The term dim sum roughly translates to “touching the heart,” and when we’re Downtown and in need of a little heart hug, we head to Qi. It’s from the same people behind Lin Asian Bar and a few other Chinese restaurants in town—much like all of their spots, the dumplings here are some of the best in Austin. During lunch and dinner hours, there are a handful of options—from scallop caviar sui mai to crab meat fish maw soup dumplings—but show up for brunch on the weekends and there are about three times as many choices. Of course, Qi isn’t just a dumpling restaurant—there’s a full menu of terrific dinner entrees as well, many of which are made with premium ingredients like lobster, caviar, and Akaushi beef.

The front patio has all the expected cool factor of a Chinese restaurant built on the ground level of a West Sixth street high-rise, which is to say, not much. Though it does allow you to look out onto the street and watch Whole Foods corporate employees from the same complex heading out of the office for a post-shift kombucha. But once you open the tall (and heavy) wooden doors into the dining area, you’ll find yourself in a lively room with exposed beams, tall windows, and hanging paper umbrella lanterns. 

Qi isn’t really the type of place you casually show up to with a crew on Saturday morning to go face to face with a rolling cart full of dumplings—it’s a little too pricey for that (also there are no carts). But it’s well-suited for a brunch dim sum date. Come to Qi when you want to turn an average Tuesday night into one just a little more memorable, or when you want to take your parents somewhere that shows them you eat more than just Taco Bell and Panda Express every night (especially if they’re paying).

photo credit: Richard Casteel

photo credit: Richard Casteel

photo credit: Richard Casteel

photo credit: Richard Casteel

photo credit: Richard Casteel

Food Rundown

photo credit: Richard Casteel

Shanghai Soup Dumplings

Saying that Qi makes the best soup dumplings in Austin would be opening up a can of worms that we’re not quite ready to get into. But they’re certainly not not the best. The dumpling skin is thin, but sturdy enough for each piece to survive the journey from steamer basket to bowl, and the ground pork filling is packed full of flavor. Just be careful not to burn your mouth too much. These should absolutely be a part of your order.

photo credit: Richard Casteel

Scallop Caviar Sui Mai

If you’ve ever gone for dim sum, you’ve probably had your share of sui mai. But unless you’ve been to Qi, you probably haven’t had sui mai quite like this. Here, the more common shrimp-and-pork filling gets subbed for scallops and topped with caviar. The flavors and the textures feel familiar, but the buttery scallops and briny caviar feel like tiny little upgrades.

photo credit: Richard Casteel

Akaushi Beef Potsticker

We’re not really sure if any of the costly benefits of Akaushi beef—namely, its rich marbling—come through in these potstickers. But that doesn’t stop us from ordering them on every visit. They’re fried with a thin layer of batter at the end, giving them a shatteringly crispy lattice skirt that’s a lot of fun to eat.

photo credit: Richard Casteel

Akaushi Beef With Green Pepper

The large chunks of incredibly tender meat come out in a big bowl covered in colorful peppers and a dark, sweet sauce that pairs especially well with a small bowl of fluffy white rice.

photo credit: Richard Casteel

Fried Whole Fish

If the name didn’t make it abundantly clear, this is a lightly battered, whole fried fish topped with a sweet, sticky sauce. The meat is tender and there’s enough sauce to coat each bite. Just keep in mind that it’s a pretty big portion. If you’re just here with one other person, we might skip this just to save room for more of the menu, but larger groups will want to get one.