FOOD: soup dumpling heaven- Din Tai Fung

It's nothing new, but just the best:

Soup dumplings, or Xiao Long Bao (food blogger world calls them XLB) are some of the most satisfying things to eat. They're steamed dumplings formed with broth aspic jelly in them that liquefies when they steam, so each bite is a little sealed package of soup and dumpling in one.

My first experience with soup dumplings was at New York's landmark Joe's Shanghai, about 7-8 years ago. I can't wait to get myself back there some time- yes, they were that good. I had never had anything like it before, and I was smitten.

There aren't too many places that I crave as much as Joe's here on the west coast-and there are pages and pages of debate on the web regarding the "best" place. (just google it and see what happens!) Din Tai Fung is so far the closest thing I have found that fulfills my soup dumpling craving. There's even a north-south divide between SF & LA regarding dumplings...but I haven't yet had any that were blog-worthy in the bay. Any suggestions?

Here's a last look at my recent drive from LA back to SF. The grapevine was closed the previous day- no wonder! The mountains were covered in snow!