Oh! Dumplings
56 India St
Long time no succulent Chinese meals eh? Just kidding I was literally in Asia for most of October. But I'm back in Brooklyn, baby, so let's get into it.
On Thursday night, I met a friend on the East Side and as it was an unexpectedly warm night, we decided to take the ferry back to Brooklyn, no matter how much further we had to walk. After alighting at the India Street pier, I had a thought. I told my friend, "I think there's a cheap Taiwanese restaurant around here." Sure enough, on India Street we found Oh! Dumplings, a Brooklyn chain of restaurants, which in addition to their dumplings, sell a host of recognizably Taiwanese dishes: beef noodle soup, popcorn chicken, gua bao, and lu rou fan. The menu has some dishes from other parts of China, too. Unsurprisingly there are some Sichuan dishes like Mapo Tofu and Mouthwatering Chicken, and Northern China is represented, too, with the almost-sandwiches jian bing and roujiamo. The Greenpoint location seems to be the newest location. The first two are in Cobble Hill and Fort Greene.
The jian bing really stuck out to me, since I don't believe anywhere else in the neighborhood makes one, so I ordered one with braised pork. In addition, we ordered their braided tofu and cucumber and wood ear mushroom salad.
The two side dishes were great. Both were garlicky and fresh tasting, and the cucumber salad had a bit of chili in it. The jian bing was honestly monstrous. A jian bing is a type of crepe made with mung bean flower cooked on a huge circular griddle and then filled with anything you can dream of. This one had pulled pork, lettuce, scallions, and an egg cooked into the crepe itself. The only jian bing I'd had prior was one from Corgi Jianbing by the Court Square station. Compared to that, Oh! Dumplings's jian bing is much softer, and its filling was more prone to falling out. Despite any functional difficulties, it was delicious. The bing had a sweet and slightly spicy sauce that worked well with the dry fluffiness of the crepe and the richness of the meat.
Attentive readers may have picked up that this meal, unlike all others featured on this blog, was a dinner, not a workday lunch. They may even guess that I did not order this meal to go, and they would be correct. They may wonder, is this information even useful for someone researching the neighborhood's takeout options? To them, I would say that even though I ate in Oh! Dumplings dining room, my tableware was entirely disposable and everything I ordered would be fantastic to go.
Oh! Dumplings makes a case for itself as a lunch spot, having a variety of carby delicacies and vegetable side dishes at reasonable, if not exactly bargain prices (our total was $25). Plus, I think it may be the only place besides Wenwen to get a regular Taiwan Beer in the neighborhood. (Mitsuki on Manhattan Ave currently sells the Lychee and Sex on the Beach flavors, but not the plain one.
If I lived up towards the point of Greenpoint, I'd probably stop by this shop frequently. Unfortunately, it's about a half hour walk, so I don't see myself going back too often. Maybe for another pre or post ferry snack. I'll put this one above Ramen Rice and Noodles, since its menu is larger and its prices are lower. I don't think it's as good as Xi'an though.
Greenpoint Chinese Lunch Current Standings:
- Chiko
- Four Season Joyful
- Xi'an Famous Foods
- Oh! Dumplings
- Ramen, Rice and Noodles
- Peking Express
- Breeze
- Mala Project