Dumpling Time

Asian restaurant · Santana Row

Dumpling Time

Asian restaurant · Santana Row

2

SERRANO Building, 378 Santana Row #1035, San Jose, CA 95128

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Highlights

Nestled in the vibrant Santana Row, Dumpling Time serves up upscale Asian dishes and handcrafted dumplings, including the impressive King Dum, amidst a lively atmosphere with friendly service.  

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SERRANO Building, 378 Santana Row #1035, San Jose, CA 95128 Get directions

dumplingtime.com

$20–30 · Menu

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SERRANO Building, 378 Santana Row #1035, San Jose, CA 95128 Get directions

+1 408 882 3469
dumplingtime.com

$20–30 · Menu

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Last updated

Jul 30, 2025

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@eater

12 Don’t-Miss Dumpling Destinations in San Jose and the South Bay

"Dumpling Time first opened five years ago in the Design District of San Francisco, but this location in Santana Row has brought the restaurant’s signature dumplings to the South Bay. Not only can visitors watch them being made by hand in the glass-walled dumpling room, but they can also enjoy Chinese staples that incorporate higher-end ingredients like lobster and wagyu. Dumpling Time also takes soup dumplings to the next level, with the King Dum, a giant soup dumpling served with a large bubble-tea straw to extract the hot broth. Guests rave about the tom yum soup dumplings with pork belly and coconut milk filling, wrapped in a beet-colored dough." - Cathy Park

https://sf.eater.com/maps/best-dumplings-san-jose-south-bay
View Postcard for Dumpling Time
@eater

New Restaurant Openings in the San Francisco Bay Area - Eater SF

"Popular San Francisco dumpling spot Dumpling Time brings its oversize XLB to San Jose’s Santana Row starting the week of December 13, per the San Francisco Chronicle. It’s the restaurant’s first South Bay location." - Becky Duffett

https://sf.eater.com/22686402/restaurant-openings-san-francisco-bay-area-fall-winter-2021
View Postcard for Dumpling Time

Natalie Caldwell

Google
Dumpling Time is in the middle of the bustling Santana Row, so when it’s nice out, highly recommend sitting at one of their outside tables (which also have heaters for when it gets a little chillier). The wait staff are super friendly and very accommodating. Just note, when it gets busy, things can get a little slower so bring your patience and note that your items will come out as they’re ready. For the food, definitely try all the dumplings (duh). Our favorites were the veggie spring rolls (nice and crispy with a sweet and sour dipping sauce), chicken gyoza (amazingly full and flavorful), pork soup dumplings (a little vinegar goes a long way), and BBQ pork bao (ask for them seared too, trust me). Of course you’ll want some noodles and a side - look no further than the wok-fried green beans (FANTASTIC), but I would say try something other than the Beijing noodles. Once we added the chili crisp to the bowl, it was perfect, but otherwise it needed a flavor boost. Great meal all around. Excited to go back to try even more of the various dumplings.

Dennis Weng

Google
I am not sure why this places gets such low average score. I have been here several times, and every time has been great. Food is always good, much better than any Din Tai Fung location in the US. Service have always been decent, and the place is always nice and clean. I don't really have anything negative to say about the place. The prices might be a little high compares to other dumpling place, but this is on Santa Row, so the higher prices is to be expected.

M S MS

Google
Dumpling Place is a must-visit! The attentive staff, particularly Alberto and his brother Daniel, made our experience even better. The seaweed dishes, bao siomai, and other options were all delicious. Prices during happy hour are a great treat. Sitting on the outside patio, watching people stroll through beautiful Santana Row Square, adds to the ambiance. Quality food and a lovely atmosphere make this spot a standout. Highly recommend!"

Suman Hazra

Google
We initially plan to have dinner here, but one of our friends is vegetarian, and they don’t have a lot of vegetarian dishes. So we ended up having just the broccoli and spring roll and had dinner elsewhere. The broccoli was nicely quoted in garlic and was still crispy. The spring roll was fresh and crunchy, but the filling were just okay. The service seemed a little cold and rushed. The restaurant itself is pretty large, but it was largely empty Friday night. We chose to sit outside as it was nice and cool.

Sushmitha Belede

Google
I had the wagyu beef gyoza, veggie dumplings and the crab dumplings. I liked the veggie and wagyu ones. But they’re mid. Oh edamame was nice and spicy. The staff was super nice. We took a lot of time to eat, they let us chill and eat patiently even though they closed and were cleaning up.

Rafael DeAusen

Google
I always enjoy sitting at the bar here. Seated immediately and often Octavio is there guiding me on the new stuff on the menu. Fast service. Delicious food. Cold beer and drinks. Fair pricing esp considering it's right on Santana Row. Don't sleep on this spot!

D F

Google
We were shopping on Santana row and wanted something to eat that a pescatarian and meat eater could both like which we did!!! Great customer service and I appreciated that the waiter saw the error right before placing my order of rice with no egg. He immediately apologized and had the kitchen to remake. The food was good and quick

Linh Tran

Google
We were hanging out Santana Row. Try this place out. Most foods are pretty good and interesting. I have a good time. I do recommend this place.
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Monica H.

