Mortal Dumpling

Just had this for the first time today and I’m addicted! Delicious! Came late so menu was limited at pop up but the steamed pork buns and green beans were on point. I’ll be back, with friends!

(EDIT: MORTAL DUMPLING IS CALLING IT QUITS AT THE END OF THE YEAR. Dec. 28 is their last appearance at the Food Lounge, and apparently everywhere. I’m told that the principal is just moving on to other things. Get yer bao while you can.)
I’m a big fan of the Food Lounge anyway, and I like the big baked/​steam buns (bao) that Mortal Dumplings serves here on Mondays, and definitely the gan bian green beans. Not so easy to find good gan bian in Santa Cruz. When the weather’s warm, eating in the garden patio is always a fun option.
Note that this is not a waiter service operation: You stand in line to order and pay, sit down, and your food is brought to you as it is ready. Pretty kid-​friendly, if that’s your concern, but not so much as to bother the child-​free among us.

Sadly my experience did not warrant a review loaded with capital letters to signify excited exuberance but then again I’ve enjoyed many a dumpling, many a bun. We sampled both dumpling offerings, the sticky rice and the buns. It’s a great addition to the lack luster food scene that is Santa Cruz.
A side note to the dining experience, upon ordering we were told that our order could’nt be to go. To go order is something different? The food servers rush around plates to fulfill orders, on simple plates that you could use as dining platters. The sauces, napkins and small plates reside in another location. Logistically it felt like a lot of effort to eat something steamed, arranged simply on a plate cooling into lumps of doughy-​ness reminding me why there’s an overwhelming use of steamer baskets in well orchestrated traditional Asian establishments…

My friends and I stood in line during opening day starting at around 5 PM, and the wait was really long. Once we finally got seats, the food took literally hours to get to us. These issues are somewhat understandable though as it was opening day and the place was being run by a small amount of staff.
However what was completely unacceptable was that my group never even got our entire order. We literally sat for all of the operating hours until 9 PM. During this period we talked to the woman at the front taking orders numerous times that we were still waiting for food, but we never got it. Eventually we just gave up and got a refund for the remaining missing orders since the place was closing.
Another issue was that our other group of friends ahead of us ordered bao, and right after they ordered when it was our turn the woman at the front told us that we couldn’t order bao because they had run out. After sitting for a while we noticed that people around us who ordered after us still got bao… so I don’t know why our group in particular was denied the ability to order them.
Food-​wise the dumplings were good. They’re definitely the best you can get in Santa Cruz, but that doesn’t really say too much because the standard in the city for Chinese cuisine is so low. To make things worse, these dumplings were the most expensive set of dumplings I’ve ever purchased which is a bit ridiculous since their quality isn’t even impressive. The flavor of them can be beaten by 3 star restaurants found in San Jose, so if you’re really looking for affordable, decent dumplings you still have to drive over the hill instead.
NOTE: THIS IS NOT A DIM SUM PLACE. This Unilocal listing has been mislabeled. If you’re looking for a place to eat dim sum in Santa Cruz, unfortunately you’re all out of luck because dim sum doesn’t exist here.

I can’t believe I haven’t written a review for this place earlier! It’s definitely my favorite dumpling place in Santa Cruz!!!
The bao are generous with the fillings. The chicken wings are TO.DIE.FOR super fluffy crispy crunchy. The pork rinds have that super-​fluffy crunch too. Dumplings, veggies and pickles are always good. And, my daughter’s all-​time favorite is the Mutari chocolate mochi desserts.
The Food Lounge has a nice atmosphere and offer beer, wine, cider and non-​alcoholic drinks to compliment your meal.
I just wish I was free EVERY Monday night so I don’t have to miss out!

I was really excited to try Mortal Dumpling. I love the concept, but honestly, the bao left a bit to be desired. I ordered the combination plate which included two bao, greens and pickles. I had the curry chicken bao and a baked BBQ pork bao. The baked bun was a bit under-​baked and the bread was gluey. The filling was delicious!
The curry bun was pretty good, but there was something about it I didn’t love. I did not like the greens at all, but that is just probably me, as I don’t like the bitter flavor of many greens. The pickles, really weren’t pickles but were fresh cucumbers with a sesame type sauce/​vinaigrette – I liked those.
I’m open to trying it again, but I really hope the bao are better next time. Dim sum is one of my favorite things!

WOW is all I can say. Absolutely everything I had was fantastic– this is my new favorite Dim Sum restaurant of all time. The prices were extremely reasonable (my three friends and I were stuffed at the end and bought $ 50 worth of food total). My favorite dish was the Ginger Pork Bau. They were huge (I had to split one with a friend). The crispy chicken wings, green beans, and chicken cilantro dumplings were also excellent. The atmosphere at The Food Lounge was fun, beautiful, and very clean and the waitstaff was kind and helpful. I will DEFINITELY be coming back next week! And don’t forget to order the delicious chocolate mochi for desert!

Mortal Dumpling at the Santa Cruz Food Lounge was FANtastic tonight!
I was very impressed and satisfied with everything we had including; Chicken & Cilantro Potstickers, Rice Pearl Balls, Crispy Wings, Pork & Ginger Bao, Sauteed Spicy Green Beans and Chocolate Mochi which was made using Mutari Chocolate.
I look forward to going back and trying the pork rinds and the curry bao, I know everything else will be just as wonderful & delicious as what we tried tonight. They also offer a number of vegetarian options.
Three of us shared 7 small plates for about $ 55 and the order of pan-​fried potstickers was very generous. Too bad they are only open on Monday nights! ~AM