Golden Steamer Pumpkin Bun: Golden Steamer epitomizes what I love about NYC. It’s a hole-in-the-wall, cash-only bao shop right off of Canal St on Mott in Chinatown, with sweet and savory offerings all around $1 each. The sizable buns can easily be a meal on its own, offering an incredible value. This lightly sweetened pumpkin bun has a eggy flavor and starchy, creamy layers of pumpkin paste towards the center. The bread is more dense than their white buns used in their savory baos (reviews forthcoming) but the bread st... (read more) 4.0/5.0
recommended cheap nyc bakery chinese steamed bao goldensteamer pumpkin bun 4.0
Golden Steamer Lotus bun: My coworkers may think I was joking when I said I was going to try every bun from Chinese bao shop Golden Steamer, but let me assure you that I’m going to do my best. This lotus bun was a more traditional option, with a thick and sweet lotus seed paste filling and standard steamed white bun that is denser than other options at The Little Italy bakery. Not as good as the other buns I’ve had, but still, at under $1, it’s hard to complain. 3.0/5.0
bao chinese nyc goldensteamer lotus bun 3.0
Hongluo honey twist cookies: From Beijing, these wheat cookies have a sticky glaze and a spare scattering of sesame seeds. They're packaged individually and come in a pleasantly ornate twisted shape. Unfortunately, I found the cookie to be dense yet oddly chewy on the exterior, probably due to the glaze. Overall, they were too sweet for my taste. 2.5/5.0
hongluo chinese cookies sesame honey 2.5 twist
Hot Kid Shelly Senbei Seaweed Flavor Rice Cracker: I grew up eating an assortment of Hot Kid rice cracker offerings, which I strongly believe are some of the best in terms of taste and value. This nori-flavored rice snack was new to me and did not disappoint. Each individually wrapped package contains two sizable rice crackers, at about 3.5" in diameter. A soy glaze coats the crackers, and strips of seaweed add to the savory flavor. One aspect I felt was missing was the sweetness you tend to get with other Hot Kid snacks, but I would sti... (read more) 3.5/5.0
asian chinese nori ranch99 hotkid shelly senbei seaweed flavor rice cracker 3.5 recommended
Hot Kid's Want Want Senbei: A childhood favorite. Crisp rice crackers with a sweet and savory coating. Addicting. 3.5/5.0
wantwant hotkid msg chinese recommended ricecrackers hmart hotkids want senbei 3.5/5.0
Huang Fei Hong spicy peanuts: Chili peanut blend containing dried chili peppers, roasted peanuts, and peppercorns. My dad swears by these, but I actually prefer the Qia Qia brand. The peanuts are not that flavorful until you get a mouthful of peppercorns, at which point the flavor is too strong. 3.0/5.0
peanuts chili huangfeihong nuts chinese hmart spicy 3.0