As you open the beautiful red and yellow takeout bag, you’re greeted by a box containing two perfect rows of tiny dumplings.
Biting into one, you’re met with a mixture of flavors and textures: the chewiness of the wrapper, the meaty, umami flavors of the filling, and then an explosion of cooking liquid that tastes just like chicken soup.
That’s the experience of ordering takeout from Dough Zone, a brand-new dumpling place in downtown Walnut Creek, California. Dough Zone opened earlier this year. I stopped by to check out the restaurant’s exterior when it was about to open, and just ordered takeout to try it out.
The Walnut Creek Dough Zone is the chain’s newest location in the Bay Area and its first spot in the East Bay. Dough Zone is big in Washington and seems to be working its way down the coast.
It follows a trend of Bay Area restaurants serving fancy (and expensive) dumplings inspired by traditional Chinese dishes.
Dumpling Time down in San Ramon, California is one of my favorite places to get fancy dumplings. These aren’t the kind of very basic dumplings that you might expect to see at a traditional Chinese restaurant; they’re often handmade, use fancy ingredients, and can really set you back quite a bit in the budget department.
The buns and dumplings at Dough Zone definitely qualify for all these things. I ordered their xiao long bao soup dumplings. They’re made with Berkshire-Duroc ground pork, a heritage breed meat that is especially flavorful and delicious.
Like traditional soup dumplings, these little nuggets are filled with a soup-like liquid that spills out as you bite into them. It’s a sensory experience and a messy one at that!
I also tried traditional steamed buns. Again, these are filled with the same Berkshire-Duroc pork but with a sweeter, barbecue-style filling.
My dumplings arrived in great shape, which is rare for takeout dumplings. They were delicious: very filling, appropriately fancy, and beautifully presented.
I love restaurants that put a lot of effort into takeout offerings. I definitely plan to visit Dough Zone in person, but with three young kids, I often do DoorDash takeout because my life is insane! It’s nice to receive food with a lot of thought put into how it’s packaged and delivered to you.
Overall, I really like the xiao long bao from Dough Zone. The steamed pork buns were good, but I prefer the sweeter filling from Dumpling Time.
That said, Dough Zone is a great addition to the 925 area for people who love traditional Chinese buns. Given how much my kids love these tiny treats, we will definitely be ordering from Dough Zone a lot more!
Want to see my full review once I get a chance to visit the restaurant in person? Join our free 925 News newsletter, and I’ll keep you in the loop.
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