Must Be Dumpling

TLDR: 10/10. i'm going to make it a point to dine in next time i'm in the area! my partner and i came here after a beach day. we didn't really intend to go here - we saw it off the road so we thought why not? i got the PORK AND CORN DUMPLINGS to go (ate it in the car to beat traffic!) and it was SO good. perfectly seasoned filling, equal balance between the pork and corn, and the dumpling wrapper was perfectly rolled out. the sauces they provided with my takeout order was good too - classic soy, their house made chili oil (I THINK? i haven't tasted any thing like it before), and i think some other seasoning sauce.

After discovering Must Be Dumpling via Yelp and eyeing them for months, we finally got to check them out on the night of Thursday, October 24, 2024.Venue: 4 stars.Located in Pacifica's Linda Mar Shopping Center, Must Be Dumpling occupies a small unit, likely with maximum occupancy of no more than 75 persons in the dining room. There were plenty of empty spots to park in the lot and we found a space for our car just a few steps away from the front entrance. We arrived shortly before 7:15 to a brightly lit and clean restaurant with only a few occupied tables. We were seated almost immediately.Food: 4 stars.Below are what our meal composed of for a party of five:Thai Iced Tea (2 orders at $4 each) - Yum.Deep Fried Spring Roll (2 orders at $5.95 each) - Golden brown with a nice crisp.Soup Dumpling/Xiao Long Bao (3 orders of 12 pcs. for $19.95) - GoodDan Dan Noodles with House Sesame Paste ($14.95) - Meh. I wasn't impressed by this bowl of noodles, but Z happily ate it all.Shrimp Wonton Soup ($12.95) - Simple and light, but hearty. The seaweed was a nice touch.Spicy Wonton with Chili Sauce ($15.95) - Ok. Not my favourite, but Z liked it.Pan Fried Meat Pot Sticker ($14.95) - Nice.Boiled Okra with Garlic Sauce ($13.95) - Excellent! The okra had a slight crisp and tasted super fresh. I would return here just for these vegetables. Yes, they were THAT good!Braised Eggplant ($14.95) - Very good. Brightly colourful and perfectly cooked.Deep Fried Sesame Balls ($5.95) - Not bad. Small sizes, though.Strawberry Mochi Ice Cream ($5.95) - Pretty presentation. V enjoyed this dessert very much.Service: 4 stars.On Thursdays, locals get a 10% discount. Make sure to bring proof of residency.Heads up - 20% gratuity is automatically added to checks for parties of 5 or more persons. They do indicate this on their menu, so the auto tip should not be a surprise. Our server was friendly, informative, and quick.A great first impression Must Be Dumpling left on the boys. We will definitely return.

We got a menu (mailed or dropped off to home) so we were curious to try especially it's local and always want to support local business.First visit and was happy to see they were busy but was able to get seated right away. They recently opened 4 months ago and appeared to be the old Starbucks suite? One server (Lingling) and was friendly and made sure we always had our water full. Food was delicious and menu had plenty of choices although a bit more exotic than your typical dim sum choices. We tried plenty and looking forward to come back and try other items in the menu. However, prices are a bit on the high side but nevertheless the food were delicious.Deep-Fried Crab RangoonShanghai Style Xiao Long BaoTofu soup with ground pork (chicken Base) BOWLHomemade pork, shrimp and green chives dumplingSpicy WontonGreen Onion PancakeGarlic Okra

Great little spot! Derek is our favorite person. We have been trying to stop in and finally made it. Very clean. Nice seating. Good music. Service is 5 star. The food came out steamy hot and quick! Everything was very delicious. The green beans were excellent. We were very happy and it was nice to see Derek!

My favorite place right now on the coast. Small, friendly shop preparing wonderful dumplings. My favorite is the soup dumpling but love the steamed shrimp and Sui Mai. Mushroom salad is fresh and satisfying. Locals come down on Thursdays for discount and specials! Need to try out the noodles and shrimp won ton soup next.

Afternoon date! I was really happy with the quick and efficient service. We ordered lots of chicken dumplings and soup dumplings, and everything was yummy! Nearly every table was full on a Saturday afternoon, and that says a lot. I'm giving it 4 stars instead of 5 only because it's not *the* top dumpling spot I've been to in the Bay Area. House of Dumplings in Union City still holds that title for me! :)

3.5 starsSaw this place on Yelp, they just opened so I wanted to try their xiao long bao. Came here for dinner with my husband. Was served ice cold water and handed us a menu with a marker. Inside looked clean. Once we marked what we wanted we let the staff know. They ran out of pork xiao long bao. So we got 18 pieces of the crab and pork xiao long bao.Ordered 18 pieces crab and pork xiao long baoCucumber garlic sauceSpicy deep fried chicken wingsGreen beansFirst came the cucumber with garlic sauce, they were smashed cucumbers tasted fresh and had garlicky pieces. Then came the Spicy deep fried chicken wings, they weren't spicy and we wished they were more crispy. Tasted alright and if you wanted that spicy kick just eat the peppers. After that came the 12 piece xiao long bao, they tasted alright soft meat but wished that the wrapper skin was thinner. They also broke easily so a bit of the soup came out, I wish it had a bit more soup in the dumplings. Also we noticed that they didn't have soup spoons so I held the round dipping sauce dish and used that. After that the green beans came pipping hot, tasted fresh. Afterwards I asked the staff if our 6 piece xiao long bao was still cooking. Just to make sure it was still coming. We finished our food and then asked for the check. The check came with a QR code that you can scan on your phone and pay, that's what we did.

So happy an Asian spot opened up in the area! My obsession lately has been their chicken wings :) ordering for pickup is very convenient and quick. I have yet to dine in at this place but it looks super cute!

Finally, am authentic dim sum/ noodle restaurant in the neighborhood. The dumplings are delicious. I especially enjoyed the steamed okra with garlic sauce.Coming back for the 10% off Local Thursday!

Great quick dim sum for the three of us for Sunday lunch. Great Atmosphere. Friendly waitress.