Shanghai Dumpling King: Juicy dumplings in Vancouver

As a Chinese person, I have eaten a lot of dumplings over the years 🥟. But only recently have I discovered juicy dumplings – I’m talking dumplings that have soup shooting out into the air when you take that first chomp. I’m only familiar with soup dumplings that are steamed, but these are pan fried and have a crispier skin.

Someone recommended Shanghai Dumpling King on Kingsway to me for juicy dumplings so I came here for a quick lunch with my husband.

Shanghai Dumpling King
3490 Kingsway #7, Vancouver, BC V5R 5L7

The vibe

Shanghai Dumpling King can really be described as a hole in the wall. The restaurant is very unassuming on the outside and kind of small on the inside. There are around 4 tables for in-dining but it kind of feels half put together with fold up chairs. Cups and water bottles are also paper cups or plastic water bottles, so I would say this is definitely more of a takeout place or be prepared for a casual lowkey experience.

Service was good as there weren’t more than 4-5 tables at once.

Food review

We ordered everything to share between 2 adults. Prices are in CAD and rounded to the nearest dollar for simplicity.

Scallion oil noodle with braised pork chop ($20)

The most popular dish at this restaurant is actually this dry noodle mixed with scallion oil and a braised pork chop. It is a good thing we are sharing because this is a massive portion of noodles and pork chop.

It had a really nice aroma and I liked how the pork chop was braised into full flavour without it being deep fried. This with the noodles just tasted like a no-brainer combo, although my husband did find the noodles a tad too greasy near the end.

6pc Dumplings ($11)

Finally, we got to try their dumplings. It was $11 for 6 pcs, which isn’t the cheapest but I will say they are on the bigger side.

These dumplings did live to the hype as there were signs posted everywhere in this restaurant (on the walls, on the menu) to be careful when eating this as the soup inside is very hot 🥵. I was very cautious for my first bite because of this, and the soup did spill neatly into my spoon. There was a lot of soup! In my second dumpling, I got that squirt 💦 I was looking for without burning my whole face.

Final thoughts

Loewe’s rating: ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

We had a quick and easy lunch at Shanghai Dumpling King. Please note that this place is cash only!

We only tried 2 things from their menu, but I would say the food here is definitely authentic and has that flavour explosion. Out of the 2 items, I did prefer the dumplings more and do think they are a contender for Vancouver’s juiciest pan fried dumplings. The only other place I have found juicy dumplings was Colour See See by Metrotown.

This place is what you get – cheap, fast, authentic Shanghainese food.

Sincerely, Loewe