This month I went to the Steamy Dumpling, which opened a few months ago. It’s located at 107 N Aurora Street on The Ithaca Commons. As soon as you enter, the atmosphere feels very inviting and cozy. The warm lighting next to the light wood furniture and the open view dumpling station really gives this restaurant a uniquely appealing environment. I did end up sitting outside however, as the restaurant was packed. Even on a Thursday evening, this place had many customers and a wait list for indoor seating. The outside seating is nice though, especially on an evening with good weather.
This Shanghainese dumpling house’s menu consists of a nice variety of different soups, fried rice, noodle dishes, vegetable entrees, and meat based entrees. They also have appetizers made to order: Shanghai soup dumplings, bao buns, and more.
I went to the restaurant with my family and shared what I believe to be a good selection of everything. Our server was very pleasant and helpful. We had ordered the truffle and pork soup dumplings, the classic pork bao buns, sesame chicken, garlic seared bokchoy, and the udon noodles with beef. The udon noodles specifically were recommended by our server when I asked for her preference on a noodle entree.
Before your dumplings or buns even arrive, a server will come by with a tray of soy sauce and vinegar for your food and a small dish of fresh ginger for each person. The restaurant has a standard mixture of 3/4 vinegar and 1/4 soy sauce that they recommend for dipping.
The soup dumplings and bao buns arrive piping hot at the table in bamboo steamers. The hand made soup dumplings are the best I’ve had in Ithaca, if not in my life. They tasted extremely fresh and had a good ratio between how much soup broth and pork was in the dumpling. They were small enough that I could fit a whole one in my mouth and pop it so I could fully taste the broth and filling (which was also fun). The bao buns were fluffy and the pork inside tasted well seasoned. These two dishes were some of the best we had all night.some of the best food of the night. But, just because the restaurant’s namesake is dumplings, doesn’t mean the rest of the food isn’t just as delicious.
The sesame chicken was well cooked, with a sauce that wasn’t too unbearably sweet that you couldn’t taste the chicken. It was made very well. The udon noodles with beef were very smooth and velvety to eat, without being so soft that you couldn’t bite on the noodles. The tender beef and savory vegetables were sauteed and seasoned with the noodles. This made sure that the whole dish tasted like it belonged together. A surprising standout of the evening was also the bok choy entree. Usually, when you think of an entree of just one vegetable, it doesn’t sound the greatest; but this entree is one I would happily get again if I was on my own. The bok choy is sauteed with garlic and seasoned to perfection so much that it is addicting. The bok choy was expertly cooked, not bitter and not overcooked or undercooked.
Each entree is a satisfying portion size on its own so that it wouldn’t be too much food while also leaving you comfortably full. We ordered Thai iced teas for drinks. They were very caffeinated and had a smooth, sweet, and milky taste. You can even order one with coconut milk instead of cow milk because one person in my family was lactose intolerant.
Although the food did take a while to arrive, the soup dumplings and bao buns are made to order and worth the wait. My family was there for about two hours and by the time we finished our meal, it had gotten dark, which I would attribute to how crowded the restaurant was that night. If we had arrived an hour earlier, then the restaurant might have been less crowded. Overall, the Steamy Dumpling is an excellent restaurant with great service, food, and atmosphere at an affordable price point. For more information about the restaurant, go to steamydumpling.com.
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