Lao Tian Dumpling House offers a variety of mouth-watering dishes to warm you up this Winter Quarter.
Located at 1115 Emerson St., Lao Tian Dumpling House is a 10-minute walk from South Campus and steps away from The Reserve Apartments stop on the Loop Shuttle. Lao Tian Dumpling House opened in July 2024, replacing pizza joint Cantuccio’s.
Not only does the menu include a variety of meat and vegetarian dumplings, but there are a plethora of appetizers, such as the wood ear mushroom salad or the chilled pig ear slice, to satisfy any craving you might have.
Lao Tian Dumpling House’s cozy interior includes one large round table and counter seating. On a frigid Wednesday evening, the restaurant was bustling with takeout orders from students and Evanstonians alike.
Hitting our midweek slump, we were looking forward to a casual comfort meal. We’re happy to report Lao Tian Dumpling House did not disappoint.
We started off our meal with an order of scallion pancakes, a fried, flaky flatbread with layers of scallions inside. These pancakes came to our table fresh out of the fryer with a side of oyster sauce to dip. The scallions offered a sharp flavor, which the oyster sauce cut through with a touch of sweetness. This dish primed our taste buds for the next course.
Now for the main event: the dumplings. Lao Tian Dumpling House boasts over 20 different handmade dumpling varieties, from pork and corn to zucchini and mushroom.
We ordered the xiao long bao, which are steamed soup dumplings filled with a savory broth and a juicy ball of pork. Our preferred way to enjoy xiao long bao is poking a hole in the chewy wrapper with one chopstick, slurping up the broth and then devouring the dumpling. The soup provided a burst of warmth, and the pork was salty and tender.
Of course, we couldn’t just get one order of dumplings, so we opted to try the steamed egg, shrimp and chives dumplings as well. The wrapper was thin and soft, and the filling was so flavorful. The shrimp filling makes for a slight crunch when biting into the warm, juicy dumplings. We complemented our dumplings with a concoction of soy sauce and chili oil crunch, adding hints of spice and crispiness to these flavor bombs.
With an extensive menu full of delicious dumplings paired with efficient service, Lao Tian Dumpling House is the perfect cozy dinner spot to get you through this winter freeze. Stop by and pick up what will probably be your winter quarter meal fixation.
Email: [email protected]
Email: [email protected]
Related Stories:
— Open Tab: Backlot Coffee brightens up spring quarter with seasonal drinks, pastries
— Open Tab: DeSalvo’s Pizza puts creative spin on ’za by the slice
— Open Tab: Exploring Jeni’s new tasty extraterrestrial flavors
