One bite is all it takes to get hooked on soup dumplings. 

Within two bites, a delicate bundle of tender meat and piping-hot broth will explode in your mouth — and on Oct. 6, hundreds of dumpling devotees flocked to Sixth Avenue between West 31st and 32nd Street in search of that unmistakable soup dumpling sensation.

Hosted by Nan Xiang Xiao Long Bao — a Southern Chinese restaurant with locations in Flushing and the East Village — the city’s first-ever soup dumpling festival offered a range of Southern Chinese dishes, including Nan Xiang’s Four Happiness Sponge Tofu, Braised Beef Noodle Soup and Lucky Six Soup Dumplings, along with a $68 dumpling-making master class. Batches of dumplings were handmade and steamed in front of hungry diners. 

For those who aren’t dumpling aficionados, the beloved soup dumpling allegedly originated in 19th-century Shanghai, when restaurant owner Huang Mingxian mixed gelatin into pork filling before steaming his dumplings. Recognizing the potential of these warm, broth-filled balls of joy, he immediately added it to his menu and the soup dumpling — also known as xiao long bao — was born.

While the dish has been a dim sum staple in Chinatown since the ’90s, it has only recently exploded on social media. Xiao long bao is making waves in large cities like New York, where soup dumpling restaurants like Nan Xiang have boomed in popularity. 

When the restaurant was forced to get innovative during the pandemic, owner Eddie Zheng began offering frozen, pre-made soup dumplings to customers in the tristate area. Once government restrictions were lifted, Zheng was inspired to expand, opening several more East Coast locations, including one on St. Marks Place. With the growth of chains like Nan Xiang, global hype online and its very own food festival, the soup dumpling movement is reaching major heights. 

Lucky Six Soup Dumplings

This standout dish features a colorful array of soup dumplings, each bursting with its own unique flavors: pork, crab and pork, chicken, scallop and pork, black truffle and pork and last but not least, shrimp and pork. 

Taking a bite of the truffle and pork dumpling is like floating on a cloud of pure richness. The soothing broth, nutty truffles and juicy meat beautifully blend together in a single mouthful, while the scallop and pork dumpling’s Sichuan pepper makes for a delightfully numbing spice. The shrimp and pork dumpling is tinted green by luffa gourd, a cucumber-adjacent vegetable that provides a subtly sweet and refreshing taste.  

Four Happiness Sponge Tofu

If you’re not a fan of the texture of tofu, fear not — Nan Xiang’s Four Happiness Sponge Tofu will give you a pleasant surprise. Braised in a rich umami soybean sauce, the tofu has a surprisingly meaty texture, complemented by succulent mushroom, crunchy peanuts and bamboo shoots to cut through the richness. The appetizer is light, flavorful and a great way to start a meal.

Braised Beef Noodle Soup

Slurping noodles in soup broth is always satisfying and comforting, but combined with Nan Xiang’s juicy, tender braised beef, this dish was melt-in-your-mouth good. Coupled with a well-seasoned broth, a generous helping of noodles and bok choy for a slightly bitter kick, the first bite of the dish is one I will always remember. 

Contact Logan Holland at [email protected].