Forkelo ranking · Updated October 2026
10 xiao long baos across New York City, ranked on what people say about the dish itself — never the restaurant's overall rating.
Joe's Shanghai · Chinatown, Manhattan
27 dish-specific mentions · 89% positive · 2 source types · menu verified October 2026
Critics call them iconic, and diners praise big, piping-hot dumplings loaded with soup. Some find the skin thick or quick to soften, and a few call them overrated.
Shanghai You Garden · Flushing, Queens
28 dish-specific mentions · 86% positive · 2 source types · menu verified October 2026
Fans praise juicy, soupy pork dumplings and great value. Detractors say the skins can be thick or doughy with too little filling.
Shanghai 21 · Chinatown, Manhattan
26 dish-specific mentions · 81% positive · 2 source types · menu verified October 2026
Critics and diners praise thin, delicate skins and rich, savory broth. Detractors cite dumplings with little soup and a filling that tasted undercooked.
Joe's Home of Soup Dumplings · Midtown East, Manhattan
42 dish-specific mentions · 81% positive · 1 source type · menu verified October 2026
Diners rave about big, piping-hot, very soupy dumplings. Detractors report thick or fragile skins, overcooked or undercooked batches and high prices.
The Bao · East Village, Manhattan
16 dish-specific mentions · 88% positive · 2 source types · menu verified October 2026
Critics call the pork dumplings near-perfect, with nearly translucent skin and light broth. Some diners say quality has slipped or that better XLB exist nearby.
Real Kung Fu Little Steamed Buns Ramen · Hell's Kitchen, Manhattan
12 dish-specific mentions · 83% positive · 1 source type · menu verified October 2026
Diners praise thin, well-pleated skins, generous filling and hot service, and call it rare for Midtown. A few found them merely okay or served cold.
Nan Xiang Soup Dumplings · Flushing, Queens
39 dish-specific mentions · 67% positive · 2 source types · menu verified October 2026
Diners love the thin, wobbly skins and savory broth. A vocal minority finds them inconsistent: thick or uneven skins, a gamey aftertaste or merely average results.
Deluxe Green Bo · Chinatown, Manhattan
23 dish-specific mentions · 83% positive · 2 source types · menu verified October 2026
Critics and regulars love the thin skins, meaty pork and hot broth. A few found them small, under-flavored or oddly seasoned.
Din Tai Fung · Times Square, Manhattan
27 dish-specific mentions · 78% positive · 2 source types · menu verified October 2026
Critics praise the thin, 18-fold skins and clean broth. Detractors say they can arrive lukewarm or cold, with a broth lacking depth and a doughy top.
456 New Shanghai · Chinatown, Manhattan
11 dish-specific mentions · 82% positive · 2 source types · menu verified October 2026
Praised as a bargain with bulbous, soupy dumplings and slightly sweet broth. Critics note thicker skins, and some diners found them poor or sinewy.
Every score is built from evidence about the specific dish: how often locals recommend it, how strongly, how recently, and whether independent sources agree. A restaurant's overall star rating is never converted into a dish score.
Quality and confidence are reported separately. A dish two people loved can score high, but it is marked limited data until more evidence backs it up. The whole calculation — every constant, and three dishes worked through line by line — is written out on the methodology page.
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