Hand Pull Noodles and Dumpling House

I needed to get my grub on.

I met up with a friend, and his dad suggested Hand Pull Noodle and Dumpling House.

Great suggestion.

So the three of us made the move over to Bensonhurst, pointing out old favorites and worthy newcomers. Old Italian specialties and the new Asian crowd.

We pulled up to the dive-y looking noodle and dumpling joint ready to feast.
Upon entering I noticed the chef prepping, slapping noodles on the counter in back only to fold them on themselves and set them aside for later. 

A real mom-and-pop joint, complete with little kids and grandma nannies, the service was casual and forgetful, but most of all sincere.

Appetizers and entrees came out as they were ready, in no particular order.

We ordered Hot and Spicy Bok Choy, thinking we'd get a fried dish.
It was Bok Choy kim-chi.
Cold, spicy and fermented - we nibbled a little. I added it to my soup later on and it was a fine addition. Not a repeat buy, nor a worthy picture. It really just made me want to make my own kim-chi. 

Dumplings were absolutely necessary as they are part of the namesake.

They delivered the goods! The dumplings were delicious.

The kind of place I could go and get a few orders of dumplings for lunch and be totally satisfied. 

Steamed dumplings filled with flavorful pork and spices. Wonderfully pleated and steamed, needing little accompaniment.

No plates.
Grab a little dish near the chopsticks and add some sauce. Or eat your dumpling as-is because they're really freakin' good.

Next up is meat sauce over hand pulled noodles. Served with steamed bok choy.
This is awesome sauce.

Although this was not my dish, we all had the spirit of sharing. It certainly was delicious. I would definitely order this next time as there is something about fresh noodles and saucy, fatty meat that really speaks to me.
I really wish I lived across the street from this place.

My food came out next.
Fresh Shrimp Wonton with hand pulled noodles in soup.
This was really good.

Wontons with full, fresh shrimp in addition to regular ground pork and noodles with great consistency and flavor.
This is the kind of dish you would expect at a noodle and dumpling house.
The broth was lightly porky and flavored with star anise - flavorful enough to stand on it's own, but simple enough to welcome additions.
So, I added some vinegar, hot chilies and soy sauce to pick it all up.

My friend Ezra got this next dish.
Rib Tips over fried noodle.

The rib tips were deep fried and crispy, slicked with a sweet and tangy sauce that fit really well with the rest of the food. The kind of saucy meat you want to wrap a bunch of noodles around. I ate a few of these bad boys. The noodles were lightly stir fried.

And now, as a bonus, here is a picture of my soup after the additions.
I'm holding up the noodles because the first picture doesn't look like there are so many noodles. Believe me, there are plenty.

If you look in the very top right corner of this picture you will see some food that I have not talked about.

The fried buns.

Similar to dumplings in composition, these buns had a great wrapper and crisp edge, but the filling was lacking and made me wish we had more steamed dumplings.

Also, fyi, dumplings are available to buy frozen, 50 at a time.