Dumpling House — Restaurant in Vancouver

Do you do dumplings? You know, those little pockets of goodness that are oh so tasty? Almost every culture has some kind of similar dish… whether it’s a gyoza, potsticker, perogy, etc… Well, let me tell you about a little spot in Vancouver appropriately called Dumpling House.

Located on Kingsway, this rather nondescrit spot serves up your choice of Northern Chinese style dumplings either boiled, steamed, or pan-fried. I showed up here in mid-March for an early dinner and I was the only one there. The friendly lady that runs the place seemed to be surprised that I knew how to use chopsticks.

I wound up ordering the Chive, Shrimp, and Pork Dumplings ($19 for 18 pcs) and asked for them to be pan-fried. I also ordered the Chili Roasted Eggplant ($7) as a side dish. If you like super tender eggplant, you’ll like this dish. But if you’re one of those people who doesn’t appreciate the somewhat mushy texture of eggplant, you might want to pick another dish.

They provide vinegar sauce at the table and they also have chili that you can add to it to kick things up a notch. The dumplings had a slight crispness to the bottom while the wrapper still retained a bit of chewy goodness before getting into the filling. Speaking of the filling… it was juicy and I accidentally squirted juice all over the table on a couple of occasions. Honestly not sure how I didn’t get the juice all over myself.

Overall, the dumplings are pretty good and there’s a lot of dumpling variations to choose from (albeit they’re all fairly similar). However, being able to specify how they’re prepared makes a difference (ie. boiled vs. steamed....

The dumplings here are excellent and such a huge variety. This is the first time I realize how much variety there are. The Owner is a woman who handles everything (from taking orders to making dumplings and cashiering, waitressing). Such a hard worker/entrepreneur. I had previously ordered the following frozen dumplings: wild spinach and pork cilantro & lamb mustard greens and pork (Note: If you order frozen dumplings, you get 15% off ! :)

I noticed recently on her website said it says they are under going renovations however you can still order the frozen dumplings by phone. I hope they reopen soon and keep us posted.

When you enter the place, there are a few tables for diners. Since this place is mostly for take out, the few tables are well spaced out. I mainly order frozen dumplings and cook them at home. She gave us instructions on how to cook them...basically you add some oil to a frying pan (I use a non stick pan), heat oil in pan under medium heat, add the dumplings with flat side down on pan, when bottom of dumpling starts to brown, turn down heat and add in water till it covers the bottom pan and slightly more, then cover with lid and steam cook it at medium low heat for about 12 -15 minutes approx. or till you think it is done.

I am looking forward to visiting the place again when it reopens.

I am attaching a menu...which is also same as on her website ...(on her website, she has posted menu in both English...

Came here for a quick lunch on New Years Day. The dumplings are very delicious and come in 3 styles when ordering cooked (pan fried, boiled, and steamed.) You can also order them frozen to go. We had the cilantro and lamb dumplings, and a vegetarian variety. Both were tasty and fresh.

A few things to note if you give this place a try - water is self-serve and there is no hot tea. Soft drinks can be purchased at an additional cost.

The sides are mild in flavour, and I wouldn’t recommend coming to this place for their sides - the verdict on them is that they are jus ok. But the star focus is clearly the dumplings.

Lastly, the owner is also the chef, and she appears to be very busy on her own so don’t expect legendary customer service. She is friendly enough and that is good enough for us.

This is not the place to go for good atmosphere or fancy drinks. This is a dumpling shop. Eat dumplings and then leave.

I would recommend this place to dumpling enthusiasts, but not as a place to go with a...