Shanghai Dimsum House: Bayulan Steamed Mini Pork Buns

There’s so many reasons why I don’t dine in Crystal Mall… the first and foremost is the insane circular parking lot. Let’s not forget the food court which doesn’t have enough seating and the lack of air conditioning which makes you feel like you’re sitting in a blast furnace. But if you could get past all of that, there are some good food stalls here such as Shanghai Dimsum House.

It’s been a while since I’ve been here (I think the last time I was here, the place was known as Xu’s Wonton House) but nothing seems to have really changed. The main reason people come here is for their Bayulan Steamed Mini Pork Buns ($5.45) which most people in Vancouver would recognize as xiao long bao.

After placing your order, they give you a number and call it out when it’s ready. Since they are so busy and because they hand make everything to order, it can take a while for your order to come out. Keep in mind that they tend to call out numbers in Mandarin (and occasionally in English).

I also ordered the Wontons in Chili ($6.95 for 10 pieces). It actually took a little longer for these brain-shaped wontons to come out.

If you didn’t see any of the warning signs when you placed your order, just remember that these Shanghainese dumplings are filled with super hot soup on the inside. I’m always impressed at how thin their wrappers are while still being able to hold all of that juicy filling and soup. My go-to move is to carefully bite a hole in the top of the dumpling while carefully sucking some of the hot juice.

Seriously some of the best xiao long bao around Vancouver and at a reasonable price to boot.

4500 Kingsway (Crystal Mall)
Burnaby, BC