Yelp
What Time Is It?? Dumpling Time!! Located right in the heart of @santanarow is @itsdumplingtime where you can find Asian dishes reimagined with fresh local ingredients. The restaurant is very spacious and features a full bar. If we were alcohol drinkers, we'd definitely be visiting Dumpling Time for happy hour for some drinks and good food. They have a Henny Boba drink that sounds amazing for some people haha Right now, they're running a special for happy hour where you can get your first beer for $1 and subsequent beers at menu prices, or $2 off one of their cocktails. We can't speak for the cocktails but we did get two of their new mocktails and it was very well made and looked great. The food options were plentiful from small dishes to noodle bowls. Of course, you can't go to a place called Dumpling Time without getting dumplings so we made sure to order the gyoza, Tom Yum XLB (Soup Dumpling with Tom Yum soup), and chili pork dumplings. The dumplings all tasted great and you can even see them being made in the front of the restaurant when you walk in. The Shrimp toast was a shrimp paste made on a Chinese donut with sauce. Overall, we really enjoyed our lunch at Dumping Time and would highly recommend it as a place to stop for some great eats or happy hour if you're at Santana Row!
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Dave D.

Yelp
Dumping time is decent and quick and the facility is new and clean. The service is friendly and the orders came out fast. But the food quality leaves room for improvement. The Shu Mai was hot and had a decent consistency, but lacked flavor. The XLB was doughy and just not very tasty. The Beijing noodles had a weird sweetness to it, and the noodles were chewy. The pork gyoza was actually the best thing we ordered. Flavorful with nice consistency and crunch. Overall, there are better options for less money.
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V T.

Yelp
Awful. The staff were really nice. But you already know it isn't going to be anywhere near authentic Chinese food despite the name having Chinese characters when none of the staff are even Asian, and there's Spanish radio playing so loud from the kitchen reverberating into the restaurant while clashing with KPop radio. What a sensory nightmare. But I deal with worse when seeking good food. Hello sticky table restaurants sometimes, right? I can definitely overlook the setting for food, always. Except the food wasn't great and the portions were tiny. From the price level, I was assuming high quality, flavor bombs. It was significantly lack luster. Our noodles' sauce didn't stick to the noodles so it all moved to the bottom of the bowl, leaving the noodles lacking in flavor with no meat or veggies sticking on it at all. The meat and veggies were eaten separately, after the noodles were gone. I forgot what the noodles were called but it was basically zhajiang mian gone wrong. Our veggie dumplings were soggy skinned that stuck to each other and broke while we picked each up. The filling was a strange concoction with too much leek and carrots, and not much other flavor. More bizarre, it was plated with a f'ing SALAD. What in the caucasity??! The tomyum xiao long bao did not taste like tomyum at all. The soup inside tasted like corn soup. The sauce it came with was just straight up vinegar with no other flavor. Very sad all around, and the bill just slaps you on the face. Don't get me wrong, Chinese food definitely has a place for finer dining-- see Palette Dim Sum and Dragon Beaux. But this was NOT it.
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JoAnn Y.

Yelp
For traditional dim sum come to Cupertino. This was just ok. I tried the wood mushroom salad. It was a bit spicy for me. My companion had fried rice with chicken and egg. The portion was fairly generous. They have a help wanted sign in front, and one young man seemed to be the host and waiter. Service was a little lacking as a result.
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Amy V.

Yelp
We went for an early dinner and were seated right away by the host. Service was okay considering the restaurant wasn't packed, but it wasn't consistent and the workers kept talking around us in Spanish. Food was pretty good. I enjoyed the juiciness of the xiu mai and the XLBs. The skin got pretty tough if it wasn't eaten right away but the soup inside was flavorful. I wasn't a fan of the chili butter(?) sauce that came with the wagyu gyoza but that might have been because even the worker was unsure what it was when we asked. I enjoyed the trio of buns, though! However, because it was a dessert, I wish it came out last instead of first. I love eating dessert first before the meal so I had no issue with it but my husband doesn't, so by the time we both had it, the filling was cold :( Only downside of the restaurant was waiting about 15 minutes for a waiter to wrap up the bill after receiving the check and one of the stalls in the bathroom didn't have any toilet paper or liners.
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Kenzie T.

Yelp
I work on Santana row and went here with a coworker for lunch. If you sit outside during lunch or dinner time it's a nice vibe with everyone walking around Santana row. I got the shrimp garlic needs they also had broccoli as seen in the photo and it was delicious. We also got the spicy edamame- we wished it had a little more flavor but it was still good. We also got some pork dumplings and they were to die for! We loved how soft the dough was. Will def be back!
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Anh L.

Yelp
Dumpling Time is located in the strip of Santana Row. There are a lot of shops and restaurants around. Parking is limited and it still gets crowded on a weekday, so find parking accordingly! This is quite a nice place. They have table seating indoors and outdoors. On some days, it can get pretty windy. Going on a weekday, the crowd is not too bad, and the servers will get to you right away. The servers were very attentive. Some of the dishes I got include the wakame seaweed salad, pork and shrimp siu mai, and crispy tofu. I think I like the tofu best, but I think the salad tasted a bit odd. The price was quite expensive but that's because it's in a prime location. Three dishes made me full but I could have tried other dishes than these.
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Annabelle R.

