Rickshaw Dumpling Bar

So upset that this place has closed. There were so many seats and the place was always kept so clean. The service was quick and food consistent. I was totally in love with their sesame noodle salad. Could eat like 5 containers in one sitting. I hope I’ll still be seeing the truck around at least.

You know, Richshaw is not trying to reinvent the wheel, and Anita Lo’s casual dumpling bar is trying. Yes, its americanized, and yes its costlier than Chinatown, but its not a terrible place to duck in for a quick bite in a very expensive neighb.
Choices include dumplings, noodle soups, baos, and salads ranging from $ 4 – 6. Its fast, cashiers are friendly, and they have sriracha.

This was my first visit here. I didn’t think just the dumplings alone would fill me up so I decided on the Rickshaw Regular. I ordered the Chicken & Thai Basil Dumplings with the Warm Sesame Noodles.
I dug in to the noodles before the dumplings and at first bite it tasted great but getting further into the bowl, the sauce tasted more and more like peanut butter. I think the lime, chopped peanuts and cucumber gave it a nice touch but this just wasn’t for me.
As for the dumplings, they were tasty. I was not too keen on the sauce, I got an overwhelming coconut flavor and it was on the sweet side. They actually were delicious with some soy sauce.
I give the customer service an A+. The cashier was really friendly and helpful. My order was completed super quick. The space itself and the kitchen looks really clean. The price is what you would expect for the area.
I would definitely visit again and try some other dumplings.

Had lunch here today. I tried the kimchi beef dumplings and the szechuan chicken dumplings. Also tried the mushroom buns and pork buns.
The beef kimchi dumplings were a little too oily for me. The chicken ones I really liked.
I ordered the pork buns since they reminded me of Ippudo but alas! I was disappointed. very average.
The dumpling choices aren’t bad — I would try it again. 3 stars!

Sad excuse for a dumpling bar.
I had the Duck and the Pork dumplings and they were already waiting for me on a tray by the time I finished paying. This would be great news if they weren’t cold, rubbery and bland. When places like Vanessa’s exist and serve up plump, hot, and delicious dumplings for pocket change, it felt a bit like robbery to get just a few scrawny ones for 6 dollars.
If they spent half as much time on their cooking as they did with their branding, they might get somewhere.

Closer to 3.5 stars.
After having to go to register for classes at Touro, my boyfriend and I needed a pick-​me-​up snack and we had seen the Rickshaw dumpling truck so decided to duck into the bar. After studying the menu, and obviously checking Unilocal,we decided to order the Chicken and Basil dumplings with the peanut satay and the herby spring rolls. When we got the order, the dumplings were nice and warm with the sauce on the side. The spring rolls however were served cold, which I found strange. The dumplings had a nice taste and tasted good with the dipping sauce, however we actually preferred the peanut sauce that came with the spring rolls rather than the one with the dumplings. The spring rolls were OK. I feel that I may have liked them a bit more if they were warm, or at least not cold. I may go back and try a few other things… especially a chocolate dumpling that caught my eye. But overall-​not bad.

Quick service and decent food for a fast lunch. Chocolate dumplings were fun and interesting it messy.
A decent, neighborhood alternative to Shake Shack if you don’t want to wait an hour for lunch.

I visited this Rickshaw location for lunch 4x. The last visit is probably my final visit. The food comes out lightening fast. They called my number as soon as I finished paying.
The dumplings’ flavors are good, but they don’t taste like they were steamed fresh. The dumpling skin is so dried out and chewy. I ordered the kimchi beef dumplings twice and they were so oily inside. The grease spills out when you bite into it and it ruined one of my dresses.
I also tried their special-​bulgogi beef bun. I didn’t taste any bulgogi marinade. The bun was very dry and bread-​like. The «bulgogi» looked like a hamburger patty– made of ground meat.
The tangerine-​limeade drink? Mostly ice and the drink was gone in a few long sips… and cost $ 4.50.
The miso noodle soup was the nail in the coffin. The broth tasted like raw flour. I think it’s because the noodles are heavily floured to keep from sticking and they just throw that in the broth when ordered. Terrible… and I can’t forget the disgusting taste.
I am so disappointed with the lack of attention to detail and poor execution. Their website looks amazing, but unfortunately, their food is not.

