Uninspired, limp noodle restaurant. Too bad I spent almost $60 for tasteless Shrimp Lo Mein, gummy "House" Dumplings sans any type of dipping sauce, and Wonton Soup overloaded with soggy dumplings. Whomever prepared my food, took no pleasure nor any type of consideration for the presentation of the meal. In fact, they packed the fodder in an unidentifiable bag, left no calling card, no menu sheet for future orders. This leads me to believe that Shanghai Dumpling knows they make subpar food that is contrite on one's palate, and that they don't gaf. One time, last time for me. Sayonara.
Monserat Garcia
If I could give this restaurant 0 stars, I would. I have never felt more dehumanized and disrespected at a restaurant before. The waiter refused to give us service. It felt racially motivated because we are Hispanic. However, two white students walked in and got their drinks and food before us. We waited 30 minutes, and the waiter still had not come by to get our order for drinks. I felt humiliated, and I will not be coming back ever again.
Monserat G.
This is my experience with going to Shanghai Dumplings. The host led me and my friends to our table, where he handed us menus. We were excited to try dumplings. However, the waitress never came by our table to take our order for drinks or food. After waiting about 7 minutes, we noticed two white girls walk into the restaurant. The waitress took their orders and got their food right away. We had been waiting for 25 minutes, yet the waitress did not even acknowledge that we were there and had not gone to ask what we wanted to drink. The restaurant was not busy either. One of the other customers remarked that we had been waiting longer than them and that she should take our order first. The waitress did not care and proceeded to ignore this customer's comment. She was aware of this discrimination. Her actions were racially motivated. Racism was the reason why she did not take my order. She assumed because of my Hispanic background that I did not have as much money as the other customers. This waitress did not tell me to leave the restaurant. She did not say her racist thoughts. But she did intentionally ignore that I was there and refused to take my order. She refused to give me service. I felt very dehumanized, and this is the first time that a restaurant has denied me the right to eat food because of my race. I do not want anyone to experience this humiliating moment, and I hope that no waitress treats anyone this way. Shanghai Dumplings needs to do better, and treat their customers with respect.
Tamika & Mercedes
I ordered orange chicken and it was $16 for what is pictured. This is ridiculous for what you are given. Also, most of the food here is just frozen and reheated. The workers are not friendly at all. For this price, you can get much more food and better service elsewhere.
Pat C
I believe the 3 star rating of this restaurant is fair and accurate. While the food tasted good and came out rather quickly, the portions are super small and the prices are much higher than the portions could justify. Everything is sized down, even the dinner portions of the entrees. There's a lunch version and a dinner version of the main entrees but the more expensive dinner option is still only about half of what I'd expect a typical plate serving to be. There's a lot of price gouging going on here because they know that the majority of customers are college students not paying attention to the prices. They should really focus more on customer retention and making it worth going back instead of trying to squeeze every dime possible out of new guests, the very first time they come in. The restaurant itself is tiny, super small inside with very limited and cheap seating. The food was okay, nothing special at all, but also nothing horrible. The bao / bun were pretty fresh and tasty but again, significantly over priced for what you get. They were out of 4 different things that we wanted which made us try plates we weren't super interested in which is also an issue. With a limited menu, you should have what you offer available. All in all, this is not a restaurant we will return to. The value isn't there for me. The high prices are justified when the building is nice, atmosphere is nice and inviting, the service is outstanding, and when the food itself is amazing. Unfortunately, none of these things were true here. Instead of feeling like I had a great dinner worthy of the cost, I felt ripped off. I should've listened to the other reviews mentioning the portion sizes but I couldn't imagine that the portions were as small as they are. I truly felt ripped off and it'd hard to imagine going back after feeling like that. It's a shame, simply lowering the prices of the small plates or simply.increasing the portion size would have made all the difference. I hope that changes jn the future, until then, we will not be back.
Xiaolu Pan
The food is mediocre. Some of them are probably frozen food reheat but it’s ok since there are no good Chinese restaurants in Chapel hill. I will just say it is better than it used to.Horrible service. The waitress complained about I order too much????. She did not do anything in an empty restaurant. Later, she added 18% tips on the tap how much they want. Too bad there is no good dim sum or any good Chinese restaurants in Chapel hill.
Justin B.
This place is a gem. The people who left bad reviews are abject philistines whose understanding of Chinese food comes from eating lo mein at a mall food court Panda Express. Do yourself a favor, ignore these insufferable people and order from the delicious dim sum menu.
banana peel
DO NOT WASTE YOUR MONEY HERE!!! Horrendous customer service which felt rooted in RACISM. Server did not ask us if we wanted take out or dine-in, and THREW OUR FOOD on the table. As we were eating, he came up and told us that since we got take-out, we can’t eat there (even though there were plenty of open seats). I explained that since we never asked for take out, we assumed that we were eating in. He left, came back after a bit and then said there is a “dining service fee” if we stay. Between when he left and came back, other customers who were white and east-Asian came and left, and he was not rude to them whatsoever. He asked one of them if they wanted a table for two as soon as they came in. We felt so offended and mistreated that we left. We got an order of spring rolls which were not bad, but definitely not worth the dehumanizing experience. Will NEVER GO AGAIN!!!
