Katarina “Kat” Su always has associated family get-togethers with making dumplings. Every time her Taiwanese grandparents would visit her parents, a dumpling party would ensue.
“They would come to visit in Atlanta, and we would have, like, freezers full of dumplings when they left,” said Su, 26, who grew up in Alpharetta and earned a business degree from Emory University.
Later, as an adult, she and her business partner, Kevin Ye, staged dumpling-making parties with friends. The social gatherings were so successful that they considered charging for classes. After that idea was sidelined by the pandemic, Su and Ye began offering frozen dumplings.
Credit: Handout
Credit: Handout
That was last August. By Labor Day, the dumpling duo had landed their first pop-up gig, at Wild Heaven Beer in Avondale Estates. Since then, Kat’s Dumps has become fully ensconced in the city’s pop-up community, even as it continues to offer fresh-made frozen dumplings every Saturday morning in Buckhead.
“It just kind of blew up a little bit,” said Su, who works full time as a senior consultant at Atlanta-based marketing agency Annuitas. “We were obviously very surprised, but very happy at the same time, to be able to share our dumplings, our recipes, and kind of our culture to a group of people.”
Ye, 30, who grew up in a family of Chinese immigrants in Duluth, has shifted focus from his parents’ manufacturing company to working full time at the dumpling endeavor, which also crafts condiments, snacks and sweets to go with the dumplings.
The so-called OG dump (pork, napa cabbage, scallions and mushrooms) and the veggie (tofu, mushroom, chives and vermicelli) are based on traditional family recipes. Along with Thai chicken, they are the core of the product line.
Credit: Handout
Credit: Handout
While Su is passionate about promoting Taiwanese cuisine, she also wants to mix things up a bit, by creating fusion dumplings. Last fall, Kat’s concocted a pumpkin-chorizo dumpling, followed by a pumpkin pie version for the holidays. Currently on the menu is a mapo tofu dumpling made with eggplant.
“I have a whole list of dumplings that I want to experiment with,” Su said. “Like a pizza dumpling, or a lamb curry — things that are more fusion.”
Ye credits Su with the dumpling development. “I do help with some of the recipes, but I’d say she does most of it.”
They build the dumplings as a team — rolling, filling and folding. At pop-ups, Su usually takes orders and serves, while Ye does the cooking.
Credit: Handout
Credit: Handout
Frozen dumplings are sold in packs of 20 with a dipping sauce ($16-$24). A 60-dumpling sampler (OG, Thai chicken, veggie) goes for $45 and comes with two sauces. Snacks include furikake Chex mix (Chex cereal, pretzels, crackers and peanuts seasoned with furikake and maple syrup), black sesame Rice Krispies drizzled with white chocolate (three for $6) and matcha sugar cookies (four for $8).
I recently met a friend at a Thursday pop-up at Wild Heaven for a sampling. We ordered every dump on the menu (OG, Thai chicken, veggie and Shrimpy). When I mentioned I’d heard about the new eggplant mapo tofu dumpling, Ye told me they were available — as a secret menu item, if you will. So, we tried those, too.
My favorites were the OG and the Shrimpy, washed down with Wild Heaven’s White Blackbird. Lovers of Asian dumplings will be delighted by Kat’s Dumps.
HOW TO ORDER: Order by 11:59 p.m. Wednesday for Saturday morning curbside pickup. 3365 Piedmont Road NE, Atlanta. katsdumps.com
UPCOMING POP-UPS: 4-7 p.m. July 9 at Social Fox Brewing in Norcross. 2-7 p.m. July 10 at Eventide Brewing in Grant Park. 4-7 p.m. July 16 at Red Hare Brewing in Marietta. 9 a.m.-noon July 17 at Serenbe Farmers Market in Chattahoochee Hills. 2-7 p.m. July 17 at Scofflaw Brewing in Atlanta. July 23-25 at Eventide Brewing. July 30-Aug. 1 at Wild Heaven Beer in Avondale Estates.
