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Dumplings at Palette Tea House Lauren Saria

18 Restaurants for Juicy Dumplings in San Francisco

Where to feast on the city's best dough

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Dumplings are one of the world’s most perfect foods, but not all dumplings are created equal. Fortunately, for those who know where to look, San Francisco is home to some of the finest specimens around: dumplings with delicately thin (or satisfyingly toothsome) handmade wrappers, juicy fillings, and, sometimes, crispy pan-fried bottoms. The strength of San Francisco’s dumpling scene lies in its great variety, from Nepalese momos and Mongolian buuz to Shanghainese xiao long bao and any number of other regionally specific Chinese boiled and steamed delicacies.

Follow this guide to 18 of the city’s favorite dumpling spots, and you’ll never be starved for tasty (and often exceptionally affordable) dumplings — and you’ll know exactly what to order if you want to experience the best that each restaurant has to offer.

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Palette Tea House & Dim Sum 彩籠

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Find your way to this upscale dim sum house at Ghirardelli Square and you’ll have your choice of a lengthy list of dumplings, including some items recognizable from sister spot Dragon Beaux. There’s the colorful XLB sampler, of course, as well as some modern takes on classics like abalone siu mai and lobster dumplings with butter sauce. 

China Live

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The first-level Market restaurant in George Chen's years-in-the-making Chinese food emporium knows no regional boundaries, which means that, dumpling-wise, the menu ranges from Dongbei-style long potstickers to Sichuan-style “working hands” wontons in chili oil and the exceptionally juicy, not-technically-a-dumpling pan-fried buns known as sheng jian bao.

China Live’s sheng jian bao Lindsey Txakeeyang

Good Mong Kok Bakery

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The longest line in Chinatown this side of Golden Gate Bakery, this cash-only bakery-style joint has mastered the art of takeout dim sum. It’s probably best known for its tremendous variety of steamed buns, but the steamed dumplings — starting with the classic har gow and shumai — are also fantastic, not to mention exceedingly inexpensive.

Yank Sing

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It's expensive for dim sum, but you mostly get what you pay for at Yank Sing, which means, in part, that the dumplings are fairly exceptional across the board — the scallop dumpling and the various vegetarian dumplings are particular standouts. Yank Sing is also one of the city’s only Cantonese dim sum houses where the (distinctly not Cantonese) xiao long bao is worth ordering — it’s actually one of the best versions in the city.

Good Luck Dim Sum

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This classic Clement Street dim sum counter is the ideal spot to load up on siu mai and har gow, for much cheaper than what you’d pay at a sit-down dim sum parlor: Most items are inexpensive, which means $10 will buy you a veritable dumpling feast.

Har gow at Good Luck Dim Sum Becky Duffett

Dumpling Alley

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This Outer Richmond restaurant is worth a visit for its wide selection of boiled dumplings (available in both cooked and frozen versions), which run the gamut from standards like pork and napa cabbage to more creative specials, like fish dumplings with squid ink wrappers. Though the restaurant doesn’t employ a Sichuan chef, the slippery wontons in red chili oil are also uncommonly good.

Xiao long bao at Dumpling Alley in the Outer Richmond Luke Tsai

Bini's Kitchen

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Long a staple at pop-ups, street food festivals, and a lunch-only FiDi takeout window, Binita Pradhan now has a proper restaurant where customers enjoy her fantastic Nepalese momos, with their scratch-made wrappers, delectable fillings, and habit-forming tomato-cilantro dipping sauce.

Momos at Bini’s Kitchen Patricia Chang

Cinderella Bakery & Cafe

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Cinderella has long been a Richmond District staple for San Francisco’s Russian community, and its hand-made pelmeni are probably as good a version of the traditional Russian meat-filled dumpling as you can find in the city. Order your pelmeni in a bowl of chicken broth or plain with a side of sour cream, or get a bag of the frozen variety to boil at home at your leisure.

A bowl of pelmeni in broth from Cinderella Russian Bakery in the Richmond Cinderella Russian Bakery & Cafe

Dancing Yak Restaurant & Bar

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Nepal-born restaurateur Suraksha Basnet opened this Valencia Street destination in 2018 bringing vegan, pork, and chicken momo to a colorful space decked out with vibrant art and slick blue banquettes. It’s an especially gluten-free friendly menu with plenty of options for vegans and vegetarians, too.

San Tung

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Everyone knows San Tung for its dry-fried chicken wings, but if this classic Inner Sunset spot has a number two fan favorite, that designation would have to go to the restaurant’s potstickers, which are big, juicy, and properly crispy-bottomed.

Yuanbao Jiaozi 元寶餃子

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Yuanbao Jiaozi is all about the dumplings, freshly made by hand, boiled, and served straight-up or in soup. The thick, wonderfully textured wrappers hold a variety of delicate fillings, like fish with green pepper or shrimp with zucchini.

