done”. To head up this gig, they have hired a chef with 30 years of dumpling experience, and the little parcels are hand-wrapped each morning at 8 am, and only pan-fried when an order is made. Choose from 10 interesting fillings such as taro & Chinese sausage dumplings, watercress, pork & prawn dumplings, triple cheese, corn & prawn dumplings, and even kimchi beef dumplings. These babies retail at $30 for six pieces—where else can you get dumplings for a mere $5 each?
Chorland Cookfood Stall, G/F, Optimall, 118 Chuen Lung Street, Tsuen Wan
Chao Chao Gyoza (餃餃餃子) was honoured as the best gyoza shop in Japan for several years running and the quality has remained just as high at its Hong Kong outlet. The menu specialises in over 20 kinds of made-to-order Japanese-style dumplings, with a thinner skin than its Chinese counterparts but just as many yummy fillings. Their signature pan-fried Chao Chao dumplings ($42) are the kind of crispy you can’t achieve at home, filled with a simple mixture of cabbage, onions, and chives. There are some more outlandish options too, such as the deep-fried chicken & mozzarella gyoza ($42), and the mentaiko & potato gyoza ($48) for your next carb load.
Chao Chao Gyoza (餃餃餃子), 31 Amoy Street, Wan Chai | (+852) 2735 5360
Wagyumafia’s noodle shop Mashi no Mashi serves up a decadent plate of wagyu gyozas that are David Beckham-approved alongside their signature Wagyu tsukemen (つけ麺; “dipping ramen”) and donburi (丼; “rice-bowl dish”). Mashi no Mashi’s Wagyu gyoza are made fresh daily and filled with four different cuts of Ozaki wagyu beef (Ozaki-san limits cattle production in his farm in Miyazaki to just 30 a month, and Wagyumafia Hong Kong gets two of them) with fresh veggies wrapped in crackling gyoza wrappers. Be sure to drop by early and bring your Octopus or credit cards, as Mashi no Mashi does not accept cash and closes as soon as they sell out of noodles at dinnertime.
Mashi no Mashi, Shop 1B, G/F, Guardian House, 32 Oi Kwan Road, Wan Chai | (+852) 2608 0677
Himalaya Restaurant provides a taste of authentic Nepalese and Indian cuisine in cosy surroundings, and you can bet they serve up a mean plate of momos. Momos are Nepal’s answer to steamed dumplings, hearty morsels sometimes covered in spicy sauce. Choose between traditional chicken momos, spicy chicken momochas (which are round instead of long), and kothay chicken momos, which are a half-fried, half-steamed variety not often found at other Nepali restaurants in town.
Himalaya Restaurant, 1A, 22–30 Tai Wong Street East, Wan Chai | (+852) 2527 5899
KTM Bar & Kitchen is a hip little spot in Kennedy Town serving up Nepali and Indian standards until late. Momos at KTM Bar & Kitchen come in portions of five or 10 with three different fillings (chicken, pork, and veggie) and in three different styles—jhol (ঝোল; soup-based), steamed, or fried. If you can’t make up your mind, you can mix and match the dumplings to your heart’s delight.
KTM Bar & Kitchen, 71 Cadogan Street, Kennedy Town | (+852) 2817 3889
Momo is a bit of a mission to visit unless you live in that end of the city, but we promise it’s worth the trip. Though none of the dumpling options we have included in this list are pricey, Momo is definitely the most affordable of them all, clocking in at below $50 for a plate of 10 delicious homemade momos. Get your favourite Himalayan dumplings to go (or tuck in at one of the limited seats available) in a wide range of cooking styles: steamed, pan-fried, deep-fried, sweet and sour, or even served in soup with noodles. So humble, but oh so satisfying.
Momo, Shop D150, 1/F, Kingswood Richly Plaza, 1 Tin Wu Road, Tin Shui Wai | (+852) 61081283
In Russian, “dacha” (дача) means a cottage home or holiday house, where you and your loved ones bond over a home-cooked meal. Dacha on Hollywood Road is one of the rare Ukrainian and Eastern European restaurants in town and aims to recreate this feeling of homely warmth right here in Hong Kong. There are three kinds of pierogi on the menu here: a Siberian pelmeni ($138) in a light herb butter; braised cabbage & mushroom pierogi ($128); and our personal favourite, a classic pan-fried potato pierogi ($128) with caramelised onions.
Dacha Restaurant & Bar, G/F, 38–40 Hollywood Road, Soho, Central | (+852) 2420 3555
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