Bao Bao Dumpling

Very flavorful and juicy handmade XLB and pan fried dumplings. Would definitely recommend!

We took our 2 year old here tonight and we all LOVED it. Great friendly service. Quiet restaurant, no loud music or TV’s. Delicious homemade dumplings. We liked the spicy pork soup too. All the flavors were slight different at better than our last Shanghai dumpling experience, which was also great! Happy to have them in our neighborhood!!!

Good dumplings. Good service. Everything came out quickly and was yummy! Cute on the inside. Good pricing too.

Shirley Hao

Loved this place! It was very authentic Shanghai food. We got the Shanghai Braised Wheat Gluten (cold dish). Couldn’t decide if we liked the Xiaolongbao or Shengjian Bao better. The sizzling eggplant was incredible. Would definitely go back!

DM Ramirez

Delicious food and great service! We enjoyed the five-spiced smoked fish, pan-fried pork buns, and stir-fried pork noodles. The buns came out fresh, hot, and full of flavor, absolutely delicious.

Penny Ni

I usually don’t leave reviews, but I think my experience at this restaurant was definitely worth a 5-star rating! I really loved the pan-fried pork buns here: so juicy, flavorful, and authentic! In fact, they were as good as the ones I had in Shanghai! The fried noodles and the tea they served were also perfect! The lady who served us frequently checked whether if the tea should be refilled. I highly recommend it to anyone who wants to try authentic Chinese/Shanghaiese food!

Bamboo Bone

Tried this restaurant with a friend from Shanghai, and we were both blown away. Before this, our favorite was Dumpling Home in Hayes Valley — their xiaolongbao is solid, but not quite the flavor we grew up with. This place? Nailed it. The xiaolongbao tasted exactly like the ones from our childhood. The deep-fried sweet soy fish (熏鱼, xunyu) almost made me cry — perfectly crisp on the outside, tender and sweet inside. First time I’ve had this level of flavor in the U.S. It tasted just like what my uncle used to make for me. The wontons had beautiful wrappers, though I wasn’t a huge fan of the shepherd’s purse (荠菜) filling — it was packed with greens, but a bit too dense for my liking. We also tried the curry beef rice noodle soup, which was rich and comforting — hard to find in other Shanghainese spots here. The owner spoke to us in Shanghainese — big plus — and told us more dishes are coming soon, like crab xiaolongbao and you dun zi (油墩子/萝卜丝饼，fried savory cakes stuffed with shredded daikon). Can’t wait to go back. Super friendly staff, and for us, it really tasted like home.

Bradley Chen

it’s hard to come by quality shanghainese in the bay but this place tastes like home. definitely get the the salt pork and vegetable rice and the braised wheat gluten - will be back :)

Gianne Yeung

My friend raved about this place and I agreed - this is hand-down the best pan fried pork buns in SF. Super juicy and crispy on the bottom. It reminded me the one I tried when I first traveled to Shanghai ten years ago. The owner let us know that the pastry chef has 28 years of experience making the pork bun. My mom loved the taro puff pastry as well. Super friendly staff. Exceptional clean. We’re definitely coming back next week.

Sarah Kim

Came here on a Sunday afternoon with a friend and was very happy we ate here. We ordered the noodles with scallion oil, house special shengjian bao, soup dumplings, shredded radish and jellyfish salad with scallion oil, these fire green beans, and ube taro pastries. Everything was delicious! I need to come back and try the rest of the menu soon 🙂‍↕️

Eunji Kim

I got soup dumplings and pan-fried pork buns. Unfortunately, the soup dumplings had a strong pork smell. It seemed like both had the same filling, but the pan-fried ones didn’t have that smell at all. The pan-fried buns were really good. They were crispy and juicy! I hope they check the soup dumpling and change ☺️ and staff was friendly

Ingrid Barte

The Bao Bao trend just hit the Richmond district! Although, there are a bunch of dumpling places in the Richmond , this place has hands down the best pan fried shengjian bao outside Shanghai! 😋 fried to perfection! Portions are just right. The pork chop noodle soup is 10/10! The space is super modern and has qr code menu where you can order through your phone. No need to wait for someone to take your order. I love love this style of ordering. Super efficient and no need to wait for someone to take your order if you want more dumplings. 😋Although parking could be challenging the bus stop is super convenient only a few blks away and the 38 Geary comes quite often. Love this new addition to the neighborhood 😍

j lai

Very flavorful and juicy handmade XLB and pan fried dumplings. Would definitely recommend!