There are lots of great eats in the Mission but there was no dedicated place to drown yourself in dumplings of all shapes and sizes until Bao debuted in mid-2021. Embedded near the corner of 17th and Valencia, this spot specializes in sweet and savory steamed dumplings — but what really sets it apart are the extremely Instagramable selections filled with egg custard and mango and shaped like bunnies, pandas, elegant swans. 

Mama Ji's

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This cozy spot in the Castro serves a full menu of home-style Sichuan dishes, which owner Lily Ji grew up eating in China, but the dim sum also draws a sizeable crowd. Choose from seafood, pork, or chicken shumai or opt for the XLB, listed as Shanghai dumplings. There’s also the Mama Ji speciality: sweet rice with shrimp sausage and egg that’s tucked into a packet of lotus leaves.   

Dumpling Specialist

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Run by Paul Yu, the chef who used to operate Dumpling Kitchen a few blocks down on Taraval, this pint-sized restaurant has a tight menu focused on an array of very classic boiled dumplings and xiao long bao — all tasty, affordable, and conveniently portioned out for one person, which makes it easy to sample a couple of different items. Dumpling Specialist’s most popular dish is actually its juicy, pan-fried sheng jian bao, which are technically buns rather than dumplings — but a must-order nonetheless.

Dumpling Specialist Luke Tsai

Kingdom of Dumpling

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Don’t confuse this Noriega dumpling shop with its regally named rival, Shanghai Dumpling King, famous for its xiao long bao. Kingdom of Dumpling serves fine XLB, but it's really known for its wide array of Northern-style shui jiao dumplings, or boiled dumplings, with their thick hand-made wrappers, and fillings like pork and napa cabbage or shrimp with chives. Pro tip: Score bags of frozen dumplings to take home and steam up at your leisure.

Hotline

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There are plenty of reasons to visit Hotline, the restaurant focusing on the Korean-Chinese hybrid food called junghwa, and its fried mandu options are another. There are two options of mandu offered, including the mul mandu incorporating chicken thigh meat, zucchini, and water chestnuts. But for vegans, the more exciting option might be the gun mandoo, a pan-fried dumpling featuring Impossible pork alongside napa cabbage, garlic chives, and scallions.

A steam table of hotel plans of Korean-Chinese food. Patricia Chang

United Dumplings

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Beijing Restaurant chef Sandy Zheng’s dumpling-centric restaurant in Bernal Heights is a double threat: Not only does it boast traditional Chinese favorites like a version of xiao long bao she traveled Shanghai to master and an array of classic northern Chinese-style boiled jiaozi, it also doesn’t shy away from hybridized, distinctly San Francisco creations — a cheesey, Mission-inspired chicken potsticker with a sour cream-based dipping sauce, for instance.

Old Mandarin Islamic Restaurant 老北京

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Pork is out, naturally, as a dumpling filling at this classic halal Chinese spot. But you won't miss it at all when faced with Old Mandarin Islamic's outstanding hand-made lamb dumplings, whose insides are juicy enough to squirt out, and its fantastically crispy beef potstickers, which are just as good.

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Palette Tea House & Dim Sum 彩籠

Find your way to this upscale dim sum house at Ghirardelli Square and you’ll have your choice of a lengthy list of dumplings, including some items recognizable from sister spot Dragon Beaux. There’s the colorful XLB sampler, of course, as well as some modern takes on classics like abalone siu mai and lobster dumplings with butter sauce. 

China Live

The first-level Market restaurant in George Chen's years-in-the-making Chinese food emporium knows no regional boundaries, which means that, dumpling-wise, the menu ranges from Dongbei-style long potstickers to Sichuan-style “working hands” wontons in chili oil and the exceptionally juicy, not-technically-a-dumpling pan-fried buns known as sheng jian bao.

China Live’s sheng jian bao Lindsey Txakeeyang

Good Mong Kok Bakery

The longest line in Chinatown this side of Golden Gate Bakery, this cash-only bakery-style joint has mastered the art of takeout dim sum. It’s probably best known for its tremendous variety of steamed buns, but the steamed dumplings — starting with the classic har gow and shumai — are also fantastic, not to mention exceedingly inexpensive.

Yank Sing

It's expensive for dim sum, but you mostly get what you pay for at Yank Sing, which means, in part, that the dumplings are fairly exceptional across the board — the scallop dumpling and the various vegetarian dumplings are particular standouts. Yank Sing is also one of the city’s only Cantonese dim sum houses where the (distinctly not Cantonese) xiao long bao is worth ordering — it’s actually one of the best versions in the city.

Good Luck Dim Sum

This classic Clement Street dim sum counter is the ideal spot to load up on siu mai and har gow, for much cheaper than what you’d pay at a sit-down dim sum parlor: Most items are inexpensive, which means $10 will buy you a veritable dumpling feast.

Har gow at Good Luck Dim Sum Becky Duffett

Dumpling Alley

This Outer Richmond restaurant is worth a visit for its wide selection of boiled dumplings (available in both cooked and frozen versions), which run the gamut from standards like pork and napa cabbage to more creative specials, like fish dumplings with squid ink wrappers. Though the restaurant doesn’t employ a Sichuan chef, the slippery wontons in red chili oil are also uncommonly good.

