First Look: Shanghai Taste Arrives in Plano from Vegas

Jimmy Li, a James Beard nominee for best chef in the Southwest, opened his dumpling shop Shanghai Taste in Las Vegas’ Chinatown in 2019. It specialized in xiao long bao, those lovely little soup dumplings often associated with the street food of Shanghai.

It proved popular, and a shop location was opened in Vegas, this time outside of Chinatown. Now, a third location, this time in North Texas, has opened to much rejoicing.

The new Texas location shop, in Plano, is a small affair in a narrow space with fewer than 50 seats. Part of the space is reserved for the prep area where you can watch diligent dumpling artisans plying their trade, kneading, rolling and forming the numerous varieties of dumplings.

Appetizers include crispy shrimp, beef tongue, Black Angus with crab stick, scallion pancake and sweet and sour ribs. Noodles, fried rice, soup and desserts are also available. But the headliner here is the dumplings.

We chose shen jian bao (pan-fried dumplings), crispy fried pork chops and traditional Shanghai soup pork dumplings. Then, in a happy surprise, we saw chao nian gao (Shanghai fried rice cakes) on the menu, and since we’re always on the lookout for these family favorites we ordered these as well.

Items are served one at a time, allowing time to enjoy each dish without distraction. The shen jian bao were the first to arrive, four to an order. They were topped with black sesame seeds and green onion with a slightly pan-fried bottom skin. They weren’t any easier to eat than a traditional soup dumpling, but you have to work for good food.

Next to arrive was the fried pork chop, several thin slices of breaded and fried strips with a good fat-to-meat ratio, not greasy and not too chewy.

There was a bit of a lull after the pork chop, and we took that opportunity to stand at the viewing window and watch the women making dumplings up front, which is always entertaining and informative.

The chao nian gao were brought out next and, in another happy surprise, were one of the best examples we’ve had of this dish in North Texas. Very thinly sliced pieces of tender pork, cabbage and onions accompanied the rice cakes in a richly flavorful sauce that we’re still thinking about.

Finally, the steamed soup dumplings arrived in a basket, and – following the recent trend – were of an odd number: seven. It’s hard to split a soup dumpling, so someone in our even-numbered party was out of luck. They were good, and it’s easy to see why Shanghai Taste is so popular: good skin with a flavorful interior, all perfectly steamed and simply presented.

This place is still really popular, and a wait developed while we ate. Even when we ordered, the restaurant had already run out of a couple of things we wanted, like the scallion pancake, ribs, cold bean curd noodles and crab stick. It’s probably best to go early or for lunch if you don’t want to wait and want access to the full menu.

This new location in North Texas lays waste to the bromide, “What happens in Vegas stays in Vegas,” showing that you don’t need one-armed bandits, dancing water fountains or a gigantic geodesic sphere to enjoy good xiao long bao.
109 Legacy Dr., No. 120, Plano. Daily, 11 a.m. – 9 p.m.