Jostein Ovrum

Best dumplings ever! The house specialty Shenjiang dumplings are fantastic, containing some soup, delicious soft bun, fried crispy on the bottom, and of course the meaty, super tasty center.

Crystal Lim

We ordered sheng jian bao, chilli oil wonton and pork chop noodles. The sheng jian bao was very juicy, slightly chewy and crispy at the bottom (albeit a bit charred which I'm not a fan of, but my partner likes it that way). The chilli oil wonton has sesame/peanut sauce on it as well. Very well balanced and even nicer with the vinegar. Pork chop noodles was also good. I loved the braised egg that came with it. It's a new place so the interior is very clean and spacious. You can see the chefs making the dumplings through the glass panel as well. Overall very nice addition to the neighborhood and I will definitely be back again.

Best were the Old Shanghai Pan Fried Potstickers. All great dumplings. Green beans were crispy and the Ube Taro Desert dumplings were a nice finish. Definitely a great dumpling place worth the trip.

Fantastic spot that I can't believe I hadn't heard about before! Really authentic and delicious Shanghainese food. It's on par with some SoCal spots (which I consider as a whole to be have better food than NorCal), which is really saying a lot. A lot of the dishes offered were exactly to my palate, and a special shout-out has to go out to the shengjianbao. Absolutely on point, noticeably fluffy (on the non-fried part) and overall fantastic.

Came here with my family and baby. They were very accommodating to give us a bigger table and they do a great job cleaning and preparing the tables after guests leave. The food is amazing, my fav were the pan fried buns and the chili wontons. It’s really nice that it comes out one by one so everyone is always eating hot food.

Marc Delingat

Best were the Old Shanghai Pan Fried Potstickers. All great dumplings. Green beans were crispy and the Ube Taro Desert dumplings were a nice finish. Definitely a great dumpling place worth the trip.

Wanderer

Fantastic spot that I can't believe I hadn't heard about before! Really authentic and delicious Shanghainese food. It's on par with some SoCal spots (which I consider as a whole to be have better food than NorCal), which is really saying a lot. A lot of the dishes offered were exactly to my palate, and a special shout-out has to go out to the shengjianbao. Absolutely on point, noticeably fluffy (on the non-fried part) and overall fantastic.

Lukasz Stempniewicz

Came here with my family and baby. They were very accommodating to give us a bigger table and they do a great job cleaning and preparing the tables after guests leave. The food is amazing, my fav were the pan fried buns and the chili wontons. It’s really nice that it comes out one by one so everyone is always eating hot food.

Philip Chang

The pan-fried pork buns are the star of the show (so authentic, perfect texture mix, delicious filling), but the other dishes on the menu are excellent as well - pork (and shrimp!) xiaolongbao, barbecued spare ribs, rice cakes - the owners were also nice enough to get us some dessert in the form of sesame balls! Really nice people, who gave us some best tips on how to eat the food, and were very grateful to have us. We will be back many times!

