The name 21G means the weight of each Xiao Long Bao. This place opened last year in the Bastille area focused on Chinese cooking. Looking at the menu, you can see dishes from Hong Kong (egg waffle and pineapple bun), Taiwan (Gua Bao), Shanghai (Xiao Long Bao) and Jiangnan (red braised pork).
The decoration was modern with light wood and sanded glass, quite a departure of typical Chinese joint. I read somewhere the owner was French, they hired a Chinese chef. The day of our visit, the server was French, the kitchen helpers were South Asia (probably Indian or Pakistan origin), a few Chinese helping out in the kitchen.
Xiao Long Bao - the classic with pork and ginger, black garlic 10€. The skin was thin and soup was kept inside the dumpling, pretty good sign and especially to find this quality in Paris.
Xiao Long Bao with tiger shrimp lemon glass and coconut water 12€
The ginger used for the vinegar was sliced too thick and too few.
Siu Mai with duck, with hoisin and orange peel - 11,5€ dried peel on the top, taste alright
Peking noodle with peanut butter sauce - I find the peanut sauce too overwhelming, a bit too heavy
Marinated pork belly with soy sauce and ginger, with red cabbage with white rice 11€- similar to the red braised pork belly in oil. Not bad, but very heavy for a hot summer day, would preferred this dish in winter.
The craftsmanship of dumpling and dim sum were better than most of the thick skin stuff in the 13th district, although most of what we had tasted were adapted to the French taste, like the shrimp XLB or the duck siu mai (they didn’t have the pork version but another with chicken).
With 2 Taiwanese beer at 5,50€, the bill for the meal for 2 was 62,50€. Service was friendly.
I will come back for the Gua Bao and the dessert.
21G Dumpling
167 Rue du Faubourg Saint-Antoine
75011 Paris
Reservation: www.21g-dumpling.com
Tel: 01 40 21 89 93
Closed Sunday and Monday
