The best soup dumplings NYC has to offer aren’t a Chinatown-only conversation anymore, even though Chinatown is still where the whole thing started for most of us. Xiao long bao (that’s the technical name for the soup-filled dumpling doing all the damage to your work shirt) have spread to Flushing, the East Village, Midtown, and now Times Square, each with its own case for the crown.
If you’ve never had one: you bite a small hole in the top, sip the broth out first, then eat the rest. Skip that step and you’ll end up with scalding pork soup down your chin, which is a rite of passage but not one you need twice. For a sense of how deep NYC’s dumpling scene runs beyond just soup dumplings, our guide to the best dim sum in Chinatown NYC covers the cart-service side of things.
Here are seven spots serving some of the best soup dumplings NYC has to offer, whether you’re chasing the original, the convenient outpost, or the one your group chat won’t stop posting about.
Nan Xiang Xiao Long Bao – 🏆 Bowery Beat Editor Top Choice
Address: 39-16 Prince St, Flushing, NY 11354
Phone: (718) 321-3838
Style: Shanghainese xiao long bao, made fresh and folded to order
Vibe: Always crowded, no-frills counter energy, worth the 7 train ride
Price: $ (most orders under $15)
Website: nanxiangxiaolongbao.com
Nan Xiang has been Michelin-recommended for its soup dumplings nine years running, and the Flushing original is still the one people mean when they argue this is the best soup dumplings NYC has, full stop.
The skins come out thin enough to see the broth sloshing around inside, which is the whole ballgame with xiao long bao. Too thick and it’s just a dumpling. Too thin and it tears before it hits the spoon. Nan Xiang gets it right.
There are now more convenient outposts in the East Village (15 St. Marks Pl) and Koreatown (24 W 33rd St) if Flushing is too far a haul on a Tuesday, though regulars will tell you the original still edges them out.
If you only make one trip for soup dumplings in NYC this year, this is the one worth the extra travel time.
Joe’s Shanghai
Address: 46 Bowery, New York, NY 10013
Phone: (212) 233-8888
Style: Classic Shanghainese, crab and pork soup dumplings
Vibe: Loud, packed, communal tables, tourists and regulars shoulder to shoulder
Price: $$
Website: joeshanghairestaurants.com
Joe’s Shanghai is the reason soup dumplings became an NYC obsession in the first place, dating back to the early ’90s when most of the city had no idea what xiao long bao even were.
The crab and pork version is the move here, and yes, it’s a little more expensive than the pork-only bamboo baskets down the block. Order it anyway.
It’s the kind of Chinatown institution that shows up on every best soup dumplings NYC list for a reason, even decades in.
Deluxe Green Bo
Address: 66 Bayard St, New York, NY 10013
Phone: (212) 625-2359
Style: Old-school Shanghainese, cash-only
Vibe: No-frills, fluorescent-lit, BYOB, exactly what Chinatown used to feel like everywhere
Price: $ (cash only)
Deluxe Green Bo has been on Bayard Street since 1982, and it has resisted every temptation to modernize. No cards, no reservations, no website to speak of, just soup dumplings and scallion pancakes.
Bring cash and bring your own beer or wine, since it’s BYOB. The dumplings arrive fast, the broth is deeply savory, and the whole thing costs less than a movie ticket.
It’s the pick for anyone who thinks the best soup dumplings NYC has come from places that haven’t changed their menu laminate since the Clinton administration.
Joe’s Home of Soup Dumplings
Address: 7 E 48th St, New York, NY 10017
Phone: (212) 333-3868
Style: Shanghainese, pork, chicken, and crab meat xiao long bao
Vibe: Fast, efficient, Midtown lunch-rush energy
Price: $$
Website: joestower49.com
Joe’s Home of Soup Dumplings has been feeding the Midtown office crowd since 1994, tucked between Fifth and Madison in a spot most tourists walk right past.
It moves fast, which matters when you’ve got forty-five minutes for lunch and a client call after. The chicken xiao long bao is the one non-pork option worth ordering on this whole list.
Not the flashiest room in town, but reliably one of the best soup dumplings NYC has for anyone working east of Sixth Avenue.
Din Tai Fung
Address: 1633 Broadway, New York, NY 10019
Phone: (212) 287-9178
Style: Taiwanese xiao long bao, hand-pleated (21 folds, by design) to order
Vibe: Polished, bright, an open kitchen you can watch through glass
Price: $$$
Website: dtf.com
Din Tai Fung is the Michelin-starred Taiwanese chain that basically internationalized the soup dumpling, and its Times Square location marked the brand’s first stop on the East Coast.
Every basket is weighed and folded to a standard the open kitchen lets you watch happen in real time. It’s pricier than a Chinatown counter, and reservations move fast, but the consistency is the whole point.
Not the scrappy, old-school version of the best soup dumplings NYC offers, but a legitimate answer if you want the most technically precise xiao long bao in the city and don’t mind paying for it.
Shanghai Time
Address: 273 W 38th St, New York, NY 10018
Phone: (646) 351-6699
Style: Family-run Shanghainese, steamed and pan-fried soup dumplings
Vibe: Quiet, unfussy, Garment District lunch spot with almost no wait
Price: $$
Website: shanghaitimenyc.com
Shanghai Time doesn’t have the line-around-the-block reputation of a Joe’s or a Nan Xiang, which is exactly why it’s on this list. It’s a Garment District spot locals have started passing around on Instagram rather than in guidebooks.
Both the steamed and pan-fried (sheng jian bao style) versions are on the menu, and the pan-fried is the sleeper pick if you’ve only ever had the classic soup-filled kind.
Worth a detour if you’re already near Penn Station or Bryant Park and don’t feel like fighting a Chinatown crowd.
Baos & Bowls
Address: 401 E 13th St, New York, NY 10009
Phone: (646) 370-4725
Style: Shanghainese-inspired, steamed and fried soup dumplings, rice bowls
Vibe: New, bright, fast-casual, East Village combo-meal energy
Price: $ (combo deals around $20)
Website: baosandbowls.com
Baos & Bowls opened in the East Village in 2025 and has quickly become the neighborhood’s answer for a quick soup dumpling fix that doesn’t require a trip downtown.
The fried version, which most of the classic Chinatown spots don’t bother with, gives you a crisp bottom on top of the usual broth-and-pork payoff. It’s a genuinely different texture, not just a novelty.
For a newer name in the conversation about the best soup dumplings NYC has right now, this is the one to watch.
So, What Are the Best Soup Dumplings NYC Has to Offer?
Honestly, it depends on how far you’re willing to travel and how long you’re willing to wait.
If you want the gold standard and don’t mind the trip, Nan Xiang in Flushing has it.
If you want the Chinatown original, Joe’s Shanghai delivers.
If you want old-school and cash-only, Deluxe Green Bo is hard to beat.
If you want precision over nostalgia, Din Tai Fung is leading that conversation.
There isn’t one single answer, and honestly, that’s the fun part of arguing about it.
Bring napkins, order more than you think you need, and check our guide to cheap eats in Chinatown for what to eat after the dumplings run out.
