DUMPLING REVIEW: East Wind Snack Shop

Let’s face it: dumplings are pretty cheap. You don’t generally expect the best quality ingredients when you are paying a few cents for fried pockets of meat. I love the ones served deep in Chinatown for just over a dollar a plate, but I never thought to ask the dumpling ladies if they’re using pasture raised pork.

Many of the new hip (and terribly overpriced) dumpling houses in Manhattan and Brooklyn are advertising organic ingredients and non GMO soy sauce. But truthfully, the flavor doesn’t usually make the higher price worth it.

That’s why East Wind Snack Shop in the unlikely neighborhood of Windsor Terrace is so interesting. Their chef Chris Cheung (who grew up in Chinatown and then went on to culinary school) seems to focus on quality ingredients while also being true to tradition.

The most exciting dumplings I tried here were the Dry Aged Beef Potstickers.

28 Day dry aged beef inside a potsticker?? Who ever heard of such a thing at a small casual take out spot? It truly makes a difference in terms of flavor. The meat has a strong rich beefy flavor that lingers – a rarity in the cheap eats world. It’s mind bogglingly juicy and each purse is truly a revelation.

I wasn’t nearly as crazy about the Shanghai Vegetable Dumplings. But I was wholeheartedly impressed by the garnish of bright green scallion sauce and fried ginger. I also liked that the filling was more colorful and wholesome than the usual cabbage and scallions. But I found it slightly bland.

I really liked the plump shrimp dumplings which I had in a later take-out order. They remained juicy and had a sweet seafood flavor that was enhanced by the slick abalone sauce.

The standard, of course, and the first thing I should have tried were the Pan Fried Pork Dumplings. I eventually got around to trying them and they were juicy as advertised. The pork tasted fresh and rich, but they weren’t quite as memorable as the others.

The truth is it is hard to compete with yourself when you are using Dry Aged Beef in one of your dishes. And considering the price is practically the same for one menu item to the next (the shrimp is a bit more expensive), it’s worth ordering the best thing. Now if only the dollar dumpling lady would start sous vide-ing her pork.

Does East Wind Snack Shop have the best dumplings in NY? They certainly make a splash with some funky delicious dry aged beef potstickers. The others are good but it’s hard for them to stand out alongside this one. All together they get an 8 out of 10.