Kimberley S.
Super ghetto "restaurant". Literally did not have 3-4 major (and basic) entrees. Rude wait staff as well. When I inquired as to about how much noodles came with the Lo main dish, I was told it was small sized, it's not take out, and they have to "make profit."All I wanted was an idea so I could decide what to order for my son (or how much). This response was condescending, tacky and rude. Stating the obvious did not answer my inquiry. The Lo Mein did not come with white rice. So I would have to order that a la carte, of course. Or,the "waitress" mentioned I could order two dinners. Every restaurant with food such as this,(Chinese, dumplings, pan Asian type) that I've frequented, from the east coast to the west coast, always include some cheap white rice/ brown rice with entrees. Since their staff and lack of options was altogether disappointing, we paid for our drinks and left. Because we had money to spend, we decided to take our business elsewhere, and contribute to another businesses' profit.
Amanda
Stopped by for lunch as out of town visitors with two young kids. Staff was very friendly and kind (even warned us what we ordered was spicy for kids). The soup dumplings and Dan Dan noodles were great!
Host was good, no rudeness even though we were only ordering two apps. Pork dumpling was moist and fresh with light wrapper, egg drop was perfectly cooked with creamy yolk mixed with ribbon whites. Recommend!
Phoenix
The food at Shanghai dumpling is always at a consistently high quality and indeed, the food has failed to disappoint me. However, contentions do arise when considering the price. Over the years, a noted increase in price combined with a decrease in amount served has made me hesitant to recommend those who aren't willing to spend 20 or more for a meal. Just for an example, over time I've witnessed the BBQ steamed buns increase in price from 4 for 6.95, to 4 for 7.95, and finally, 3 for 7.95. Although times are hard after covid, it feels difficult to let them go for this among other things.
Luke S.
This place has the best dumplings in chapel hill! A great place to stop in for lunch or an easy dinner!
Mckaila Newcomb
No air conditioning on this very hot day made it uncomfortable to dine in but the food was fantastic and reasonably priced.
Joshua B.
Good quality but for the price not the best Chinese food place. I ate there out of convenience would not make it a priority to go back.
Uninspired, limp noodle restaurant. Too bad I spent almost $60 for tasteless Shrimp Lo Mein, gummy "House" Dumplings sans any type of dipping sauce, and Wonton Soup overloaded with soggy dumplings. Whomever prepared my food, took no pleasure nor any type of consideration for the presentation of the meal. In fact, they packed the fodder in an unidentifiable bag, left no calling card, no menu sheet for future orders. This leads me to believe that Shanghai Dumpling knows they make subpar food that is contrite on one's palate, and that they don't gaf. One time, last time for me. Sayonara.
If I could give this restaurant 0 stars, I would. I have never felt more dehumanized and disrespected at a restaurant before. The waiter refused to give us service. It felt racially motivated because we are Hispanic. However, two white students walked in and got their drinks and food before us. We waited 30 minutes, and the waiter still had not come by to get our order for drinks. I felt humiliated, and I will not be coming back ever again.
This is my experience with going to Shanghai Dumplings. The host led me and my friends to our table, where he handed us menus. We were excited to try dumplings. However, the waitress never came by our table to take our order for drinks or food. After waiting about 7 minutes, we noticed two white girls walk into the restaurant. The waitress took their orders and got their food right away. We had been waiting for 25 minutes, yet the waitress did not even acknowledge that we were there and had not gone to ask what we wanted to drink. The restaurant was not busy either. One of the other customers remarked that we had been waiting longer than them and that she should take our order first. The waitress did not care and proceeded to ignore this customer's comment. She was aware of this discrimination. Her actions were racially motivated. Racism was the reason why she did not take my order. She assumed because of my Hispanic background that I did not have as much money as the other customers. This waitress did not tell me to leave the restaurant. She did not say her racist thoughts. But she did intentionally ignore that I was there and refused to take my order. She refused to give me service. I felt very dehumanized, and this is the first time that a restaurant has denied me the right to eat food because of my race. I do not want anyone to experience this humiliating moment, and I hope that no waitress treats anyone this way. Shanghai Dumplings needs to do better, and treat their customers with respect.
I ordered orange chicken and it was $16 for what is pictured. This is ridiculous for what you are given. Also, most of the food here is just frozen and reheated. The workers are not friendly at all. For this price, you can get much more food and better service elsewhere.