Xiao long bao at Dumpling Alley in the Outer Richmond Luke Tsai

Bini's Kitchen

Long a staple at pop-ups, street food festivals, and a lunch-only FiDi takeout window, Binita Pradhan now has a proper restaurant where customers enjoy her fantastic Nepalese momos, with their scratch-made wrappers, delectable fillings, and habit-forming tomato-cilantro dipping sauce.

Momos at Bini’s Kitchen Patricia Chang

Cinderella Bakery & Cafe

Cinderella has long been a Richmond District staple for San Francisco’s Russian community, and its hand-made pelmeni are probably as good a version of the traditional Russian meat-filled dumpling as you can find in the city. Order your pelmeni in a bowl of chicken broth or plain with a side of sour cream, or get a bag of the frozen variety to boil at home at your leisure.

A bowl of pelmeni in broth from Cinderella Russian Bakery in the Richmond Cinderella Russian Bakery & Cafe

Dancing Yak Restaurant & Bar

Nepal-born restaurateur Suraksha Basnet opened this Valencia Street destination in 2018 bringing vegan, pork, and chicken momo to a colorful space decked out with vibrant art and slick blue banquettes. It’s an especially gluten-free friendly menu with plenty of options for vegans and vegetarians, too.

San Tung

Everyone knows San Tung for its dry-fried chicken wings, but if this classic Inner Sunset spot has a number two fan favorite, that designation would have to go to the restaurant’s potstickers, which are big, juicy, and properly crispy-bottomed.

Yuanbao Jiaozi 元寶餃子

Yuanbao Jiaozi is all about the dumplings, freshly made by hand, boiled, and served straight-up or in soup. The thick, wonderfully textured wrappers hold a variety of delicate fillings, like fish with green pepper or shrimp with zucchini.

bao

There are lots of great eats in the Mission but there was no dedicated place to drown yourself in dumplings of all shapes and sizes until Bao debuted in mid-2021. Embedded near the corner of 17th and Valencia, this spot specializes in sweet and savory steamed dumplings — but what really sets it apart are the extremely Instagramable selections filled with egg custard and mango and shaped like bunnies, pandas, elegant swans. 

Mama Ji's

This cozy spot in the Castro serves a full menu of home-style Sichuan dishes, which owner Lily Ji grew up eating in China, but the dim sum also draws a sizeable crowd. Choose from seafood, pork, or chicken shumai or opt for the XLB, listed as Shanghai dumplings. There’s also the Mama Ji speciality: sweet rice with shrimp sausage and egg that’s tucked into a packet of lotus leaves.   

Dumpling Specialist

Run by Paul Yu, the chef who used to operate Dumpling Kitchen a few blocks down on Taraval, this pint-sized restaurant has a tight menu focused on an array of very classic boiled dumplings and xiao long bao — all tasty, affordable, and conveniently portioned out for one person, which makes it easy to sample a couple of different items. Dumpling Specialist’s most popular dish is actually its juicy, pan-fried sheng jian bao, which are technically buns rather than dumplings — but a must-order nonetheless.

Dumpling Specialist Luke Tsai

Kingdom of Dumpling

Don’t confuse this Noriega dumpling shop with its regally named rival, Shanghai Dumpling King, famous for its xiao long bao. Kingdom of Dumpling serves fine XLB, but it's really known for its wide array of Northern-style shui jiao dumplings, or boiled dumplings, with their thick hand-made wrappers, and fillings like pork and napa cabbage or shrimp with chives. Pro tip: Score bags of frozen dumplings to take home and steam up at your leisure.

Related Maps

Hotline

There are plenty of reasons to visit Hotline, the restaurant focusing on the Korean-Chinese hybrid food called junghwa, and its fried mandu options are another. There are two options of mandu offered, including the mul mandu incorporating chicken thigh meat, zucchini, and water chestnuts. But for vegans, the more exciting option might be the gun mandoo, a pan-fried dumpling featuring Impossible pork alongside napa cabbage, garlic chives, and scallions.

A steam table of hotel plans of Korean-Chinese food. Patricia Chang

United Dumplings

Beijing Restaurant chef Sandy Zheng’s dumpling-centric restaurant in Bernal Heights is a double threat: Not only does it boast traditional Chinese favorites like a version of xiao long bao she traveled Shanghai to master and an array of classic northern Chinese-style boiled jiaozi, it also doesn’t shy away from hybridized, distinctly San Francisco creations — a cheesey, Mission-inspired chicken potsticker with a sour cream-based dipping sauce, for instance.

Old Mandarin Islamic Restaurant 老北京

Pork is out, naturally, as a dumpling filling at this classic halal Chinese spot. But you won't miss it at all when faced with Old Mandarin Islamic's outstanding hand-made lamb dumplings, whose insides are juicy enough to squirt out, and its fantastically crispy beef potstickers, which are just as good.

Related Maps