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宝源饺子屋- Bao Yuan Jiaozi Wu

朝阳区麦子店街6号楼侧
Chaoyang qu Maizi Dian Jie 6 hao lou
ChaoYang District, east of Lufthansa Center/Kempinski Hotel
Tel:  010-6586-4967
$: Cheap. 4-8rmb per liang (50g) with a minimum 100g per order.

Directions:  This is a smaller street but not hard to find.  From Third Ring Road, exit at Yansha/Lufthansa Exit. At the second light (Somerset is on the SE corner, turning left heads you up Lady Street/Nu Ren Jie), turn right onto Maizi Dian.  The restaurant is after you pass over the canal, on your right side.

What we think 

Dumpling heaven. Bao Yuan offers traditional boiled dumplings (水饺 - shui jiao) with dozens of stuffings (馅儿- xian'r) sorted by type of meat, vegetable and specialty fillings (including pumpkin, wild mushrooms, fennel and more…).  For a few extra kuai you can order wrappers colored brightly in purple, green orange and more using natural vegetable juice.  Ask to see the menu from their sister Sichuan place right next door to supplement your dumpling meal.

Recommended dumplings

There is no English menu but a few typical but varied dumpling fillings (饺子馅儿) you might try are:

Most dumpling menus are divided into categories by types of filling, or 馅儿 (xianr), with the main categories being some or all of the following, and within these categories, the main ingredient is paired with many different types of vegetables or herbs.

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You might ask, why go to a Taiwanese chain serving Shanghai style soup dumplings (小龙包 or 小龙汤包) in Beijing?  Or perhaps squeal at paying 45rmb for a steamer of pork dumplings you could get for 5rmb on the street. Do it. These dumplings will reward for your efforts. Their skin is paper thin and delicate (they will test your chopstick skills). The dumplings are wrapped perfectly evenly all around so there are no clumpy doughy bits. Din Tai Fung has a special technique for ensuring a healthy dose of delicious juice within each little package, which explodes in your mouth in a great savory taste sensation.

Vegetarians have a great option too (蔬菜蒸饺 - su cai zhen jiao), with tender steamed dumplings with greens, mushrooms, and vermicelli. 

Technically a Shanghai style restaurant, there is also a fair share of pricy hairy crab offerings—try a basket (or half a basket--all dumplings can come as a half order) of the hairy crab dumplings to see you enjoy this acquired taste. I stick with the classic pork.

Din Tai Feng also has a truly non-smoking section, its own comfortable separate floor of the restaurant; it is still bustling and hard to get into, so make a reservation!

Recommended dishes (besides dumplings)

豆苗  dou miao: great tender sautéed pea shoots
烤付  kao fu: an interesting smoky cold dish or tofu by product and mushroom

 
Taiwanese style dessert: mango and coconut ice (芒果冰 - mang guo bing), and soft almond gelatin with sweetened condensed milk 杏仁豆腐冰 (xing ren dou fu bing) are both delicious; the tower of shaved ice topped with sweet stewed beans (also drizzled generously with sweetened condensed milk) is a beloved treat but definitely an acquired taste.

For a hot sweet treat, order a steamer basket of dou sha xiao bao (豆沙小包), or little bean paste dumplings.

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东方饺子王- Dong Fang Jiao Zi Wang
Orient King of Dumplings (English name not on the sign)

朝阳门内南小街14号楼
静雅大酒店对面
Bldg 14, Chaoyangmennei Nanxiaojie, near Jinbao Jie
Hours: 10am-10pm
Tel:  010-6527-2042

Directions:  Just north of Jinbao Jie intersection, on the east side of the street.
$: Cheap. You pay by weight, minimum order is two liang, or 100g, usually about a dozen dumplings.

What we think 

Another great dumpling option.  This is a well known chain from the north east (Dongbei), which really is the cradle of Chinese steamed dumplings.  Orient King of Dumplings offers over 30 kinds of dumpling fillings. There are options for both boiled (水饺 - shui jiao) and fried dumplings (煎饺 - jian jiao), as well as numerous cold appetizers and other accompanying dishes. The dining room can get pretty smokey during peak hours.

Recommended dishes (to accompany the dumplings)

香脆三丝 xiang cui san si: crispy fried vegetable thread
香辣菠菜 xiang la bo cai: spicy spinach and bean salad
炝土豆丝 qiang tu dou ci: blanched and spiced potato thread.

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锅贴粥铺– Guo Tie Zhou Pu
Potsticker and Rice Porridge Spread (no English, my translation)

朝阳门南小街，金宝街西南口，向南100米 (从长安街国际饭店往北走)
Chaoyangmen Nanxiaojie, Jinbao jie xinankou, xiang nan 100 mi (cong Changan Jie, Guo Ji Fan Dian wang bei zhou)
Tel: 010-8511 2152
$:  Super cheap. 4rmb/liang (50g, but you get about 6 guo tie per 50g, with a minimum order of 2 liang or 100g) for most varieties, a couple kuai more for special fillings.

Directions:  Find the intersection of Chaonan and Jinbao streets and head 100 meters south from the southwest corner. Or head north from the Beijing International Hotel at the intersection of Chaonan and Changan streets. The restaurant is on the left (west) side of the street, with the name in Chinese only in large red characters stuck on the shop front windows. Easy to miss.

What we think 

This is a genuinely local place which place fries up delicious guo tie (锅贴) with countless choices for filling, from lamb to pork to beef to vegetables. It is also a very Beijing eatery, with 京菜 snacks, stewed claypot dishes (砂锅), and an wide variety of both hot and savory(咸粥) and cooling (消暑冰粥) rice porridge for summer. These traditional guo tie are wrapped differently than regular dumplings. Instead of wrapping the filling in a closed crescent shaped dumpling, which when fried is technically a jian jiao 煎饺 but is often called guo tie, a traditional shaped guo tie is shaped like a little parcel, longer and thinner and with both ends left open. These are fried in long rows as opposed to jian jiao, whose shape lends itself to be neatly fried in a circle.

Recommended dishes

There is no English menu but a few typical but varied guo tie fillings (锅贴馅儿) you might try are: 

Most dumpling menus are divided into categories by types of filling, or 馅儿 (xianr), with the main categories being some or all of the following, and within these categories, the main ingredient is paired with many different types of vegetables or herbs.