Featured ingredient: fennel.
At Lao Bei Fang, they're called hui xiang dumplings (Hway she-Ong; eight for $3.50); the counterwoman, who speaks a little English, could describe the ingredient only as a "Chinese vegetable." A web search revealed their identity, and somewhat more: The fennel used here likely isn't the Florence cultivar, known for its enlarged, anise-flavored bulbs, but rather the foliage from a wild, naturalized American cousin that's considered a weed in some parts and that can be used like dill. The herbal notes are very delicate; I wouldn't hide them under hot sauce.
Below, the first photo depicts Lao Bei Fang's longtime digs on Whitney Ave.; the second shows its much larger quarters, around the corner, as of March 2011.
Lao Bei Fang Dumpling House
83-05 Broadway (opposite Cornish Ave.), Elmhurst, Queens
718-639-3996
I miss really good dumplings.
Posted by: Leeanna | October 29, 2008 at 03:24 PM
This place is so good and dirt cheap at that.
Posted by: anon | January 28, 2009 at 04:17 AM
that's probably good they are doing that. it WAS a hot pot, and it wasn't that hot commercially.
Posted by: JO | March 08, 2011 at 09:50 PM