I believe the 3 star rating of this restaurant is fair and accurate. While the food tasted good and came out rather quickly, the portions are super small and the prices are much higher than the portions could justify. Everything is sized down, even the dinner portions of the entrees. There's a lunch version and a dinner version of the main entrees but the more expensive dinner option is still only about half of what I'd expect a typical plate serving to be. There's a lot of price gouging going on here because they know that the majority of customers are college students not paying attention to the prices. They should really focus more on customer retention and making it worth going back instead of trying to squeeze every dime possible out of new guests, the very first time they come in. The restaurant itself is tiny, super small inside with very limited and cheap seating. The food was okay, nothing special at all, but also nothing horrible. The bao / bun were pretty fresh and tasty but again, significantly over priced for what you get. They were out of 4 different things that we wanted which made us try plates we weren't super interested in which is also an issue. With a limited menu, you should have what you offer available. All in all, this is not a restaurant we will return to. The value isn't there for me. The high prices are justified when the building is nice, atmosphere is nice and inviting, the service is outstanding, and when the food itself is amazing. Unfortunately, none of these things were true here. Instead of feeling like I had a great dinner worthy of the cost, I felt ripped off. I should've listened to the other reviews mentioning the portion sizes but I couldn't imagine that the portions were as small as they are. I truly felt ripped off and it'd hard to imagine going back after feeling like that. It's a shame, simply lowering the prices of the small plates or simply.increasing the portion size would have made all the difference. I hope that changes jn the future, until then, we will not be back.
The food is mediocre. Some of them are probably frozen food reheat but it’s ok since there are no good Chinese restaurants in Chapel hill. I will just say it is better than it used to.Horrible service. The waitress complained about I order too much????. She did not do anything in an empty restaurant. Later, she added 18% tips on the tap how much they want. Too bad there is no good dim sum or any good Chinese restaurants in Chapel hill.
This place is a gem. The people who left bad reviews are abject philistines whose understanding of Chinese food comes from eating lo mein at a mall food court Panda Express. Do yourself a favor, ignore these insufferable people and order from the delicious dim sum menu.
DO NOT WASTE YOUR MONEY HERE!!! Horrendous customer service which felt rooted in RACISM. Server did not ask us if we wanted take out or dine-in, and THREW OUR FOOD on the table. As we were eating, he came up and told us that since we got take-out, we can’t eat there (even though there were plenty of open seats). I explained that since we never asked for take out, we assumed that we were eating in. He left, came back after a bit and then said there is a “dining service fee” if we stay. Between when he left and came back, other customers who were white and east-Asian came and left, and he was not rude to them whatsoever. He asked one of them if they wanted a table for two as soon as they came in. We felt so offended and mistreated that we left. We got an order of spring rolls which were not bad, but definitely not worth the dehumanizing experience. Will NEVER GO AGAIN!!!
Super ghetto "restaurant". Literally did not have 3-4 major (and basic) entrees. Rude wait staff as well. When I inquired as to about how much noodles came with the Lo main dish, I was told it was small sized, it's not take out, and they have to "make profit."All I wanted was an idea so I could decide what to order for my son (or how much). This response was condescending, tacky and rude. Stating the obvious did not answer my inquiry. The Lo Mein did not come with white rice. So I would have to order that a la carte, of course. Or,the "waitress" mentioned I could order two dinners. Every restaurant with food such as this,(Chinese, dumplings, pan Asian type) that I've frequented, from the east coast to the west coast, always include some cheap white rice/ brown rice with entrees. Since their staff and lack of options was altogether disappointing, we paid for our drinks and left. Because we had money to spend, we decided to take our business elsewhere, and contribute to another businesses' profit.
Stopped by for lunch as out of town visitors with two young kids. Staff was very friendly and kind (even warned us what we ordered was spicy for kids). The soup dumplings and Dan Dan noodles were great!
Restaurantji Recommends
Host was good, no rudeness even though we were only ordering two apps. Pork dumpling was moist and fresh with light wrapper, egg drop was perfectly cooked with creamy yolk mixed with ribbon whites. Recommend!
The food at Shanghai dumpling is always at a consistently high quality and indeed, the food has failed to disappoint me. However, contentions do arise when considering the price. Over the years, a noted increase in price combined with a decrease in amount served has made me hesitant to recommend those who aren't willing to spend 20 or more for a meal. Just for an example, over time I've witnessed the BBQ steamed buns increase in price from 4 for 6.95, to 4 for 7.95, and finally, 3 for 7.95. Although times are hard after covid, it feels difficult to let them go for this among other things.
This place has the best dumplings in chapel hill! A great place to stop in for lunch or an easy dinner!
No air conditioning on this very hot day made it uncomfortable to dine in but the food was fantastic and reasonably priced.
Good quality but for the price not the best Chinese food place. I ate there out of convenience would not make it a priority to go back.