After trying their shengjian bao, I can absolutely see why it's their signature! Their bottoms were fried to crispy perfection while the tops remained pillowy soft, making for a delightful eating experience. The filling was also very juicy and flavorful, super tasty with black vinegar. Definitely an A+ item. Now, the other two items we got were a little less impressive, though still OK. The XLB had the same filling as the shengjian baos for some reason, which I thought was an odd choice since the flavor didn't feel "fresh" enough for XLB - a bit heavier and more pork-forward than typical XLB. They were, of course, still juicy however. We also ordered a zhajiang mian, or black bean noodle, but the flavor there fell a little flat. Less black bean flavor than what we were expecting, given how dark the sauce was. And the noodles were just ok, not too much chew. The dining environment was very pleasant though, and we even got a bottle of iced tea on the house! Lovely little restaurant to eat in at honestly. So overall the verdict is - load up on the amazing shengjian baos for sure, but maybe keep expectations lower for other items.

The Shengjian Bao (pan fried pork dumpling) is consistently good--crispy & juicy. Also enjoyed the Five Spiced Smoked Fish, Garlic Smashed Cucumbers, Salted Pork & Vegetable Fried Rice, Special Spicy Beef Stew Noodle Soup, Sichuan Spicy Egglant.

Jessica Cheng

After trying their shengjian bao, I can absolutely see why it's their signature! Their bottoms were fried to crispy perfection while the tops remained pillowy soft, making for a delightful eating experience. The filling was also very juicy and flavorful, super tasty with black vinegar. Definitely an A+ item. Now, the other two items we got were a little less impressive, though still OK. The XLB had the same filling as the shengjian baos for some reason, which I thought was an odd choice since the flavor didn't feel "fresh" enough for XLB - a bit heavier and more pork-forward than typical XLB. They were, of course, still juicy however. We also ordered a zhajiang mian, or black bean noodle, but the flavor there fell a little flat. Less black bean flavor than what we were expecting, given how dark the sauce was. And the noodles were just ok, not too much chew. The dining environment was very pleasant though, and we even got a bottle of iced tea on the house! Lovely little restaurant to eat in at honestly. So overall the verdict is - load up on the amazing shengjian baos for sure, but maybe keep expectations lower for other items.

David

The Shengjian Bao (pan fried pork dumpling) was good--crispy & juicy. Also enjoyed the Five Spiced Smoked Fish, Garlic Smashed Cucumbers, Salted Pork & Vegetable Fried Rice. However, on a previous visit, some dishes (Shanghai fried thick noodles, Shanghai rice cakes, Braised beef noodle soup) were greasy.

Just ate here. The pan fried dumplings were amazing! We ordered a ton of food- salted pork rice, the soup dumplings, pressed sweet tofu, gluten appetizer, the pork chop, and the sweet glutinous sesame balls dessert. The radish dumplings were very nice and top notch; they were flakey and the light. Everything else was good but a bit too sweet for me; I think maybe ease up on the sugar and sweetness and add some more salt and savoriness to the food would do wonders. Everyone is pretty health conscious these days so sugary foods make people a little more concerned. But overall super happy that a Shanghainese dining option is here. We thought the service was great and the jasmine tea was really nice.

Charles Liu

Just ate here. The pan fried dumplings were amazing! We ordered a ton of food- salted pork rice, the soup dumplings, pressed sweet tofu, gluten appetizer, the pork chop, and the sweet glutinous sesame balls dessert. The radish dumplings were very nice and top notch; they were flakey and the light. Everything else was good but a bit too sweet for me; I think maybe ease up on the sugar and sweetness and add some more salt and savoriness to the food would do wonders. Everyone is pretty health conscious these days so sugary foods make people a little more concerned. But overall super happy that a Shanghainese dining option is here. We thought the service was great and the jasmine tea was really nice.

John Libiran

Food was great. Ordered 4 items: chili oil wonton, shrimp and pork shao mai, chocolate xiaolongbao, and tonkotsu ramen. Not a fan of the chocolate xiaolongbao and it was the first thing to come out, which was weird as I thought it was a dessert. Ramen came out last a good 10 minutes after everything else, which led to everything else cold.

I was trying this place for the first time and got takeout. Just got home and tried a few of the items I ordered. Food tasted good so far but mid way eating a soup dumpling, I wasn’t able to chew the food and realized it was a plastic wrapper. I’m not certain I would want to give this place another chance.