Best Dumplings in Flushing: Soup, Fried and Boiled

The best dumplings in Flushing are found in a few square blocks of Queens where nearly every storefront sells something wrapped, folded or pleated. You can eat soup dumplings in a dining room, boiled dumplings from a stall in a basement and wontons in chili oil from a counter that seats a handful.

What are the best dumplings in Flushing?

That depends on the kind you want. Soup dumplings have a thin skin that holds a spoonful of hot broth along with the filling. Pan-fried dumplings have a crisp, golden base and a juicy center. Boiled dumplings are plain and soft, and are often eaten with vinegar. Wontons are thinner still, and come in soup or in a bowl with chili oil.

Because the neighborhood is so dense, it is easy to eat the same kind three times. A better plan is to choose one of each, share them and compare. Leave room for the second stop.

Where can you find Flushing soup dumplings?

Flushing is the place to start. Soup dumpling shops there are known for thin, tender skins with a rich broth inside, and travel writers praise the best of them as nearly perfect. Shops change, so check a map and a current listing before you set out.

Other Flushing shops make soup dumplings too. A thin skin is the thing to look for, because a thick one turns the dumpling doughy.

Is there a good Flushing food court?

Yes, and it is underground. The basement food court at a Flushing shopping mall is worth a trip by itself, and a tiny stall there makes some of the best dumplings you can eat. A food court is the right place for a quick, inexpensive test of a filling you have not tried, such as pork and chive or lamb.

Food court stalls come and go, so treat any stall name as a lead and look around before you commit. A short line of people who live nearby is a good sign.

Which Queens dumpling houses are worth the trip?

Beyond the food court, Queens dumpling houses tend to be small and specialized. One small shop is known for its wontons in chili oil, a dish for people who like heat and a little numbness on the tongue. A dumpling crawl can start right by the Flushing-Main Street subway station, which makes the neighborhood easy to reach without a car.

Mix your stops. If one place is known for soup dumplings, another for wontons and a third for boiled or fried dumplings, you get a complete picture of the neighborhood for the same effort.

How to eat a soup dumpling

Lift it gently by the knot at the top so the skin does not tear. Set it on a spoon, bite a small hole in the side and let the steam out. Sip the broth first, then eat the dumpling with a little vinegar and ginger. If you bite straight in, the hot soup will go everywhere, and you will wish you had waited.

Order a steamer of soup dumplings to share, and a second dish with a different texture. A bowl of noodles or a plate of fried dumplings gives your palate a break.

How should you plan the visit?

Go with friends so you can share. Aim for two or three stops rather than five, and begin with the soup dumplings while they are at their best. Bring cash in case a stall prefers it, and expect a short wait at the popular places on weekends.

Quality in this neighborhood changes quickly. A shop that had a long line last year may be quiet this year, and a new stall can become the one people talk about. Ask the people in line what they are ordering, and trust a restaurant where most tables are eating the same two dishes.

Prices at the stalls and houses here vary widely, and a plate that looks inexpensive can add up when you order four of them. Set a rough budget before you start, share everything and leave the biggest appetite for the place you are most curious about. Take the subway rather than a car, because parking near the main streets is difficult, and bring a small bag for leftovers that you can carry onto the train.

What else should you read around New York?

If you are staying in Brooklyn afterward, the Williamsburg Brooklyn restaurants guide and the Brooklyn food halls and markets guide are good next reads, and the best pizza slices in Brooklyn page covers a very different lunch. The US guides page lists more cities.

Eating your way across New York? The Food in New York State page links every town we cover.

How do you compare dumplings in Flushing?

A dumpling crawl is easier to judge side by side. Rate each plate by the dish, note the skin and the soup in a line and tag the stop so you remember which counter to send visitors to.

Dumplings are easy to eat and hard to remember. Get the Mosey app, rate every dumpling you try for skin, filling and broth, and build a Flushing list of your own that you can share with the friend who asks where to go first.