San Francisco Eats

Shanghai Brunch at Dumpling Kitchen

April 6, 2014 by 510foodie No Comments

I woke up famished this morning. It was probably because I hiked twenty miles yesterday covering most of the Ohlone Wilderness. It was the most aggressive hike I have ever taken. I definitely burned more calories than I ate yesterday.

This morning I contacted my friend to have breakfast with me. We agreed on Shanghai cuisine, but needed to decide on where. There used to be a great place for Shanghai brunch in Oakland Chinatown we loved, but it closed down several years ago. After some research, we decided to travel all the way to Dumpling Kitchen in the Parkside neighborhood of San Francisco. Until we arrived, I didn’t remember that we had eaten there once before.

We ordered soy milk to start. You can get it hot or cold. You can get it sweet or savory. We both went with hot and sweet. It really is comforting to start a Sunday morning with a nice glass of hot and sweet soy milk.

The one thing I missed the most from the Shanghai restaurant in Oakland that closed was their salted rice roll. We ordered it at Dumpling Kitchen and it was quite good. Steamed sticky rice is wrapped around a fried bread with dry shredded pork and pickled vegetables.

We took the recommendation of Yelpers who were raving about the Shanghai style pan fried pork buns. The dough is thicker than a dumpling skin but thinner than the bread of a BBQ pork bun. The bottom of the bun was crispy like a pot sticker. The pork filling was tender and flavorful. I agree with Yelpers that these were amazing.

Another recommendation was the green onion pancake. I actually remember having these last time. Onion pancakes are often oily, but these were not. They were light, airy, and very tasty.

My friend and I also wanted a noodle dish. We had the pork and preserved vegetable stir-fried rice cakes. I enjoyed this dish, but it was not the best I have had. The best one I had was in Shanghai!

This second trip to Dumpling Kitchen was more memorable than the first. I also think it was worth the long drive to fulfill my craving for Shanghai cuisine.