Who’s it for? Comfort food fans.
What should I order? The sheng jian buns, bite-sized Shanghai-style soup dumplings.
Order the sheng jian buns at the tiny counter at this rue Beaubourg joint, and settle down to watch the chefs prepare tiny dumplings from the Shanghai region. Made with wheat flour, these baos are then topped with meat or vegetables and then folded up, before being pan-fried.
There is no seating inside, so if weather permits, nab an iron table outside. How do you eat them once they arrive though? Start by taking a tiny bite from the corner of the bun, use the straw to slurp out the soup from the dumpling and pop the rest of it in your mouth. The pork and corn bao with black rice vinegar are so good you’ll burn your mouth.
Don’t miss the traditional noodles from Chongqing, a city in the Sichuan province: flavoured with coriander, peanuts, spring onions, fried peas, chilli and Sichuan pepper. Expect your mouth to go slightly numb after eating – but you can adjust the spice levels when you order. With its tasty fillings and jaw-droppingly low prices, this soup dumpling joint ticks all the boxes.