Yelp
Decent food. We got the pork and shrimp siu mai, maine lobster siu mai, shrimp garlic noodles, and cucumber salad. All of the items were tasty and filled my hunger, though none really stood out in terms of flavor. Service was friendly. But, we had to ask for help at the bar at some point cuz general waitstaff was not as attentive to our needs at our table. The setting was modern and inviting with ample indoor and outdoor seating available on a Sunday evening. And parking was free and easy, with plenty of spaces in the SR garages or parking lot around the corner.
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Jane D.

Yelp
Beautiful restaurant in a great location with such subpar food. Which is so disappointing because I really wanted to like this place! You order on a QR code and food comes out quickly and well presented. The food is incredibly bland, especially the Beijing noodles (I had to ask for both soy sauce and vinegar to make this more palatable). BBQ pork buns - I don't know what the filling was but it definitely was not chasiu. Somehow even the lamb dumplings were bland, and lamb is one of the most flavorable proteins. I love both authentic and fusion restaurants if they do it right, but unfortunately dumpling time was just not it for me.
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Rebecca G.

Yelp
We strolled Santana Row and we were ready for dinner and decided to try Dumpling Time which is also featured on Eater's best places to eat in Santana Row / Valley Fair. The outdoor seating area was nice and lured us in. For our group with three adults and one preschooler, we ordered the cucumber salad, Beijing noodles, shrimp toast, lamb dumpling, pork gyoza, and BBQ Pork Bao. I thought the dishes were ok. I didn't care for the lamb dumplings which felt like cumin dumplings. The cumin was very overpowering. I thought the Beijing noodles lacked flavor. They were kind of bland. The pork gyoza and the fried pork buns were both good. They were crisp, yet juicy/moist inside. Fried dumplings aren't necessarily my thing, yet those were definitely the best dishes here. The shrimp toast was different than we were expecting. B that's one of my British mother-in-law's go-to dishes she orders in England, so when I spotted that I thought we should get it. I liked it, but it wasn't what we thought it would be. The texture was more like a Chinese donut than typical shrimp toast. The flavors were good and I enjoyed the spicy mayo that they served drizzled on top, but this was definitely a different rendition of this dish. Overall, this restaurant was fine. No regrets coming here, but I wasn't overly impressed with the food. It was just ok. None of the dishes were memorable or stood out. Nothing was a must order and it wasn't cheap either. I wouldn't return or choose to dine at another location, but it was fine to have tried it.
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Jessica H.

Yelp
Hmm, dumpling time was very mediocre- nothing impressive or flavorful to our disappointment. The bbq pork baos were alright. The bao was okay, but with a pork filling that tasted a little old (you know when pork has that old porky smell in an unpleasant way? It was a bummer to have I'll say). The bao was also overly wet and moist, and had some mushy pleating action on top. Perhaps more people get it seared? Still though, steamed baos shouldn't be that wet. Moving onto the chili pork dumplings, these were the best of what we ordered. The dumpling was good with a nice chili oil sauce underneath. Lastly, the chicken gyoza had a good presentation, but was lacking in so much flavor, it's embarrassing! There was a good filling of chicken and mushroom inside, but unfortunately it was not seasoned at all. At least we had our chili oil and soy sauce on hand, but we shouldn't rely on these to give flavor to the gyoza.
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Lizey N.

Yelp
Wow I thought this would be an average dumpling spot but I was surprised but a few of their unique plates. First of all, the garlicky green beans were soooo tasty and divine! We ordered a second one because it tasted so good - garlicky, light spicy, a bit of smokiness to it. I enjoyed it so much. The shrimp toast is also another one that was interesting and I really liked. The toast is like a Chinese donut (cha kwai) with shrimp and spicy mayo - super delicious. I would actually come back here again for more! We sat outside on a nice sunny day and it was perfect, although the seating area inside looked nice too. Service was great, I think it was the manager that was very attentive to us outside.
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Heather Violet B.

Yelp
Finally got to eat here when my friend and I caught a showing of Poor Things at the adjacent Cine-Mark theater. We wanted to fill up prior to the movie in this place fit the bill perfectly! Right off, I loved the portion sizes. I thought they were perfectly sized to share for two people We ordered: Beijing noodles, shrimp and pork siu mai, garlicky green beans, pork gyoza; and finished up with the trio of buns. Whew! Beijing noodles 3.5/5: good ratio of meat sauce to noodles. Was slightly bland, could've used a little bit more flavor. Shrimp and pork sui mai 4/5: tasty. I'm not a huge siu mai lover, but these tasted fine. Garlicky green beans 5/5: if I see these on the menu, I will always order them. I absolutely love them. These guys did a stellar job! Pork gyoza 5/5: these were absolutely epic in my opinion one of the best gyozas I've ever had! Almost like a potsticker (which I adore!) our server said that they were his favorite too! Sweet Bao: Trio of buns 5/5: oh my goodness so good! The buns were so warm and doughy. Loved the fillings. Green Tea, Milk Tea and another custard...so good! Definitely need to go back as there's a lot of other things I need to try!
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Sunil R.