Save your money. Coming here was stupid.
Very americanized interpretation. I can’t remember the last time biting into a piece of FOOD so deeply offended me. Chicken and basil dumplings were bland, and the curious mayo-​like peanut sauce it came with conflicted on SO many levels.
Their buns are ~$ 4 and not worth a single, single bite.
Also, I was intrigued by their «ginger mint hot chocolate» — ginger too «subtle» to contribute. Basically thick hot chocolate syrup. If you’re into that thing.
*
Don’t do this to yourself. If you are craving dumplings and pressed for lunch, Vanessa’s at union square is ONE STOP AWAY.
Extra upset at this «interpretation» of «the orient.» Stop.

First time here and unfortunately I’m not impressed. Ordered 3 of the pork and 3 of the thai chicken basil. I actually liked the chicken better than the pork as the pork had a weird aftertaste. Couldn’t even finish eating the three.
They get two stars because the price is right and there were a few more options though I doubt I’ll ever be back to try them. The décor is also pretty cute and the line moved supremely fast.
My general opinion… ehhhhhh

I’ve always been a big fan of their mobile trucks, so I was pretty stoked to be located near delivery distance from the actual storefront.
Ordered three different dumplings, pork, chicken and basil, and kimchee and beef. Delivery didn’t take too long. My only gripe was the sesame noodles. When I’ve purchased it from the trucks, the dish is vermicilli noodle based. This version was more like the peanut noodle sauced, thick white noodle and rather slimy — so not sure if they replaced my order with something else.
Dumplings were good and the ice-​tea was decent.
Think I may stick to ordering it on the food trucks.

This place is perfectly adequate. I’d give it 3.499 stars. Not quite enough to round up to 4. I was brought here by a friend, and we had a fine lunch here. The dumplings were reasonably good but not great. The price was a bit high. The miso was kind of meh. I wanted to order a combo which would have been a better deal, but I was told that in order to do that you needed to order 6 of the same kind of dumping. Which I thought: boring! This was my first time there and I wanted to try a couple. So I spent a bit more to do so.
I couldn’t really tell you what I ordered, a couple weeks later. The hot tea was good though.

The friendly cashier girl recommended the chicken & thai basil dumplings to me and they were delicious! As a Taiwanese-​American, I have a deep love for authentic dumplings and refused to eat here for years. I decided to give it a go today when I needed a quick bite and found the service to be extremely quick and friendly.
After I got back to the office, I dove into the take out box and found the dumplings to be of perfect size with good skin to filling ratio. The dumplings were hot, flavorful, comforting and delicious even without the dipping sauce.
The small order comes with three pieces, medium comes with 6 and large comes with 9. I ordered the 6 which is about a dollar a piece. A bit pricey by chinatown standards but we’re also not in chinatown.
I’d definitely go back again.

Wow, had the beef kimchi today (comes with a spicy mayo) and once again I am satisfied! The people here are also friendly, by now they know me and ask how I am doing. This is dumpling heaven.

YUP, they are right…“Nice Dumplings.”
I only been here once, but I am making this one of my favorite, quick lunch or snack spot.
I came here with my boyfriend and got the Medium Classic Pork Dumping, but I swear, I thought it said «Chinese Chivas-​something» when I ordered on the line. I rate this dumping ⁹⁄₁₀. I love how the dumpling is crisp like it was actually fried, and not steamed on the outside, but when you bite in, the meat was so juicy. The sauce that they had was a bit spicy when you first try it and gets better then. I definitely recommend this!
We also got the Miso Noodle Soup. It didn’t taste like Miso soup that I normally get from the Japanese Cruise, instead it tasted like beef boil soup. But I like the Udon noodle they use; so I rate this ⁷⁄₁₀.
I ordered a Thai Ice Tea, but they were out; so I switched to the Iced Green Tea. The cashier was nice about it, and kindly refunded the differences. The green tea is 2/10…It is unsweetened, which I like about it… but the taste was different, from the normal green tea I drink… it was more of a «wet-​wood» taste and smelled like it too.
Overall, I think this space is awesome… definitely will go back and try the rest of their dumping in all different styles.

