Finding a food fortune in downtown dumpling shops

The hole-in-the wall ethnic treasure trove is a glorified ideal in New York City’s collective culinary consciousness, and Chinatown is a prime hunting ground for foodies out to discover the next inexpensive “it” takeout place.

From its greenish, sun-faded waterfall mural to its aesthetically questionable turquoise walls, Chinatown’s New Green Bo (66 Bayard St. between Mott and Elizabeth streets) unknowingly embraces the hole-in-the-wall ideal. With publicity from New York Magazine and the New York Times, though, the restaurant has surrendered its unknown status in favor of out-the-door lines on weekdays for lunch and dinner—and for good reason.

The crowded dumpling station behind the cashier steams up authentic Shanghainese-style pork dumplings, with a thick wrap and tender pinkish meat filling. The restaurant is also known for its $1.25 scallion pancake, featuring a golden crispy dough intermixed with fresh green scallions. A smiley-face takeout bag filled with heads of lettuce at the dumpling station and the no-nonsense cashier’s dirt-encrusted calculator are the little details that indicate New Green Bo doesn’t “do ambience”—but maybe that’s a part of its charm.

If New Green Bo is hole-in-the-wall, the nearby Prosperity Dumplings (46 Eldridge St. between Hester and Canal streets) is barely a crevice. Sure, there is visible stucco on the ceiling and a torn-up and slightly frightening choking warning poster right above the cash register, but once students taste the golden dumplings, the broken linoleum nightmare of an interior won’t really matter. Behind the counter, one can see workers frying handmade dumplings in one giant pan and steaming them in another, which begs the question of why Morningside dumplings are so expensive in the first place.

Prosperity answers by offering five sizable dumplings for only a dollar. Cheap and simple, Prosperity has perfected the dumpling recipe: juicy pork, plentiful chives, and a slightly salty wrapper. Also, despite seeming carelessness, the workers fry every dumpling in their massive pan to a golden standard of crispy perfection—save a liberal sprinkling of soy sauce or vinegar and a squirt of hot chili. Both the palates and the wallets of students who stumble upon this Chinatown treasure will indeed prosper.

Students used to Morningside Chinese food prices may be shocked at the inexpensiveness of Chinatown’s culinary offerings, but really, dumplings and scallion pancakes require just a few basic ingredients. Combine that with expert preparation and a no-frills décor philosophy, and students will soon learn that hole-in-the-wall is the way to go. Neat freaks may cringe, but let them.