Yelp
I met a friend who was staying at Hotel Valencia here for an early dinner. There were very few people there and it was nice to have it mostly to ourselves. I know it is a popular spot that gets busy so it was nice to be able to have an unhurried meal without worrying about other customers waiting. The food and fresh team were above average and the service was good too.
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Vrushali N.

Yelp
A friend suggested we meet here and I'm so glad I let her choose the place instead of picking one myself! There are so many dining options in Santa row, but when you're a dumpling fiend like me this place is heaven. I saw that this place doesn't have the best rating on Yelp so I was definitely not expecting the incredible experience I ended up having. We ordered for Drinks: Gimlets Old fashioned's Vodka martinis Please notice the plurals because we ordered second and third rounds of most drinks, they were that good! For food: Chicken gyoza Seafood gyoza Har gow (shrimp dumpling) String beans Fried tofu Egg fried rice Vegetable dumplings I can honestly say our party of four did not find one thing wrong with our food, our drinks or service. The food was so on point in flavor, portions and texture and the drinks absolutely hit the spot. Service by Cedric was more than satisfactory, and the time between ordering and the food showing up was super quick. This considering that restaurent was packed on a Friday night. Women's Restrooms were clean but only had two stalls, a little less compared to the seating capacity! I'm already thinking of when I'm going back again for those amazing dumplings!
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Marie L.

Yelp
Came here on a Friday evening around 6PM before the dinner rush came in and we were met with the slowest service. It's almost as if we were forgotten a few times and no server was found. We ordered a lot of food that consisted of XLB, potstickers, fried rice, garlic shrimp noodles, and some spicy wontons. It was okay. Pretty pricey for small portions. The ambience was good for date night. We were there with friends and family. The tables are so small and frustrating. Plates were small, we weren't even given a rice bowl. So we struggled a bit to eat the rice off of a plate with chopsticks. Maybe hire more servers?
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Shelby S.

Yelp
This restaurant is good, not the best dumplings I've had but worth a try if you are in Santana row and would like a quick bite. The service is quick so the definition of a quick bite. The cocktails are fine and some dishes are better than others. The pork noodles and garlicky noodles are the best by far, I was expecting more from the dumplings and lobster sui mai but are good.
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Rich H.

Yelp
Found a cool dumpling spot in Santana Row. Had no idea this place existed--my loss. I had movie tickets at Icon in Valley Fair and decided to give Dumpling Time a try. It was a great choice on short notice. First, they have great house drinks. The Far East Side was very good and I had two. The cucumber in it was a nice twist and definitely different. I had two. I love Hong Kong style food and there this upscale flair to it. I'll simply provide pictures as they look so good. My favorite: lobster Siu Mai. I could eat 30 of those. A close second place: the vegetarian fried rice. I am so glad I discovered this place. And yeah, I'm definitely going back.
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Krajicek K.

Yelp
Food average, had better dumplings. Many dishes lacking flavor. Service subpar due to understaffed. Not much service when only 1 waiter managing 9 tables. The busperson doesn't take orders and didn't tell the waiter that our table would like to order more food. Ordered: - BBQ pork bao - steamed and pan seared, one of the best dishes we ordered; - pork XLB and TomYum XLB - not much flavor, trending toward sweet than savory, had better ones somewhere else; - shrimp toast - didn't see any shrimp paste or shrimp, only see the Chinese fried bread with spicy mayo; - lamb dumplings - has a strong lamb gaming taste; - cucumber salad - crispy and spicy, maybe one of the best dishes we ordered; and - southeast fried rice noodles - OK but nothing extraordinary about it. The ambience tries to trendy with a bar serving alcohol and few TV screens having sports and music program on.
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Daisy S.

Yelp
First timer here! My friends love Dumpling Time and I was eager to find out why. I love to see that they have plenty of vegetarian and vegan options. It's a nice addition to the Santana Row food scene. The restaurant is spacious and offers indoor and outdoor seating. We were seated instantly on a Friday evening. The manager was super attentive and kept checking on us to make sure we were having a good experience. The menu is online via a QR code. We ordered the crispy tofu squares and vegan fried rice to share and I had the vegetarian dumplings. The food came out super quick! I looooved the tofu squares. They were crispy but not overly fried and the sauce they pair with it is so yummy. The vegan fried rice was a generous serving to share but it was a little bland. I added soy sauce and chili sauce for more flavor. The dumplings were nice and tender. The veggie filling was yummy but also a little on the bland side. Paired with the spicy peppers and soy sauce I overall enjoyed them. I was told they have a great happy hour so I look forward to returning for that soon! :)
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Jonah B.

Yelp
I really enjoyed the food but it is really expensive for the portion sizes. I ate all of the food attached by myself and it cost about $50. I feel like there are dumpling places in the Bay Area that give more for cheaper at the same quality. Again, I enjoyed the food but don't see myself going out of my way to eat here with so many great food options on Santana Row. There's a lot of good looking items on the menu so I would probably try some new things if I go back. My favorite of what I got was the Siu Mai and I would defiantly get that again. Besides that, the shrimp toast was ok, not a lot of shrimp. The Wagyu dumpling was good but not worth the extra markup compared to the other dumplings. Finally, I felt that the Beijing Noodles were just ok.
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Elaine L.