Just ok

In the commercial district of the flatiron its a trendy dumpling shop catering towards the worker bees. Pricey and shall i say gourmet dumplings.
To me you can get way better dumplings for a more affordable price in chinatown. i went with the chicken basil dumplings. the skin to me was too thick and on the seal of the dumpling it was way hard and petrified either by being cooked too long or too much egg wash being pressed in. Even the filling didn’t stand out with flavor. I did like the dipping sauce though. It had a nice flavor of coconut, sesame oil, and soy. Also the limeade was very refreshing.
Would i come back for these pricey dumplings. No.

I will add a caveat to my review, I’m not a huge dim sum fan, and not a big Asian food enthusiast. Had a quick dinner here with my mom. We’re both vegetarians and were impressed with the amount of choices. We ordered:
— Peanut Sate Side Salad * * *
— Herby Spring Rolls * * * * *
— Mini Miso Soup * * * *
— Miso Noodle Soup * *
— Shittake Mushroom Bun * *
— Medium Edamame Steamed Dumplings (6) * * * /​* * * *
We both loved the Spring rolls, if you like cilantro, you’ll like these. The peanut dipping sauce was really nice too.
We both liked the Miso side soup better than the Miso noodle soup because the noodles weren’t that great and were very starchy.
I enjoyed the preparation of the mushrooms, but did not really care for the bun part. Usually buns have a meat filling, so I’ve never had them before, so perhaps its just not my thing.
I really liked the dumplings’ skin, but was not crazy about the edamame ginger filling, but they definitely were flavorful with the sauce.
We were both full and the whole meal was $ 23.50, which is pretty cheap. I think this place packs ‘a big bang your buck’, you get some pretty big flavors for not too much money.

$ 6 for 6 dumplings?! well, they sure had better be good.
This supposedly famous dumpling truck was just meh to me. Very nice service from the girl taking orders, but yeah… nothing special and very expensive for what it is.
Credit card not accepted if I recall correctly.
Ah well. Lesson learned: go to Chinatown for dumplings.

I’ve never been so incensed in my life at gimmicky Asian restaurants serving bad versions of our food until now. Let me explain. I have heard diametrically opposing views on Rickshaw. «Oh, it’s heavenly. The dumplings are the food of the gods! Anita Lo is a master,» versus, «This place sucks balls». I needed to check this out for my own peace of mind.
The verdict. A resounding amen to the latter, more crude but painfully honest assessment (folks, it’s past the point of opinion; it’s a truth statement!)
With the somewhat cute name of «Rickshaw» at least give me a warm and deliciously authentic dumpling. Instead, what do I get? An ungodly and expensive paper carton, full of the most bland and soggy tasting dumplings I have ever had the displeasure of eating. I came here a few weeks ago and was flabbergasted at the level of fail that Rickshaw revealed to me. The peanut noodle soup sounded like it would be a fabulous dish. What it really is, a small bowl of sad ingredients. Watery and disgusting, like a spoonful of jiffy poured into a bowl of boiling water (apologies to Jiffy!). The noodles? I can’t even begin to speak of the desecration of such a Chinese staple. I couldn’t even finish my meal.
Gimmicky name + Bad food = Disappointment.
(Two «Wongs» Don’t Make A Right. It’s okay people, I am Asian!)
What was nice about this place was the friendly service and the seating area. We stayed for nearly 3 hours chatting and trying to forget the miserable food in front of us. You are better off going to Chinatown and getting the fragrant and amazing dumplings from a street vendor. They are el cheapo and completely fabulous.
P. S. — nice touch though, with the equally gimmicky wok-​mirror in the bathroom. Shaking my head.