I have had Korean food before, but I had never been to a sit-down Korean restaurant. Trying the dumplings at Samsoonie Noodle & Rice, after having dumplings from two restaurants prior, was going to be interesting. The first difference I observed is that assorted vegetables and different preparations of kimchi are offered as sides to the dumplings here.

Kimchi is a staple side dish in Korean food. It is made from fermented and salted vegetable, mostly cabbage, Korean radishes along with other vegetables, and seasoned with garlic, ginger, chili powder and other spices. It can be very fragrant but adds a lot of flavour alongside whatever Korean dish you are eating. It’s like having pickles, sauerkraut or pickled mixed vegetables with your meal, but spicy.

We started with Korean steamed dumplings (mandu), which were plump with a frilly edge. Having dumplings with kimchi was a change over soy sauce. They also provided us with their version of wonton soup, which contained a lot of dumplings, and the broth was flavourful.

Deep fried wontons were served with the soup, so you could see how they tasted two ways. We were also served a plate of pan-fried dumplings.

I was not too sure if the last dish was a salad with fried dumplings on it, or another way of serving the dumplings. The dumplings sat on top of julienned carrots, purple cabbage and lettuce with bean sprouts, and other vegetables. It was a very pretty dish, and I could see it as either a dish for one or an appetizer. Having the sides of vegetables and this salad provided a nice contrast of crunch and freshness to what can be a heavy meal of mostly starch and meat.

Going to Samsoonie Noodle & Rice was a great way to see how other countries do their dumplings. They have a pretty full menu too, and are very well known for their soups.

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Contributor Steve Polyak |

Locale British Columbia | Richmond |

Topic Food | Travel |

Photo Gallery Richmond, BC |