Since moving to New York City, I have learned many things about myself through exposure to things new, exciting, and mundane. One of the most important pieces of knowledge I have gleaned is that soup dumplings are one of humankind's greatest inventions. That is not hyperbole. They are truly glorious. Luckily, through careful selection of friends and physical activity, each week we play football in Chinatown and frequently end up at a soup dumpling place.
I am not narrow-minded, however; my love for dumplings extends beyond the soup variety. Which is why I was super excited to see New York's list of the 50 best dumplings in NYC. What could be a better challenge for 2017 than to eat as many of them as I could?* Having enlisted the support of the aforementioned friends, on Thursday we embarked on two of the top 50. These are found at Hao Noodle & Tea House, an absolutely gorgeously designed restaurant on Sixth Avenue.
The dumplings recommended were not, in fact, the stars of the show. I enjoyed the claypot dumplings, which used egg as the wrapper, but I was in the minority. The bacon siu mai were enjoyable but not particularly exceptional. Nonetheless, the soup dumplings were lovely; the noodles we ordered were very spicy and tasty; and there was a gorgeous lotus root dish with sweet osmanthus that was, probably, the standout for me - the lotus root tasted like chestnut, and was delicious. We also had shrimp in fried dough - how can you beat that?
* Although I would like to eat as many as possible, we're concentrating on the Asian dumplings rather than the European ones.
The dumplings recommended were not, in fact, the stars of the show. I enjoyed the claypot dumplings, which used egg as the wrapper, but I was in the minority. The bacon siu mai were enjoyable but not particularly exceptional. Nonetheless, the soup dumplings were lovely; the noodles we ordered were very spicy and tasty; and there was a gorgeous lotus root dish with sweet osmanthus that was, probably, the standout for me - the lotus root tasted like chestnut, and was delicious. We also had shrimp in fried dough - how can you beat that?
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| Claypot Dumplings |
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| Bacon Siu Mai |
* Although I would like to eat as many as possible, we're concentrating on the Asian dumplings rather than the European ones.
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