Yelp
I did enjoy my meal. However, I have definitely had better dumplings. I don't know if maybe I've just become a bit of a dumpling snob ever since I've experienced really good dumplings at other restaurants. Nevertheless. I did enjoy my meal. But it just left me feeling rather mid. I ordered the Beijing noodles. The meat was flavorful, but yet it was still lacking the kick that I was hoping for. I put some chili oil on top of it and that helped the flavor a bit. It wasn't bad, but like I said I've definitely had much of her. I also ordered the pork and shrimp shumai. They had these weird little crunchy balls on the top. They were kind of hard to eat. A little bit hard. But I did enjoy the flavor of the dumpling. It just had kind of a strange texture to it. The price was not outrageous. The ambiance was cute. And the service was good too. But I probably wouldn't come back just because I wasn't too impressed with the dumplings or the food.
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Angelina F.

Yelp
Stopped by Dumpling Time last night because we were in the area and it did not disappoint! We got there around 5:45 PM on a Thursday and there was luckily no wait. We were seated right away and were able to catch our favorite DT worker, Omar!! He's seriously the best and he always has a smile on his face. Glad to see he's still here! We ordered Shiu Mai, har Gow, garlicky green beans, Beijing noodles, & seafood gyoza. Everything was a hit. I personally think the seafood gyoza is the best out of all three gyoza options. The crispiness outside, along with the warm seafood in the middle always hits the spot. If you're in a drinking mood - the far east side is my favorite. It's got the perfect amount of freshness from the cucumber and mint.
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Craig V.

Yelp
The restaurant is quite large and service overall is quick and attentive. May have just been because I had talked to a friend about dim sum not being as good, but we found the food to be decent but expensive. I felt the experiences I had in the SF design district location had better tasting xlb and dumplings. The chili oil dumplings didn't have much flavor or saltiness. Overall, ordered 4 dishes and tea, and it came out to 32$ a person.
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Faith H.

Yelp
I have been here multiple times and have had an enjoyable experience. Today that was not the case. Today, I was served raw meat in my Tom Yum dumplings. This was noticed after we ate some and noticed the texture was strange and the temperature was off. I took one and pulled it open to cold raw meat inside. I asked for the manager to show him and he took the plate to "show the kitchen" when we said we were ready to leave, we notice they still charged us for the raw food! Terrible. We will not be back because nothing was said or shown to show that some would be different next time and the customer service was poor. Sad.
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Sherry Z.

Yelp
Nothing really to write home about for this place. We tried the lobster sui mai, normal xlb, tom yum xlb and the chili dumplings. It was interesting that they offered a henny boba which is a twist on jasmine milk tea with hennesey. The boba was subpar, i make better ones at home. The drink itself was ok. Service was just so so Not the place if you're looking for authentic dumplings but fun place to check out if you're in a drinking and chilling mood.
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Anna N.

Yelp
I would say this might be more of a 3.5 than a 3. I do enjoy Dumpling Time, but I feel like the quality & service are not consistent. Whenever I go to Dumpling Time, I usually order the following: -Garlicky green beans -Seafood gyoza -Cucumber salad -Shrimp toast -Crispy tofu All the other items are just okay to me. My tip is to ask for extra chili butter sauce so you can use to dip your shrimp toast in it. That combo is amazing!
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Kezia S.

Yelp
Def a good Santana Row find Good food and good price (especially for such a nice looking place) Had such a good time and the server was so helpful, def wanna take my family here one day
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Hong L.

Yelp
Ok, updating my review because I've been back a few times and the food has gotten better. They have also added a couple new menu items since I was here last. My favorite is still the tom yum dumplings and seafood gyoza, but the "new" items (steam or fried dumplings with chili peanut sauce) are pretty good! Although I enjoy the food here, I don't think I'll be coming back because not only is the food pricey, but they also charge a 4% LIVING WAGE FEE! I don't know when they started doing that, but only noticed it recently. Not cool.
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Amity H.

Yelp
Honestly, this was just okay... I had high hopes for this place as I've heard so many great things from their SF locations so I was excited to hear there was a location at Santana Row. To my surprise, there was no wait time on a Friday night 6:45pm especially since Santana Row is super crowded on weekends. Store was clean and had many tables as well as bar seating. Maine Lobster Siu Mai: 2.5/5 This attracted my attention so I was excited to try this dish! Had the texture of fish siu mai/fish tofu, couldn't really taste the lobster. Shrimp Toast: 3.5/5 Toast was good but barely any shrimp on top. Sauce provided on the side was a good pairing though. Seafood Gyoza: 3/5 Essentially a har gaw but in a gyoza form, but didn't taste the crab that was supposed to be inside. Tom Yum XLB: 3.5/5 This was probably the best dish from what we ordered. The tom yum aspect was unique and flavor was great, only thing was that the XLB skin/peel was breaking from taking it out of the grey foil tin so I recommend eating it straight from the tin to avoid breakage and the yummy juice won't spill out. OZ Lemon Lime Bitter: 2/5 Tasted like Sprite with Lime juice, nothing too special but it was refreshing! For me, it felt like some of the food lacked flavor or some items tasted like it was from the frozen food section of Asian markets. Service-wise, our table was never checked on except when we asked for the bill and they held onto the card machine to watch how much you tip which is awkward and made my friend feel uncomfortable. I probably won't be back to this location but I really want to try the SF locations as I've heard great things!
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Kristine F.

