A few weeks belated, but after 349 posts and 54,625 visitors this is the sixth anniversary of Dumpling Hunter. The very first post was was about my visit to Nan Xiang Xiolong Mantou in Shanghai. My trip to that restaurant to get soup dumplings was inspired by an episode of Anthony Bourdain’s No Reservations and in many ways this blog was inspired by his shows. His passing this year was a great loss.
Some highlights from the year:
Even though they have ended their Dim Sum Happy Hour, which I thought was a brilliant idea, New York’s Jing Fong gets Best Dim Sum of the Year.
The Most Successful Recipe of the Year was the Vegan Beef Tips and Leak Gyoza. Gardein’s meat substitutes are excellent.
Best Trend of the Year was Chinese restaurants serving home style regional dishes opening up near Columbia University to cater to Columbia’s international students. See the link to Grain House below.
The Best Frozen Dumpling of the year was Bertagni’s Girasoli with Basil Pesto and Parmigiano Reggiano.
Best Wontons in Spicy Oil goes to Grain House which opened this past year near Columbia University.
Sad Departure of the Year was Himalaya Friends Corner, whose Lamb Momos and sauces were stellar. This location seems to be unlucky for dumpling houses, before it was Himalaya Friends it was Mom’s Dumplings and Noodles.
The Biggest Disappointment was the vegan Japanese restaurant Arata. The vegan pizza joint next door to Arata is run by the same restaurant group and great, so I had high hopes for Arata. But the only thing I enjoyed there was the Yuzu flavored beer.Runners up in this category were Han Dynasty and Lucky Pickle on the Upper West Side.
The search for the world's best dumplings 
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