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Dumpling King
Category: Restaurants Chinese Chinese [Edit]
3290 Midland AveUnit 2
Toronto, ON M1V 3Z9
Neighbourhood: Scarborough
(416) 321-0888
- Price Range:
-
$$
- Parking:
- Private Lot
- Attire:
- Casual
- Good for Groups:
- Yes
- Good for Kids:
- Yes
- Delivery:
- No
- Take Away:
- Yes
- Waiter Service:
- Yes
- Outdoor Seating:
- No
- Good For:
- Lunch, Dinner
- Alcohol:
- Beer & Wine Only
- Has TV:
- Yes
12 reviews for Dumpling King
12 reviews in English
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Review from Darren H.
Scarborough, ON
2/29/2012
This place looks pretty sketchy but serves up some good food. It was chosen as one of the best dumpling places in Toronto by BlogTO readers, so that should tell you something, especially since BlogTO hardly ever mentions anyplace this far north.
The dumplings here are of course the main feature and they're quite good. Other food is somewhat hit & miss. I recall that the eggplant was pretty good, the fried rice was good too. Service is basic, ie, you'll probably have to flag them down to get anything, don't expect them to come to your table to check up on you. The decor is pretty drab too, so it's not a place you'd take a date, but for some relatively cheap food it's one of the better dumpling places I've been to.
(Random story: The first time I was here with some friends of mine, we had just received our first dishes when we heard a scream from the kitchen, apparently one of the cooks had burned herself. :( So then we had paramedics on the scene. We felt bad and left an extra large tip for the poor lady!) -
Review from B M.
Scarborough, ON
4/21/2012
What a find. Tucked away in the corner of a plaza dominated by KBBQ, hot pot, and the juggernaut Keung Kee, this quaint dumpling place is a treat.
Besides the great food, you'll enjoy the fact that you won't have to break the bank to get your fill. $45 (taxes in) will go a long way for a party of four.
Now, the food. They definitely live up to their name. The dumplings are plump, not too hot, and full of flavor. There isn't a lack of meat like a lot of other places, and all 3 types (steamed, boiled, pan fried) are good. I had the pork/leek dumplings boiled, the house special dumplings fried, and the lamb dumplings steamed.
Among other things, we had the lamb skewers. They come in a plate of 8 for $7.99. They aren't grilled, but instead fried, so expect that. A little on the oily end, but very flavorful and cumin-y, just how I like it.
This place is definitely worth it! -
Review from Precilla C.
Scarborough, ON
9/14/2011 5 photos
Dumpling King has been in existence since as long as I can remember. It's only a 5 minute drive from my house, yet oddly enough, I've never been here before despite my love for dumplings.
We started with 12 boiled leek and pork dumplings. Personally, I'm not a huge fan of boiled dumplings because soggy dumpling skin doesn't appeal to me. For that reason, I much prefer steamed dumplings. Although the dumpling was well-packed and the filling was quite tasty, I didn't enjoy the the thick dumpling skin.
Next up, pan fried pancakes with chives is another favourite to order. This one came oddly shaped. The pancake is slightly too thick for my liking, but it's filled with delicious, aromatic chives.
We also ordered some home style pork and cabbage dumplings which were pan fried. Again, the filling was tasty, and I preferred these over the boiled ones because the dumpling skin was not soggy. For some reason, however, I still love potstickers more, because I think potstickers have a higher filling-to-dough ratio.
Although the meal was already very carb heavy, it didn't deter me from ordering more carbs for dessert! My pick was pan fried red bean pancake, and I really enjoyed this version. The crispy pancakes were extremely thin, and as a result, the flavours of the red bean paste in the center really stood out. It was a delicious dessert to end the meal.
All in all, I still prefer Dumpling Village (at Brimley and Sheppard) to Dumpling King, as their dumpling skins are a lot thinner. But at least this restaurant is a lot closer to where I live. -
Review from Karen S.
10/13/2011
I've been fortunate to be on a awesome Chinese food streak lately. Much as I also love hoity toity restaurants downtown, the simple, yet complex flavours and methods of good Chinese cooking is something so drool-worthy.
Between the three of us, we ordered 2 plates of steamed (boiled?) dumplings - pork with leek, etc - which was decent. The pan fried large dumplings were so good, with delicious juices simply floating inside the perfectly fried skin. We also had the rice with various preserved meats topped with fresh shredded lettuce that was served inside a wooden container. It is so bad for your waistline, but completely irresistible. I'm sure it put my sodium count for the day over the top as well, but it didn't really matter as I gobbled it all up anyway. -
Review from Joyees Y.
Scarborough, ON
1/5/2011
Yea the rest of the food is subpar but their dumplings are certainly worth the trip and the four stars!
