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Richmond is an Asian-American restaurant hub just south of Vancouver. The city is easy to reach by The Canada Line from the city or airport, with several train stops accessing the sea of food-filled strip malls. Richmond houses 210,000 people, 65% Asian, with a whopping 800 restaurants, meaning you can eat really well if you know where to look. Learn about seven of my favorite places to eat in Richmond, based on a beyond epic restaurant crawl.

5. R&H Chinese Food

Find Richmond’s pinnacle for xiao long bao thanks to a couple from Beijing in a lowkey food court.

The advantages to bamboo baskets are pretty clear, and every place I visited in Richmond that serves xiao long bao uses them, but who serves the best version? I’d vote for R&H Chinese Food, a family-run stall located in the Lansdowne Mall food court that operates alongside businesses like Taco Luis, A&W, and Subway. The R apparently stands for Richard, meaning his wife must be H. Apparently they’re from Beijing, as opposed to Shanghai. The ratio separates R&H’s Xiao Long Bao from rivals, with thin skins that stand up to the torrent of pork juice. The filling starred rosy, juicy pork meat. I bit off the dumpling tops and spooned soy sauce and vinegar into each cavity, resulting in a savory flavor rush.

MUST ORDER: Xiao Long Bao

6. Shanghai River

The more xiao long bao, the better. Shanghai River Restaurant joins the bamboo steamed fray.

One of Richmond’s fanciest Shanghai-style restaurants features a stone and dark wood entrance, dining room with white tablecloths and cylindrical lanterns, and glass kitchen with stacks of bamboo steamers and team of dumpling makers. They devote considerable resources to dumpling production and clearly take dough-wrapped flavor packets seriously. I’d recommend steamed pork dumplings, xiao long bao, which sport thin skins and juicy, slightly sweet fillings. Pan-fried pork dumplings display moderate caramelization on pleasantly chewy wrappers and firm pork centers flecked with scallions. Braised Tien-Tsin cabbage is a deluxe vegetable dish, with tender slabs sporting savory ham tiles.

MUST ORDER: Steamed Pork Dumplings, Pan Fried Pork Dumplings, Braised Tien-Tsin Cabbage w/Ham

7. Vivacity [CLOSED]

Vivacity steams seasonal spot prawns to perfection and serves with soy sauce.

Alexandra Road, aka Food Street, features approximately 200 restaurants in a three-block span. Kiddy Wang stands out by using organic ingredients in creative ways, often drawing from tanks of frisky seasonal seafood. Vivacity also serves dim sum, but Cantonese seafood is your best bet. If you’re lucky enough to time your visit with spot prawn season, the sweet crustaceans are steamed and served with soy sauce. Rock cod is steamed to perfection and served in a savory “special sauce” with shaved scallions and cilantro. For dessert, I enjoyed the playful simplicity of osmanthus jelly served in the shape of a fish, studded with goji berries.

MUST ORDER: Steamed Spot Prawns, Steamed Rock Cod, Osmanthus Jelly

Thanks to Visit Richmond for their support during my experience.