East Village Soup Dumpling Crawl

Xialongbao, AKA soup dumplings, are warm, filling, and a culinary treat that satisfies all five senses. (Click HERE to learn more about what soup dumpling are and their history!) While Chinatown is the go-to neighborhood in New York City for xialongbao, it’s not the only option. College classmate, fellow published astrobiologist, and frequent Frugal Foodie guest Katelyn joined me on an East Village Soup Dumpling crawl to find the best the neighborhood had to offer.

Our grading was based on 3 qualities: dough, soup, and filling. Did we find a spot that knocked the criteria out of the park? Let’s dive, or should I say slurp, in!

Stop One: Drunken Dumpling

This hole in the wall East Village spot serves up all types of  gyoza, steamed buns, and, of course, soup dumplings. Plus, it’s BYOB! (Holy frugal!!!) Our order came out before I could even finish pouring two glasses of wine.

At first look, the dough was a bit thick, and while there were numerous pleats, they weren’t too defined. I delicately opened the top to take my first slurp of soup. The flavorful, hot broth  warmed my whole body as it trickled down my throat. The meat was equally delicious with a smooth pork flavor.

Dough: 2/5, a bit too thick.

Soup: 4/5, hot, flavorful, and plenty of  it

Pork Filing: 3.5/5, tender and  juicy, but the soup was the star.

All in all, a solid first stop for our  East Village soup dumpling crawl.

Frugal Foodies Tip: We scored a deal using my favorite discount site, PULSD, that included soup dumplings, gyoza, and buns for $29! Click HERE for my review of PULSD.

Stop 2: Uluh

Stop 2 on our East Village dumpling crawl was Uluh; a dimly lit, ultra posh restaurant with a book-sized menu full of classic Chinese dishes. First we tried the pork soup dumplings, which were divine. The dough was perfectly thin and delicate with defined pleats that were a  feast for the eyes. Both the soup and the pork had a rich flavor, making for a satisfying experience.

We also sprung for the spicy soup dumplings. They packed a huge punch and left my eyes watering. I found them delightful,  but only try them if you can handle the heat.

Dough: 5/5, perfect  thickness  and texture with lovely pleats.

Soup:  3/5, great flavor, could have been more soup.

Pork Filing: 4/5

Stop 3: Brooklyn Dumpling Shop

The last stop on our East Village soup dumpling crawl was Brooklyn Dumpling Shop. This spot offers a unique, automated dining experience. Customers order electronically, then pop over to the automated cubbies to retrieve their feast.

Back in December 2021 at the time of this crawl, there were some kinks to work out. The cubbies didn’t seem to work, so a waiter brought over the food instead. He also offered us fig newtons as an appetizer, which seemed a little odd.

One look at the soup dumplings, and I knew they wouldn’t be right. One bite proved me correct. There wasn’t a drop of soup in them!  The pork filling was perfectly tasty, but they were simply pork dumplings.

I expressed my dismay over the soupless soup dumplings on Instagram, and was invited back for a re-do. I returned in April 2022, and was quite surprised to open the container to find dumpling soup rather than soup dumplings. I messaged them in confusion, and was informed that they were soup dumplings that were “delicious and juicy.” Here’s the thing, they tasted good and were certainly delicious and juicy. But they just weren’t soup dumplings…

Dough: 3/5, not bad!

Soup: 0/5… there was no soup inside the dumplings!

Pork: 4/5, the  pork filling was quite flavorful and juicy!

Wrapping Up Our East Village Soup Dumpling Crawl…

Uluh is the clear winner with perfect dough and a flavorful soup filling. Drunken Dumpling gets silver for the ample quantity of soup. Brooklyn Dumpling Shop get bronze because, well, we didn’t even get soup dumplings!