Yelp
It's been at least a year since they opened and I finally got to try this place out. They took over the old CA Bistro I used to have outdoor brunches at. Probably one of the first times I got asked if I had a reservation and didn't have one! Check out OpenTable to book. Friday night wasn't too bad for a party of 2. A friend and I snagged the last indoor spot for 2 at the beginning of Independence Day weekend's heat wave! High ceiling and no phone signal, at least for my carrier. Eats: *Crispy Tofu Squares *Cucumber salad *Pork Gyoza *Pork XLB *Shrimp Toast *Har Gaw Cucumber salad was so refreshing! Red peppers added heat. Tofu cubes were fantastic! Love the crispy lattice "snowflake" of the gyoza! Large amount of filling. My favorite was the crispy crunchy yet chewy shrimp toast! Chinese doughnut base with mashed shrimp meat, similar to shrimp ball. I always think the ball has too much meat to carb ratio so the toast was great. Har gaw was standard with an interesting cilantro dipping sauce. XLBs were ok too. I didn't try the famous red Tom yum XLB this time. Polite customer service and food arrived pretty quickly, two dishes at a time. We stayed over two hours and never felt rushed. Pretty solid spot on the Row. Lots of dessert options nearby and Boba Guys too.
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Ariel O.

Yelp
We went to this place twice in two days while staying on Santana Row, and had 2 different experiences. The food was phenomenal both times, which is what made us return. I highly suggest the soup dumplings of course. The Saturday crew was much less attentive than Sunday crew. The cleanliness of the condiments was pretty gross and looked as though it hadn't been replaced or cleaned in days. Also, throughout our entire dinner although multiple people stopped by to drop off food, no one picked any of our dirty plates up. This normally wouldn't be an issue for us but it was a tiny table, and we had set out the dirties neatly to be picked up and each person who stopped or walked by ignored them. We also had to ask for silverware, chopsticks and water. This is why I knock 2 stars off. It's cute inside, and has good food.
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Vicky L.

Yelp
Food was good - presentation of food was even better! However, they are very short staffed and it took forever to get seated, to get service, and to get our food. Based on that, I don't know if I would come unless I saw it was very busy and happening and everyone was hustling to get food up and running. The space is really big and nice though, with a bar in the front. I love the open kitchen and the outdoor seating as well. What I'd order again: 1) Shrimp Toasts 2) Noodles
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Ivy C.

Yelp
Last night I had a horrible revelation. That yes, there is such thing as being TOO thick. It's like these dumpling peels get thicker and thicker every time I visit. And they weren't thin to begin with! Meanwhile, there's less and less flavor and filling. Nothing wrong with being a little thicc but thick AND empty XLB? Just no. Plus things have gotten so bland. There's just not enough goods to offset this level of thickness. The only items worth getting are lobster siu mai and their crispy tofu. And I know inflation is real and their rent is high. But if I just want solid dumplings, there are aplenty around bay area so can't say I'll be back. Also I will NEVER say "the thicker the better" ever again. Blah.
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Angeli S.

Yelp
Restaurant is pretty spacious. We ended up sitting outside since it was a nice day. The table was super sticky though like it hadn't been wiped down. There's a QR code at the table to look through the menu, but still ordered through the server. We ordered the cucumber chili salad. Spicy and flavorful - 5/5 Pork XLB. Was too doughy and the soup was a bit lacking in flavor - 3/5 Southeast fried rice noodle. Didn't taste the curry too much.. strong flavor of ginger. - 2/5 Pork gyoza. Presentation was nice, but a bit bland in taste - 3/5
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Rebecca W.

Yelp
Dumpling Time is a trendy restaurant with beautiful covered outdoor patio seating. I met a few friends for lunch here, and we had a great time. The service was super friendly and relatively fast. We ordered: SHUMAI: This was great! Flavorful, hot, great texture, and a satisfying bite of fatty juiciness. XLB: This left a lot to be desired. The filling was soupy yes but it lacked the depth of flavor that the XLB at Din Tai Fung have. Maybe it wasn't salty enough? I just felt very underwhelmed and that's why I'm docking a star. For a place called Dumpling House, you'd hope that they'd perfect their dumplings. Sweet Bun: This was a trio of desert buns that came with matcha, beet, and normal flavored buns. The inside of the bun was egg yolk custard, taro, and azuki (different filling for each bun). It was pretty decent, but I wasn't particularly wow'd by it. TOM YUM XLB: I'm a fan of Tom Yum but these XLB tasted a bit too sour for my taste. It had the same average underwhelming texture as the pork XLB. The skin just didn't have that satisfying chewiness that I had hoped for. For the quantity of food you get, the amount of food isn't very much. Everything is overpriced. Nevertheless, I had a great time here, as the ambience and service was great, and they let us sit there for 4 hrs catching up with each other.
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Eric M.