So just basically. Handmade dumplings with really thin skin wrapped around UNBELIEVABLY JUICY, tender, and flavorful fillings. Perfectly steamed or boiled. There's also some pan fried ones that are great as well, nice crisp on the outside.
Also their soup dumplings (xiao long bao) are excellent as well, and tastes quite different from the normal ones. I think it's more mild in some ways but I really like it.
Well as I said don't bother with the other food but their onion pancake is actually very good, really fluffy and not overly greasy!
One of the best dumplings I think!!Listed in: Dumplings!
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Review from Annie L.
Markham, ON
The best Dumplings I've Had!
It's sad to see that most people gave it a bad review. My girlfriend and I think they're GREAT! They're different from "Ding Tai Fung." I've been told that the Northern and Southern Chinese cuisine are vastly different. I've noticed a lot of dishes on their menu are spicy. There's a little language barrier, waitress speaks Mandarin and very little English. Not a problem, menu is in English, top to bottom and all you have to do is write your order # on a scrap piece of paper. No talking required unless you like to chat up your waitress. Service is quick and efficient to boot.
Their dumplings are thin and juicy. Love the texture and taste of the soup popping in my mouth. Our usual orders are #B3 (6 dumplings), Hot & Sour Soup (really spicy), Hot & Spicy Octopus legs, Cucumber & Vermicelli paper with soy/peanut sauce, Smoked Duck (half and plenty for 2 or more), and Pickled cabbage & shredded pork with clear noodles. Also, cheap local beers! -
Review from Helen L.
Toronto, ON
12/28/2009
Dumpling King is one of those restaurants I never would've gone in normally but we saw Dave O's review and the mention of vegetarian dumplings so we decided to go try it out.
The service was pretty atrocious to start as the waitress gave us some serious attitude. We ended up ordering mixed vegetable soup, julienne bean curd salad, steamed bok choi dumplings and steamed vegetable dumplings.
The soup was great. It has tons of tofu, egg, several types of mushrooms and fungus and was topped with a bunch of fried crispies that tasted kind of like super skinny hickory sticks. The julienne bean curd salad looks unassuming but was super garlicky and fabulous. The dumplings were perfectly steamed and of the 2 we ordered, the bok choi dumplings were the clear winner. The vegetable dumplings were good too but very average.
Despite the bad start to our meal, we left feeling happy and satisfied. We paid about $30 with tax/tips for 2 people. I'd recommend it for a casual dinner...just don't expect great service! -
Review from Dave O.
Toronto, ON
10/23/2009 2 photos
The Dumpling King serves up some of the best dumplings in Toronto, while it's location is far from transit and main highways, it's worth a stop for the fresh and expertly prepared dumplings.
The hot and sour soup is one of the best I've had, it was not too spicy, and full of mushrooms, carrots, pork, tofu strips and egg. We ordered a huge variety of steamed and fried dumplings, both vegetarian and meaty and they were all flavourful, fresh and fantastic.
We also got the chicken fried rice and the seafood noodles, and they were less delicious, the fried rice was flavourless and the egg with the rice was mealy from over-stirring. Stick with the dumplings, they are huge and certainly the strong point of (duh) the Dumpling King.
It's a small restaurant, probably seats around 30 people tops. The decor is sparse, with lots of kitschy Chinese decorations, the tables and chairs were cafeteria style as were the place settings. But for me, it's all about the food, baby!
I went with a group of 8 from work and we managed to stuff ourselves completely for about $10 plus tip. I'd definitely go again for a good, cheap lunch. -
Review from Jennifer K.
Markham, ON
5/21/2010 13 photos
Dumpling King is called the Dumpling King for a reason... I should have know!! Why did I order something else but the dumplings??
I was here for lunch around 12pm and this place seems to tailored to big tables.. because all the big tables were filled! There were basically 40 patrons and with 1 waitress serving us all! Now you know I would not get getting any services.. and I will be waiting a long long time for my food to arrive.
The waitress is really cheerful however she is really overwhelmed from being all by herself.
I order the Cold Noodle in Sweet and Soup Soup and the Braise Beef Pancake.
Waiting Waiting Waiting..
The Beef Pancake I found is just ok.. The wrappings is too thick and with hardly any beef or green onion. (I am comparing to the one that served at Asian Legends).
Waiting Waiting Waiting.. did they forget my order?
The Cold Noodle... hmmm bad! Some of the Noodles are still hard.. not fully cooked! The soup base is really bland. I prefer the one at Dumpling Village a lot more! Just please don't order it!
Why the charge on the real bill is more than what they said on the menu??
Cold Noodle Soup Menu $5.99 VS Actual $6.99
Brasie Beef Menu $4.49 VS Actual $5.29
Maybe they really need to update their menu and the information on their website? Or I just being a sucker??
No Lunch Specials!
Cash Only! -
Review from sunnee s.
