Finding good, authentic Chinese food outside of Chinatown can be hard to locate at times. Ed’s Potsticker House at 32nd and Morgan in the Bridgeport neighborhood is one of the few places you can find authentic Chinese food. In fact, they are the only Chinese restaurant I have ever found with three menus – dim sum, Americanized Chinese and authentic Chinese. Americanized Chinese food is absolutely disgusting and whoever invented it should be slapped in the face. I like the real deal, and Ed’s has some pretty decent authentic Mandarin dishes. Sure, it is far from the best, but it is of Chinatown quality. I would gauge it as a mid-range restaurant when compared to that of Chinatown. The best part about the place is the fact that they not only have online ordering, but they also deliver.

Ed’s House Special Potstickers

Being a potsticker house, I of course had to try their house special potstickers. These potstickers were kind of like an Asian version of a crispito. The shell is crunchy, and it is stuffed with a delicious meat filling. The ground pork and ginger flavors really bring out the dish. Best part about it is the homemade soy sauce and spicy red pepper sauce it comes with.

Vegetable Bao

One food I recently fell in love with is bao. My good friend Rhonda was the one who introduced me to it because she really loves her baozi. Since there are multiple styles of bao, Ed’s caters to each bao-lover’s tastes. They have the steamed dumpling style as well as the doughy, sandwich-like Tianjian style bao. I didn’t care much for the pork filling, but the vegetable bao is amazing. It also comes with the homemade soy sauce and spicy red pepper sauce.

Napa Cabbage, Tofu and Pork Ball Casserole

I wanted to try something really authentic, so I consulted Rhonda on the matter. After showing her the menu, she named off a few authentic Mandarin dishes she used to find all over Taiwan. On that list was the cabbage, tofu and pork ball casserole. The flavors of the pork balls and star anise meld together perfectly, which creates most of the flavor for this dish. The other, less-intrusive flavor is cilantro. The casserole also includes a broth, soft tofu and cellphane noodles. A great combination in my book. This is just one of the many authentic Mandarin dishes Ed’s offers, so check it out for yourself and explore the joys of real Chinese food and not some sugary, syrupy deep-fried crap.