Yelp
Dumpling time is a great time! I left so full. Everything is full of flavor. I could eat a lot here! There want one thing I tried that I didn't like. Very nice inside and the staff is very helpful.

Amy H.

Yelp
One of my favorite places to eat for sure, especially because it's the first restaurant me and my friends like to think of before we go and eat. The presentation is stunning, the wait time is reasonable, and if course the food is delicious! The seating area is very aesthetically pleasing with such a relaxing ambiance which makes a great place to hangout as well. Would a 100% recommend.
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Jacquelyn L.

Yelp
Came here on a Sunday afternoon and we were seated pretty quickly. They have a nice outside area. We ordered the Chicken Fried Rice, Pork XLB, Garlicky Green Beans, Pork Gyoza, Ribs, Spicy Pork Dumplings, and the Veggie Spring Rolls (not pictured). All of the food came out hot. The Chicken Fried Rice, Pork XLB, and Garlicky Green Beans were delicious!! Perfect temperature & seasoned well. The Pork Gyoza were pretty large in size with a lot of filling & great taste. I wish we'd ordered more of these items instead of the others. I wouldn't order the Ribs again, they look nothing like the picture on the menu and were under seasoned. The Veggie Spring Rolls were average, nothing special about them. Spicy Pork Dumplings were good but the Gyoza & XLB were just better. The service was just okay. It was unclear who our server was, no one came to check on us frequently. Had to ask a couple times for drink refill, extra napkins, and check. Overall, I'd still eat here again!
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Lily D.

Yelp
Great for a last minute date night idea if you don't want to wait 2+ hours for Din Tai Fung. Service was quick and attentive. We were seated immediately since there was no one in line ahead of us. The ambiance was lit and cute. I admired they had heated lamps outside for the cozy vibe. You can't go wrong with Pork XLB. Of course, eat it while it's still piping' hot cause no one likes cold dumplings. I was disappointed with their Tom yum dumplings. The Tom yum broth was tasteless. My recommendation is to skip this and get an extra order of the pork XLB. The jellyfish salad was odd. Not it hadn't stung my mouth, but had a mix of strange flavours: spicy, bitter, and salty. My mouth went numb after this dish for a few minutes. I was burnt. FYI, this still doesn't compare to Din Tai Fung or Dough Zone (DTF's competitor) This is mediocre at best.
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Peter T.

Yelp
Not the best dumplings i've tried, in fact, they are some of the worst. The XLB is basically glued to the tin they cook it in and you have to employ effort to peel it out. This causes a puncture and you lose the juice inside. The dough to interior stuff coordination is terrible. You bite through the dough, the inside enters your mouth. Pork shu mai was ok. Again not the best. Large in size, moderately flavorful, but zero sense of elegance. We came here on a Friday night around 7:30pm and there were two other tables. I hate to say this but I don't see this place lasting long, the food is not good enough to be in Santana Row. Two positives which counts towards the second star, strong drinks, clean ass interior.
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Saleen L.

Yelp
To make it very clear - I came with pre-existing expectations of "Americanized dim sum" already set in my mind. So granted, after a few visits and giving it the benefit of doubt - it was just still so underwhelming for me and a no go. The place is simple and modern, with a good variety menu overall. Service has always been nice and no wait but I have only been here for lunch with no more than 2 ppl. Food Talk: (1) Lobster Siu Mai - meh, so much going on that I couldn't pin point or taste what really mattered - which should have been the juicy lobster flavah. (2) Tom Yum XLB - was intriguing but again not my forte. The flavors were too strong and too salty overall. (3) Beef Gyoza - this was good, great crispy skin and the meat was rich and juicy inside. (4) Shrimp toast - underwhelming, shrimp was so tiny and nonexistent + there was way too much sauce. (5) Crispy Vegetable Spring Rolls - this was OK, came out piping hot and crispy which was nice, but the filling was not memorable and lacked flavor overall. (6) Crispy Sesame Tofu - this was fair, came out crispy and hot while the sesame flavor was unique and seasoning was balanced. (7) Pork XLB - meh, broth and pork flavor was just too light + skin was also too thick/not the best texture. Honestly this is Prob. one of the most fusion dim-sum joints I've ever had and with so many cheaper legit places in the bay - this place def. Does not compare.
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Juls B.

Yelp
We walked in on a Saturday night and the vibe was bustling. They seated us quickly! Jordan H our server was on it! He is very friendly and attentive. He also recommended menu items which was most helpful. Fried veggie rice - yummy!! Dumplings - chicken and wagyu beef - both very tasty and super yum!! We ate it all and pleasantly surprised!! I'll be back!
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Reeven S.