Toronto, ON
6/28/2011
long story short, to really like this place, you just need to know whats good and whats not and avoid the ones that are not . some items on the menu are drool worthy . my favorites ! some others ... are just the opposite .
my bf lives near by AND its cheap (w big portions!) so we're here pretty often . i always tend to order same things, in rotation . here are my favorites .
- FRIED RICE WITH STEWED PORK & EGG . seriously . you NEED to try this . its like my favorite fried rice in the world . its not like your regular fried rice . it comes in a wooden bucket, covered in tin foil as if its been steamed (i think it is ?) with shredded lettuce on top . its so flavorful & moist and the crunchiness of the lettuce complements the rice perfectly . consistent EVERYtime . i promise you wont be regretting it . BEST thing my bf ever picked . EVER !
- SOUP FILLED DUMPLINGS . soup filled dumplings are my fav dumplings ever . they do it well here . not quite ding tai fung but just as good as asian legend's . its on the menu as steamed mini pork dumplings under dimsum section . i dunno about anyone else, but i wouldve never known that these are soup filled dumplings . they should make it clear so ppl like me dont miss out !!
- JULIENNE CUCUMBERS W VERMICELLI SHEETS . if you want to satisfy your foodie tastebuds w a taste out of your comfort zone, get this . i THINK this kind of taste like a korean dish ive had before but i cant really figure out what . AND i dont know why this is called what its called . it makes it sounds like cucumber is the main ingredient . instead, it should emphasize on its liquidity vinegary soy sauce w the peanut sauce . you mix it up all together and party in yo mouth ! its a pretty bold flavor so its perfect for foodie tastebuds !
- BRAISED BEEF NOODLE SOUP . sometimes when i wake up, i have an uncomfortable feeling in my stomache as if i had a glass of coke as soon as i woke up . thats when brunch just dont cut it . i need something warm and liquidy like congee or .. beef noodle soup ! they do it sooo well here; SOO much beef, HUGE portion, even bigger flavor . i hate me bland beef noodle soup . it tastes like it would be from a thick, dense saucey soup, but its not . its liquidy, light, drinkable soup . Ahhmazing .
P.S im pretty impressed by their website . this is a small mainland chinese restaurant . its not often a small chinese place has a website w its menu online !
P.P.S they ALWAYS have just for laugh on tv on rotation . weird . but good weird . -
Review from Fraser G.
Toronto, ON
6/14/2010
You don't go to a steak house to order chicken. You most certainly don't go to a dumpling house to order anything but dumplings. This cardinal rule should be in bold when it comes to uptown dumpling houses. Having eaten at Dumpling King three times, I've personally never ordered anything besides their rice-wrapped gifts, but, in the company of friends, I have tasted their other, less savoury dishes. The short: avoid the non-dumpling dishes.
All three of my visits have been - from the dumpling perspective - great. While there are no servers who speak English, they do keep a literally translated English menu for us wayward foodventurers. Service is swift and stiff - we had no luck asking for spicy oil due to a communication breakdown, but I'm sure it would have arrived promptly. Prices range from $4.50 - $6.99 per plate of dumplings.
The restaurant itself is pretty much a clean, kempt square. Chairs and tables are typical plastic with the wrap-n-wash tablecloth. There is absolutely no decoration beyond a large screen TV that kept the other patrons rapt in excitement.
Our server was prompt at providing water and taking our written order. Pro-tip: the beer is cheap; if they had public transit, they'd earn an extra star. Food took a swift 10 minutes to arrive, and when it did, it was steaming, enticing, and brief.
My friend and I ordered two batches of boiled dumplings and one pan-fried set. The boiled dumplings were tasty, erring on the side of salty (the best side to err on) while still retaining the delicate flavours of the leek and pork, and shrimp, egg and chives. Their pièce de résistance was their pan-fried mushroom and chicken: huge, wide, flat dumplings that hold a bowl of won ton soup inside their crispy folds. My first bite was pure glory: bits of chicken and mushroom high-fiving my taste buds. CAUTION: use protection if it's your first time. These huge dumplings have a (hilarious) tendency to explode.
Our bill was a piddling $17, including beer for two. The price is good, the food is standard fare. There were no specialty dumpling options. Dumpling King definitely scratches the dumpling itch, but if you're travelling far, there's tastier destinations. -
Review from Josee C.
Ajax, ON
10/27/2011
Went to Dumpling King today for lunch (first time, found the place on the Internet after a severe dumpling craving) but when we got there... YELLOW CONDITIONAL PASS sign in the window!!! Unsanitary food preparation/ storage conditions, etc. Needless to say we turned around. Maybe the food is still good (a few people with strong stomachs and/or bad eyesight were having lunch) but I didn't want to take a chance. Just thought I'd share this with other people before they drive all the way there.
