DUMPLING REVIEW: Yaso Tangbao

Forget the cronut or the giant Black Tap milk shakes – the dumplings at Yaso Tangbao have been the hardest single dish for me to try. And it wasn’t because of the huge lines or that the restaurant only made a certain quantity. It was because every time I visited, they decided they would not be currently selling it because they were tweaking the recipe.

I was disappointed the first time I arrived and was turned away from their soup dumplings. But after the second and third, I began wondering if this was ever going to happen.

It did finally happen. In fact, I got to try them twice at two different locations to make sure I agreed with my initial opinion. After their first shop in the gentrified downtown Brooklyn area, Yaso Tangbao started growing into other locations around the city including Industry City where I first finally found the elusive soup dumplings.

My first visit was not so bad. I was really taken by their innovative paper spoons that helps the uninitiated bite into their soup filled pouch and sip the soup after its been slightly cooled. The pork was flavorful and the wrappers were strong.

But I needed a refresher before I got around to writing this review. And since I tried so many times to taste the dumplings, what was one more visit?

When I went to the Downtown Brooklyn spot one Saturday morning, they seemed to have their act together in terms of being prepared with the food. Possibly they may have become too comfortable because I was gravely disappointed with the dumplings.

I ordered the Pork and Crab again along with the chicken soup dumplings. In the photos on the wall, the chicken soup dumplings look like they have an intriguing black wrapper. I wanted to find out what that was about.

Unfortunately, my plate of food did not look like the photos. It also didn’t taste nearly as good as I was expecting.

Does Yaso Tangbao have the best dumplings in NY? Afraid they have to keep working on them because even one time with cold, dry, thick dumplings earns it a 6 out of 10.