Tong Dumpling ( 同同水饺） | Bay Area — Restaurant in Cupertino

I used to go to the Wolfe location for years, so I was so bummed when it shut down! These are hands down my favorite dumplings in the area, and that's huge praise because the dumpling competition around here is really good!

I recognize the same staff working from the Wolfe location, so they've managed to stick together which is great to see. They're always so kind!

The location is a bit strange for sure. It's all the way in the back of what feels like an old supermarket that has been changed to have a bunch of random stores and stalls. I know it's been like this for years already, but every time I come here I'm always wondering how anyone even knows about this location. (Maybe it's kept alive by the parents bringing their kids to after school classes haha.)

At the same time, I actually like the vibe a lot! It really makes this feel like a hidden gem now, like you're a part of some kind of secret club. Everything is clean, and if you're bored or waiting for food you can walk around and check out various peculiar stalls, stores, and restaurants nearby.

My go-to order is the three deluxe fried dumplings (pork, chive, and shrimp filling). I came in for lunch and it came with a plate of seaweed salad, a plate of beans, and a bowl of hot & sour soup all for no additional cost. They offer seasoned soy sauce, Chinese black vinegar, and chili oil on the side.

The only small suggestion I have is maybe have some minced garlic and sliced green onion available for our sauces! Next time I'll probably get a bag of frozen dumplings so I can boil them at home... you know what I'll probably order a plate and eat there while I'm...

Deceptive pricing.

I ordered the lunch special that supposed to come with a plate of dumplings, a side dish and a soup. After they served the dumplings, the waitress informed me that they had run out of soup. I was really craving for some hot and sour soup so I asked perhaps I could order one from the menu at a discounted price. The waitress said no. So I offered another solution--I asked whether they would be willing to substitute anything else for the soup. She again said no. She said the soup was based on availability, not as part of the combo. Once they ran out, there is no substitution.

I begged to differ, this is what their menu said: "Lunch special, Monday to Friday. Choose one order of dumplings, come with one side dish and hot and sour soup for free."

The waitress said yeah, it's meant to be free so you can't complain if we ran out of it.

Then after a while, I asked about the missing side dish. The waitress said they also ran out of the side dish.

That was when I realized they really were trying to short change me. They only gave me the dumplings but charged me for the full combo. I asked to speak to the owner, who gave me the same reasoning: soup and side dishes are meant to be free so they serve it only at their discretion.

It's like going to McDonald's to buy a combo meal and being told that they had run out of fries and drink; you are handed only the hamburger but being asked to pay the full price for the combo.

I think any reasonable person would find this...

My niece took us out to dinner tonight. “She calls me Uncle, ok” Anyway she has been telling me about this place serving traditional Chinese food “Northern” and about one particular dish that Chinese people eat that had eggs and tomatoes. When we walked in I saw a lady hand rolling dumplings and another filling them. During the evening while we ate I noticed that then never stopped making all kinds of fresh dumplings and pancakes etc. etc. I had my “ niece“ order for us as she speaks fluent Chinese “I mean she was born and raised there lol” she ordered us shrimp and chive, mushroom and chicken, and beef dumplings along with the traditional egg and tomato plate. The Dumplings were all super juicy and delicious “my personal favorite was the beef fried dumplings” but the surprise of the night had to be a traditional tomato and egg omelette dish. It had a ton of tomatoes, my first thought was all I’m gonna taste is tomatoes, the crazy thing was it tasted nothing like tomatoes at all! It was so incredibly good. Just that dish in itself is reason enough to come back “not to mention the dumplings and other really good looking food on the menu. Bottom line…. Sometimes it pays to be...