Visit Date: May 1, 2025

On a cold, or even not so cold day, there’s one thing I can always count on to warm me up or make a bad day better: soup dumplings. And after the Pittsburgh blackout that left us without power, cell service, and hot water for 24 hours, I needed the pick-me-up. 

Soup dumplings, known as ‘xiao long bao’ in Mandarin, are dumplings filled with meat and a (usually scalding hot) broth. They are delicious, one of my favorite Chinese dishes, but technically difficult to execute perfectly. 

One of our favorite restaurants we’ve been to is Din Tai Fung (we went twice over the course of three days while we were in Seattle!), and although they have locations all over the world, the only one east of the Rocky Mountains is in NYC. Din Tai Fung offers a wide variety of Chinese dishes, and they have the best soup dumplings I’ve ever had, as well as one of our favorite desserts: chocolate xiao long bao. Now, almost a year since our first visit to Din Tai Fung, Sam and I still talk about our experience and the next time we’ll be able to visit a location (this summer in Disneyland!). So, all this to say, you can imagine our excitement when we heard about a similar restaurant coming to Pittsburgh!

Nan Xiang Soup Dumplings, which first opened its doors in 2006 in Flushing as a small shop with a family recipe, has now grown to nine locations along the East coast. The Pittsburgh location in Southside Works opened on March 5, 2025, and has already become a talked about spot on the restaurant scene. When we went, the restaurant was busy but we were able to walk right in.

The interior of the restaurant is elegant without being pretentious, and although we were dressed on the casual side, we didn’t feel out of place. They had a full bar in the back, as well as a kitchen with glass windows so diners can watch their food being prepared. There was a mixture of booths and table/chairs as seating options. We did notice that they used a mixture of human waiters and robots, although the latter were only used for takeout deliveries. 

One thing that was interesting was that the water, I assume tap, had a strange, citrus taste to it. Sam and I didn’t love it, but we were able to push through it. A girl at a nearby table was not and made a bit of a scene sending her water back. Additinally, each table is stocked with condiments so you can make your own dipping sauce for dumplings (usually a 3:1 black vinegar to soy sauce ratio with chili oil and ginger).

Now onto the main event, the food! Here’s what we tried, along with our thoughts & what we spent: 

Lucky Six Soup Dumplings – $14.50 

We got two orders of these, so that we could each try the six flavors (individual soup dumplings are not made for sharing). The six flavors included: Signature Pork, Crab Meat & Pork, Truffle & Pork, Chicken, Scallop & Pork, and Gourd Luffa, Shrimp, & Pork. I’ve only ever had pork or chicken soup dumplings, so I was excited to try different varieties. 

We started with the truffle dumpling, which was good but not for me (I’m not that into truffle). Next we tried the Crab Meat, which was my least favorite of the group. The seafood flavor was a little bit too strong for me. Next was the gourd luffa and shrimp, which I wasn’t expecting to like, but it ended up being really delicious. There was a nice vegetable flavor that was balanced by the meatiness of the filling. The scallop one was a surprise favorite for me, especially after disliking the crab meat dumpling. The seafood flavor here was much more subtle and better balanced by the fattiness from the pork. Finally, we ended with the classic pork and chicken flavors, both of which were solid and delicious. 

My biggest issue with these soup dumplings was that they were too large. Soup dumplings are normally consumed as one bite, but these were so big that it was difficult to eat them that way. Additionally, their size meant that some of them touched during the steaming process, which resulted in them breaking apart and spilling out the delicious soup. 

Overall, these were great soup dumplings for the variety and flavor, not for their quality. If you’ve never tried soup dumplings before, this is still a good place to try a few types. Upon a return trip, I would probably just stick with the classic pork soup dumplings.

Pan Fried Pork Buns – $10.00

This was our first time trying pork buns of the pan fried variety, as we’re normally steamed bun people. I wasn’t sure of the texture and how crispy the bottom would be on these. I really enjoyed them though! The crisp was nice but not too much, and the filling was juicy and flavorful. I would definitely order these again on every subsequent visit. 

Pork & Veggie Wontons in Spicy Peanut Sauce – $10.00

This dish was a bit of a miss for me, but I think it was well executed and could be enjoyed by others. I thought that the wontons were really good, the filling was delicious and the wrapper was thin. The spicy chili oil part of the sauce was fine — a little bland and not super spicy, but it added some flavor. The issue I had was with the peanut sauce that was also on the wontons. Although peanut in savory dishes is common throughout Asia, it’s not something that I could ever get into. Without the peanut sauce, for me, the dish would have been better. If you like peanut sauce though, I think this is a well executed dish.   

Sauteed String Beans with Garlic – $13.00

I really enjoyed these! They still had a snap to them, and there was a good garlic flavor to them. But if you’re a big garlic lover, then you may wish that these had even more garlic in them. Nothing too crazy special about these, but they rounded out our meal well and made sure that we ate our vegetables. My only gripe is that these were $13, and while they were a good size portion, it seemed like a hefty price tag for a meatless vegetable dish.

Overall, we enjoyed our visit here, and while we’re not running to revisit, we will definitely be coming back at some point to try more of the menu. Nan Xiang Soup Dumplings is a great addition to the Pittsburgh Asian food scene!

WE WANT TO HEAR FROM YOU:

Have you tried soup dumplings before? Will Nan Xiang Soup Dumplings go on your Pittsburgh restaurant bucket list? What are some of your favorite places to eat in Pittsburgh? Let us know in the comments!