Mama Lu’s Dumpling House in Monterey Park serves up some of the best traditional Chinese dumplings and take-home frozen goodies, all in a bustling, no-frills setting.
"Our Favorite Dishes: Pork Fried Dumplings, Beef Wrap Mama Lu’s is a big restaurant with little in the way of decorations, a crowd of people mostly keeping to themselves, and tables that are just slightly too close to each other. But you’re not here for the atmosphere, you’re here for the best dumplings in SGV. After you’ve waited in line to get seated (there will be a line, no matter when you go), just order fried dumplings and the beef wrap, and wait for some incredibly good Chinese food to arrive at your table. Mama Lu’s does incredible things with flavor and texture - the dumplings have a melt-in-your-mouth filling and a perfectly crisped shell, and they’re super-flavorful without ever getting too salty. The waits here can get brutal, but if you want the best, stick it out." - jess basser sanders, amy clark, brant cox, brett keating
"Mama Lu’s needs almost no introduction. This Monterey Park restaurant is known for serving some of the SGV’s best dumplings—quite an achievement, considering the neighborhood. Their soup dumplings are neatly pinched at the top, like little mountain ridges, and the meat-to-dough ratio is scientific perfection. For the filling, pork melds with sesame oil, fermented Chinese wine, and a bit of delicious MSG." - kat hong
"Mama Lu’s just might have the best dumplings in the SGV. The pan-fried ones come crisped to perfection, and although we’ve eaten thousands of soup dumplings in our lives (maybe? We’re writers, not mathematicians), their xiao long bao are still some our all-time favorites. And now you don’t even need to wait in line (or put on pants) to enjoy them - frozen packages of Mama Lu’s dumplings are available for curbside pick-up. Call (626) 282-2256 to order." - kat hong
"Mama Lu’s is a big restaurant with little in the way of decorations, a crowd of people mostly keeping to themselves, and tables that are ever so slightly too close together. But you’re not here for the atmosphere - you’re here for the best dumplings in SGV. After you’ve waited in line to get seated (there will be a line, no matter when you go), just order fried dumplings and the beef wrap, and wait for some incredibly good Chinese food to arrive at your table. Mama Lu’s does incredible things with flavor and texture - the dumplings have a melt-in-your-mouth filling and a perfectly crisped shell, and they’re super flavorful without ever getting too salty. The waits here can get brutal, but if you want the best, stick it out." - Amy Clark
"Known for its xiao long bao, this venue has been accused of tax evasion and underreporting by the California Attorney General. It has two locations in Monterey Park, with one owned by Yan Lu and William Lu, and another owned by Anna Tang." - Farley Elliott