Yelp
I came here a few months ago while touring a group of 10 people. We put our name on the waitlist and the staff had to rearrange the tables. However, once we were seated, the people we were touring decided they don't want to eat here anymore. It was such an embarrassing and unwarranted situation, but the staff remained so friendly and understanding. My friend and I offered to pay for any inconvenience that we have caused, but they continually declined. I would just like to apologize to the staff that were working that day; it was an unacceptable behavior from my group. Because of how accommodating and understanding the staff were, I really wanted to come back and enjoy the experience of eating here. And finally, I went with a few friends yesterday and had a fantastic time. To no surprise, the staff were very friendly, attentive, and fast with their service. We ordered XLB, Green Beans, Beijing Noodles, Chili Pork Dumplings, and Shrimp Toast. I enjoyed all of these dishes, but my favorite were the green beans and chili pork dumplings. Also, the chili oil they have is so delicious! Even if the dishes were already perfect by themselves, I continued to drown my food with chili oil sauce because it just enhanced the flavors to another level. This restaurant serves high quality dishes with high quality customer service. I'm definitely adding this to my go-to dumpling place and would always recommend to anyone!
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Dipanwita R.

Yelp
Situated on Santana Row, this restaurant did not have a lot of wait time for dinner. The food was decently priced and there was a lot of seating indoors and outside. There are vegan options too which is great. I really enjoyed the food. The jellyfish salad was a first time for me and it's like collagen. Though is was seasoned well I didn't enjoy it very much but that's a me problem. If you like jellyfish I'm sure ull enjoy it. Other than that whatever we ordered tasted great & I'll definitely be visiting again
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Mia Y.

Yelp
I've been here a handful of times and I'm finally getting around to this review. I feel like you have to be in a specific mood and vibe for dumpling time. With DTF across the street and Cupertino around the corner it's def a specific craving when you want to pay for decent and overpriced dumplings. ALWAYS get the pan seared dumplings and the pork gyoza. These are the best things on the menu imo. Their garlic green beans are good and their XLB is mid. Their har gow is decent and as a cilantro lover I like the sauce and mix it with chili oil, siu mai is good too. Service is always OK- when they first opened I had a manager yell at me for asking if they were open yet. They redeemed themselves somewhat with dessert. Overall, if you're in SR and fiending for some dumplings this place smacks. There are obviously more affordable and better dumplings in the area.
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Nadia H.

Yelp
I have to say, my experience this time around was incredible (compared to maybe a year ago). The host was so nice, welcoming, and accommodating. He went out of his way to get me a dairy free menu with all the ingredients of their food, which by the way, I was shocked to see it is all very healthy, homemade and no preservatives. He was accommodating with my 8 month old son, and there were many other kids there; so it's a great spot to bring children with a relaxing ambiance. The food delivery servers stated what each dumpling is when they delivered it to the table, which didn't happen last time (so it got a little confusing on what we were eating). As for the food, 100% go for any of the dumplings, and you'll be happy. Lamb dumplings, spicy pork gyoza, and of course Xiao long bao are the things to order. My favorite is the 3 samplers of the dessert bao. If I wasn't dairy free right now, I'd be all over the egg yolk one. The dumplings also seemed to taste better compared to what I recall the other year when I came. This place typically has no wait and is open to walk-ins, which is why i prefer this over Din Tai Fung in Westfield across the street.
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Reginald C.

Yelp
I accidentally found this place. I went for a walk and ended up at Santana Row during its Wednesdays Farmers Market. Got seated outside, the place wasn't too busy. Table we got seated was very sticky and very wobbly and the seating was pretty uncomfortable. The ambience was nice since it was pretty busy from the farmers market The food was ok. It was a bit on the blander side. We got the following: Wagyu Beef Gyoza Pork XLB Not sure why the put the rice paper topping on the wagyu beef gyoza, its pretty flavorless and gets in the way. Service was ok, despite it not being too busy the server only come twice. Once to take our order and once to give us the check. They took a very long time after we finished eating to give use our check
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Bhavisha P.

Yelp
We ordered LOTs of food. Service was eh. The manager was kind though and as helpful as he could be. But on a Tuesday and such a high priced bill I expected WAY more. But being Santana row it was still just expected to be Expensive and just eh. We ordered I think half the menu. From the gyoza, bbq boas, Beijing noodles, shrimp, chili pork, XLN dumplings, Cucumber salad, edamame, spring rolls. Drinks were limited as well as not everything listed was actually available. My favorite was the cucumber salad but my sons was the noodles, as for the rest of the family...honestly they were just eh.
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Caili C.

Yelp
We came by try Dumpling Time after receiving a gift card to spend. We weren't expecting authentic dim sum but appreciated the convenient location on Santana Row to have a quick lunch. Unfortunately we did end up spending almost 2 hours here (more on this later). For food, we ordered the shrimp toast, lamb dumplings, jellyfish salad and fried rice noodles. The shrimp toast was by far the best dish - essentially you tiao with a thin layer of shrimp paste inside. We wished there was more shrimp but overall the flavor was good and it was served with spicy mayo. The lamb dumplings and jellyfish salad were both too sweet for our liking. After finishing these 3 dishes, we ended up waiting about 15 more min before asking about the noodles which apparently they had completely forgotten. Our server asked us if we still wanted them which we did because we were still hungry so we said yes even though at that point we didn't really want another dish here. After another 15 min we finally got the noodles which were dry and topped with popcorn chicken which was also also tough and dry. A really poor ending to the meal - it took us another 15 min to get the check after we were done eating and it was only when we flagged down the 3rd person (with time in between each one) that someone gave us our check. Unfortunately we were disappointed with the food and service - would highly recommend going to Ding Tai Fung in Valley Fair for more consistent dim sum.