If the name of Wang's Shanghai Cuisine rings a bell, you are not imagining things. Yes, it is indeed the same people who brought you some of the GVRD's best Xiao Long Bao from a little stall in Crystal Mall. They sadly left us almost 5 years ago and was replaced by Xu's which incidentally produced some decent XLBs themselves. However, the beloved Wang's was only a memory... until now. Situated right next to London Drugs and in the same plaza as Honolulu Cafe, Wang's is back as a full-fledged restaurant no less.
Tipped off by Whipping Girl, I couldn't wait and had to visit the place at the first chance. The first thing to hit the table was what we were here for - the Xiao Long Bao. Graced with a relatively thin and toothsome dumpling skin (while a bit thick at the twist), the filling was moist and tender. There was a decent amount of soup which was sweet and slightly gingery. A very respectable XLB. Next, we had the Potstickers which could've used a longer sear as it wasn't exactly crispy on the bottom. Despite this, the dumpling skin was appealingly chewy. As for the pork filling, there was a balanced amount of cabbage mixed in. In turn, there was a cabbage finish to the initial natural meat flavour.
Moving away from dumplings, we tried the Dan Dan Noodles which were dressed in a watery both. This was definitely peanutty with only the slightest hint of spice. In fact, the aromatics were fine, but there was a complete lack of savouriness. As much as the noodles were al dente and appealing, there was an overall lack of flavour and impact. Going for another classic, we had the Szechuan Braised Beef Noodles as well. Sporting toothsome noodles as well, the broth was definitely spicy. However, there was a general lack of depth which made the soup one-note with only the slightest background licorice notes from the star anise. The braised beef shank was flavourful and super tender, but possibly too much so as it began to break apart.
Back to the dumplings, we had the Spicy Wontons next. Although there was a considerable amount of chili oil present, the dish itself was not that spicy. Rather, there was this toasted nutty aroma with only a touch of chili (also missing savouriness as well). However, the wontons themselves were excellent. They were plump, juicy and impactfully seasoned. We couldn't get out of there without ordering the Shanghai Stir-Fried Rice Cake because it is a kid favourite. The kiddies seemed to like it, but I felt there could've been a touch more caramelization. It consisted of chewy, yet soft sliced rice cake with crunchy Napa cabbage and not-tenderized pork. Not bad, but could've used some tweaks.
Lastly, we had the Deep Fried Mini-Buns (Mantou) served with condensed milk. We thought the buns were a bit dense and dry. Furthermore, they could've used half-a-minute more in the deep-fryer as the outside wasn't crispy enough. But the kids ate them happily anyways. Now really, we didn't come here for the fried buns nor anything else. It was for the XLBs and Wang's more or less delivered.
The Good:
- Solid XLBs
- Friendly enough people
- Inexpensive
The Bad:
- The rest of the food could use a few tweaks
- Super small place
Wang's Shanghai Cuisine
#110 - 3328 Kingsway
Vancouver, B.C.
604-428-6818
Open 11:00am - 10:00pm
Closed on Wed
Wang's Shanghai Cuisine
Posted by
Sherman Chan
on Saturday, September 26, 2015
Labels:
Noodles,
Shanghainese,
Vancouver
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