Review: Luscious Dumplings
Luscious Dumplings in San Gabriel is a popular Chinese restaurant specializing in dumplings and noodle soups. From the exterior, the restaurant looks inadequate and the interior matches this, but rest assured the food meets expectations.
On a Tuesday night, around 6 p.m., it was quite busy. Every table was filled except for one, which I quickly sat down at. The ambiance was quiet, as most people were focused on their dumplings and soup. The sound of President Trump’s first address to a joint session of Congress filled the background.
The authenticity of the restaurant was prevalent. Employees of Luscious Dumplings were solemn but attentive, providing water and tea, then taking our order as soon as we were ready. From the sign outside to the traditional table settings it was easy to tell that the restaurant prides itself on staying true to its Chinese roots.
The location is only open for lunch for three hours (11 a.m.- 2 p.m.) and open for dinner (5 p.m.- 8 p.m.). Since the restaurant has limited hours, only being open for the lunch and dinner rushes it is important to plan your visit accordingly. Thankfully, I did not have to wait for a table and was seated right away.
The menu was short and sweet, offering dumplings, noodles, or a combo of the two. On this visit I had the chive, pork, egg, and shrimp dumplings, the cabbage, pork and shrimp dumplings, and the chive, pork, egg, and glass noodle fried dumplings.
Having been to China and had many authentic dumplings, even making my own dumplings by hand, expectations were high.
The first dumpling brought to the table was the chive, egg, pork, and glass noodle fried dumpling. The filling was cooked excellently, very moist and juicy with the outside remaining crisp and crunchy.
The next dumpling was the cabbage, pork, and shrimp dumpling and again, the filling was cooked perfectly with the dumpling wrapper being soft and chewy.
The last dumpling I had was the chive, pork, egg and shrimp dumpling. This dumpling was the most flavorful out of all three, with the flavors of chive and shrimp really standing out. The dumpling was appetizing, however, it was almost too much for one bite.
Overall, I really enjoyed all of the dumplings and Luscious Dumplings should definitely be on your radar the next time you’re looking for a bite to eat in San Gabriel Valley.
