Fri 21 Jul 2006
Friday, my review of Nanxiang Steamed Bun Restaurant
came out in the Korea Times.
The Nanxiang chain originated 100 years ago in Shanghai. Kevin and I popped in over our long weekend, and in a fit of gastronomic hedonism, we ordered steamer after steamer of addictively delicious xiaolongbao (soup dumplings). Our favorite? The crab soup dumplings. Glorious meatballs of pure salty sweet crab in a crabby broth; 5 USD for six. 
Fast forward to last week. (Can we do that? I guess we can It is my blog.) I gathered a discerning and tough crew to sample what the Seoul branch could offer. Actually, it became obvious as they managed to clear all three kimchi sides before anything arrived, that their toughness was a cover for their hunger.
Let me start with the sad fact, there were no crab xiaolongbao.
Second sad fact, the basic pork soup dumpling robbed my wallet of 8,000won (9 USD) for six. Ouch.
On the brighter side we were highly entertained by the performance of the mandarin collar clad servers outfitted with clip microphones and earpieces.
Anyhow, the review says it all. Read it and eat it.
