Xie Bao Flushing 蟹寶 — Attraction in New York

Paid a special visit to Xie Bao because they’ve been trending and it did not disappoint! However, I will admit that even if you love eating crab, crab roe may not be for everyone and these items are definitely nothing like lump crab. For those who have never tried, the texture of crab roe resembles egg yoke, it can have a bit of a dry and gritty texture on its own. Xie Bao does a great job making it into a rich sauce with bits of crab and the ratio they give to rice or noodles was perfect.

My friends and I ordered several items to try it properly: the roe on noodles, roe over rice, xiao long bao, shrimp and crab roe spring rolls, mooncake, and a chicken/pork stew. We all agreed that crab roe over noodles was the best way to try it, over rice the flavor of the roe can get a little lost. Both rice and noodle dishes are served with little bites of black woodear mushrooms, tea, ginger vinegar, pickled vegetables, and half a tea egg.

There are two versions of xiao long bao, we got the kind without pork, which was a nice option that is not commonly available to non-pork eaters. It was a nice dumpling, but probably not as juicy compared with traditional ones. Spring rolls were delicious and more shrimp-centric, would recommend getting a couple per person!

Another highlight was the stew, which was not roe centric but felt hearty and a nice complement to the other dishes. There were also fish noodle stews that we did not try but will return for. The mooncake was savory and like a flaky meat pie. It had roe and pork inside.

Staff was so friendly, had great recommendations and really wanted to ensure we enjoyed what we were getting. Would recommend going with a group to try many items, which will probably average $30/person. In terms of atmosphere, I appreciate that there was no wait on a weeknight evening and that it’s in a food court that had other offerings. It was easy and unpretentious to try a hot commodity and very unique, but also served as comfort food. You won’t find crab roe done like...

You ever wanted the joy of eating crab on top of a big bowl of rice without the hassle of cracking crab for a tiny bit of delicious succulent seafood? Have I got the place for you!

Feast your eyes and stomach on this seafood based chinese eatery located in one of the few remaining cost-effective food courts/halls left in NYC.

Called Xie Bao 蟹寶; located just inside the entrance of this food court, this eatery is known for its crab roe coated rice and noodles as well as a few Shanghainese staples such as soup dumplings (with crab), lionhead meatballs (also full of crab roe) and spring rolls (also containing crab roe). Needless to say, if you have a seafood allergy, do not eat here.

The crab roe on rice is utterly delicious, full of that delicious crab goodness and flavor mixed with a hearty bowl of white rice. There are some small aide dishes that accompany this dish. I think there was a small container of edamames with chopped bamboo shoots and some woodear mushrooms in sesame oil. A bit of palette cleanser to give you a break from all that crab umani flavor (honestly, I felt it was unnecessary. Why would I want that wave of crab flavor to be interrupted?).

I also ordered the lionhead meatballs (it's not made from a lion. The shape of the meatball is supposed to resemble a lion's head. I thought it looked like a slightly large meatball). The meatballs tasted fine; basically a pork meatball (stuffed with crab roe and the flavor really comes through). The experience was like having a water balloon explode on you. Biting into that meatball causes a burst of fresh crabby goodness to explode in your mouth. Sadly, there are o only 2 meatballs per order. At least you get some shanghai bok choy so you don't feel too bad about this indulgence.

Oh, also, they give you a cup of herbal tea to help you rebalance your inner Ying/yang.

I definitely think it's worth a trip to give this a try if you love crab 4/5 (I was still hungry after...

No the name has nothing to do with bao or bun. Crabs Precious, that's the English translation for the restaurant name, specialize its dishes around crab roes. I've heard about it a few years ago when it went viral. After walking through 3 food courts today, we thought it's finally time to try it. The menu has a few other items, but the main attractions are of course its signature crab roe over rice or noodle. I didn't think the roe would attach to the noodle so I chose rice. There are 2 serving sizes to choose from: "sampling" or "supreme" for $24.55 and $33.55, respectively. We were able to see the physical sizes from other patrons at the tables. The "sampling" size was tiny, especially considering its cost, but it's a no brainer since we were on a food crawl.

Now the taste. Being a crab lover, I was disappointed I didn't get so much of that familiar crab roe taste as much as fishy or even earthy taste. Worse, the crab roe slur, while covering the surface through and through, was no match for the amount of rice underneath, So basically I had my last few bites of rice by itself with nothing else to go with it. And should I repeat, the serving size was tiny, really lived up to the "sampling" badge on the menu.

Bottomline, absolutely not worth the experience nor your...