Din Soup Dumplings 鼎泰轩 — Restaurant in New York

The BEST pan-fried pork buns at an underrated gem in Brooklyn Heights. If you like your SJB with a thinner wrapper and a crispy bottom, this is the spot.

I admit I was super skeptical when my family suggested it—the restaurant’s Chinese name is clearly trying to imitate Din Tai Fung lol. Plus, the menu is a mash-up of Shanghainese, Szechuanese, and Cantonese dishes, which usually screams "inauthentic".

But I was so wrong. Their soup dumplings and pan-fried pork buns were mind-blowing, all freshly made in an open kitchen. Even the dessert blew me away.

If you can’t snag a reservation at Din Tai Fung, check out Din Soup Dumpling instead. It’s more affordable and just as satisfying.

＊Pan Fried Pork Bun 生煎包 $9/4pc, $12/6pc I’m not exaggerating when I say this is the BEST sheng jian bao in NYC. It's hard to find SJB with a thin wrapper, even when I was in Hong Kong. Each bun was packed with rich meat juice and wrapped in a thin, chewy skin. They were so good that we had to order another round🤤

＊Crab Meat & Pork Soup Dumpling 蟹粉小籠包 $12 These crab and pork xiaolongbao were juicy, and meaty. The dumpling wrapper was thin, making them less doughy than those at many other places.

＊Shrimp Stir Fried Thick Noodle 上海粗炒 $14.25 The shrimp was bouncy and fresh, but the noodles and overall flavor were just okay. Not particularly memorable.

＊House Vegetable Bun 素菜包 $7.5/2pcs My relatives raved about these veggie buns, but I didn’t quite get it. The steamed buns were soft and fluffy, but the filling lacked flavor imo.

＊Sweet Osmanthus Rice Cake 桂花拉糕 $6 Next time, I’m saving more room for these! Infused with osmanthus syrup, the rice cakes were chewy and mochi-like. They were smaller than expected, but every bite was light and satisfying.

＊Peanut & Brown Sugar Mochi 紅糖麻糍 $7 Skippable. I wasn’t a fan of the crumbly, nutty filling, and the "mochi" wasn't really mochi. It was more like a thin, pan-fried...

Din soup dumplings offers a bit of dim sum for those of you who want the Chinatown experience on the Brooklyn side of the bridge. Food is good, with a menu of staple items that please eastern and western palates. Menu is bilingual, with pictures and a lunch special menu. The restaurant is small, but bright, clean, and trendy. They have a little booth where they stuff and fold the dumplings, which is fun to watch if that's a new things for you.

The pork and crab soup dumplings are great, as good as Joe's Shanghais. The shrimp dumplings 虾饺 are good, with skins a little thicker than the dim sum houses, but accurate on freshness and texture. The ham sui gok 咸水角 were crunchy chewy savory fried mochi goodness, although a little skimpy on filling. We also got the peanut sesame mochi (messy, very light, and tasty). They also have noodles, scallion pancake rolls, several spicy dishes, plenty of vegetarian options, and bubble tea.

Service is good, note that they have QR codes on the table so you can have a conversation free interaction. But they do have good English skills if you need guidance on the menu. Food delivery is prompt, dishes are hot/crunchy as they should be, and things are cleared quickly.

A few cons include that it is not an ADA accessible restaurant, as it's up a half set of iron stairs (that are tough on the strollers, walkers, or wheelchairs). It's Brooklyn heights expensive, with dishes marked up 50% from your hole in the wall in Manhattan Chinatown that doesn't speak English. They charge you for tea. Tables are high and plates aren't level - I kept dropping my chopsticks as they didn't sit well on the dishes. These are cons are minor and the location and decor suit the price point, but they won't impress your judgey...

Sat for 15 minutes while watching two other tables that came in after me get served. No one ever approached me after seating me.

I arrived by myself and knew what I wanted to order. When I entered there was a two person table right at the front I asked if I could seat myself in. The person working the counter was in the middle of taking a very large order that had already gone on for 5 minutes while I stood there waiting for even an acknowledgement of entering the place.

I waited for a lull in the order and politely asked if I could seat myself (since there was no indication what the procedure was anywhere), and was rudely told he was helping someone else. Yeah I get it. But they were up to $80 and still going, figuring out what else they wanted.

When their order was complete and paid for (4 more minutes, I'd been in the restaurant for about 10 miles at this point) I was led to a four-person table in the very back with no tableware or decorations on it at all.

A table for four came in right after me and was promptly seated and their order taken immediately. A table of two came in after them and their order promptly taken.

The table of four that came in right after me was served their meal after about 10 more minutes. I had still not been approached since being seated. I got up and left.

Their food might be good, but their customer service skills are...