RETURNING TO CITI FIELD
THIS WINTER
theworldsfare.nyc
Enjoy 21st Shanghai Century Soup Dumplings
at Flushing’s Nan Xiang Xiao Long Bao
Flushing Favorite Nan Xiang Reopens as 21st Century Soup Dumpling Parlor
BY JOE DISTEFANO
As the Culinary King of Queens, I’m so
very fortunate to live in the most diverse
and delicious destination in all of New York
City. Really I’m not royalty though, I’m an
ambassador, and a hungry one at that. Today,
we take a trip to Shanghai, China, via the
International Express—aka the 7 train—to
savor xiao long bao and more at the recently
reopened Nan Xiang Xiao Long Bao, widely
regarded as one of the best places for the juicy
soup filled dumplings in all of New York City.
For more than a decade the restaurant named
for the county in Shanghai where the dumplings
were invented was a favorite of everyone from
the Michelin Guide to celebrity chef and TV
personality Eddie Huang. An open kitchen, where
a crew of ladies delicately folded the dumplings
greeted customers, many of whom were happy to
wait on line to savor some of the city’s best xiao
long bao. For a long while I took Nan Xiang Xiao
Long Bao for granted, preferring to frequent the
neighborhood’s food courts, where there was less
of a wait. And then last May the neighborhood
institution suddenly shut down leaving both New
York City’s foodies and local diners devastated.
“Thirteen years ago I was a Nan Xiang
customer,” recalls local businessman Eddie Zheng
the man behind the restaurant’s rebirth. “Every
time I would eat two orders of soup dumplings.”
Back then there were only two kinds of soup
dumplings: pork and pork and crab. Zheng, who
has gone from customer to owner and general
manager, and his team have added four others—
black truffle, Chinese squash, chicken, and foie
gras—to the xiao long bao roster at the reborn Nan
Xiang Xiao Long Bao, which opened in One Fulton
Square on November 1. The luxurious dumplings
are available as part of “Lucky Six” set that sports
jewel toned wrappers. As at the restaurant’s first
incarnation you can watch your dumplings being
made at an open kitchen that sits at the center of
the 5,000-square-foot space.
The open kitchen takes center stage at the new Nan Xiang Xiao Long Bao.
The scallion pancakes are as crisp and
flaky as ever.
“We are so excited to re-open our door to the
public and to serve this neighborhood again with
a brand-new look,” said Zheng, who personally
designed the mountains and trees that grace the
restaurant’s lobby. “The original team has dedicated
to elevating the menu and the service in the past few
months, and it’s finally the time for us to share it with
our customers. It’s the new era for this legendary
restaurant, and we are so proud to carry the legacy.”
Part of that new era includes the swanky
spacious dining room decorated by a gigantic
red lantern and plates with the restaurant’s name
in Chinese. Many of the old favorites, including
flaky turnip puffs and crisp multilayered scallion
pancakes can still be found on the menu,
along with traditional Shanghai style fried
rice cakes. I particularly enjoyed Shanghai
pan fried noodles, thick strands with a
slight char from masterful wok cookery.
Shot through with shredded pork, bok
choy, and house special sauce they are
a great accompaniment to the deluxe
dumplings. I also really loved an appetizer
of four happiness sponge tofu, comforting
blocks of wheat gluten and wood ear
mushrooms served cold in a sweet sauce.
“The re-opening of Nan Xiang
Xiao Long Bao means so much to this
Shanghai pan fried noodle have a slight
char, a hallmak of masterful wok cookery.
community,” said Helen Lee, Executive Vice
President of F&T Group, who brokered the deal
for the newly reborn restaurant. “We are proud to
work with Nan Xiang Xiao Long Bao to bring back
this local favorite restaurant and to continue the
culture and vibe our neighborhood.”
With space for more than 100 hungry xiao
long bao enthusiasts there’s unlikely to be a wait
either, and the restaurant will be open until 1 a.m.
on Friday and Saturday.
“When the old Nan Xiang Xiao Long Bao
closed, many of us feared the special atmosphere
we all felt dining there would disappear forever—
even if a new restaurant opened up again with the
same name and menu,” says John Choe, Executive
director of the Greater Flushing Chamber of
Commerce. “However, the opening of a revived
Nan Xiang on Prince and 38th is proving us wrong
with the reintroduction of their signature soup
dumplings and scallion pancakes as well as hungry
fans flocking from around the city, crowding the
lobby, glad to be out of the cold, patiently waiting
for their small piece of heaven.”
A colorful sextet includes soup dumplings filled
with foie gras, chicken, and black truffle.
39-16 Prince Street, #104
7 1 8.3 2 1.3 8 3 8
https://nanxiangxiaolongbao.com/
GayCityNews.com | November 7 - November 20, 2019 29
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