Vanessa's Dumpling House - Chinatown

This cost $4.25. That's it. No tip, no tax, no nothin'! So maybe you're wondering what this is--they are universally delicious and practically infallible dumplings resting solemnly next to a large cup of miso soup.

Specifically, there's 12 dumplings there; 12 very large and thick dumplings filled with pork, chive, and cabbage and drizzled in a soy sauce and oil concoction. The price-to-portion ratio here is beyond the Heavenly Gates and made St. Peter fall on his ass. Seriously, where can you get a filling meal that tastes good for less than $5? It's a rarity and a blessing. Place's like Vanessa's fill so many gaps in our lives: only got a a couple bucks in your pocket because of the failing economic climate? Drunk and searching for cheap food on a weekend night? Need a good hangover brunch the morning after a night of drinking? How about something fast that isn't corporate?

We need places like this to fill the oddly shape tetris piece that is missing in your stomachs--Vanessa's is like the long skinny one that you can always utilize to knock out like three lines at once.

The dumplings come in all the standard formats: fried, steamed and boiled. The fried dumplings with pork and cabbage or chive are strong pillars: moist and juicy, yet retaining their shape. You get a very savory taste when biting down on one and feeling the warm juice roll over your teeth. The combination of the soup with an assortment of dumplings is a natural remedy that will rejuvenate the elderly and invigorate the young. Prescriptions available at your local bar.

118 Eldridge St., New York, NY 10002, 212 625 8008, Menu via Menu Pages