Chirba Chirba Dumpling

Durham, United States

2.8

20 reviews

Accepts Credit Cards

Contacts

QR code, vCard

Telephone:
+1 919-885-4328
Website:
www.chirbachirba.com
Address:
Durham, NC
Nearby public transportation stops & stations:
0.2 miDurham Amtrak
1 miEast Campus
1.3 mi096
Categories:
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Bussiness info

Takes Reservations
No
Delivery
No
Take-out
Yes
Accepts Credit Cards
Yes
Good For
Lunch
Parking
Street
Bike Parking
Yes
Wheelchair Accessible
Yes
Good for Kids
Yes
Good for Groups
Yes
Attire
Casual
Ambience
Hipster
Noise Level
Average
Alcohol
No
Outdoor Seating
Yes
Wi-Fi
No
Has TV
No
Dogs Allowed
Yes
Waiter Service
No
Caters
Yes

Today

Today –
Local time (Durham) 9:38 AM Friday, May 23, 2025

Business hours

Monday –
Tuesday –
Wednesday –
Thursday –
Friday –
Saturday –
Sunday –

Description

Specialties

The Dumplings are Here! Thank you for your interest in Chirba Chirba Dumpling. We are excited to bring you an Asian street fare food truck specializing in Chinese dumplings. After years of dumpling studies through extensive tasting, pleating, and learning secret family recipes, we have developed a menu that we think you’ll love. Find out where we will pop up next by following us on Twitter.

History

Established in 2011.

Once upon a time, there were 4 friends who loved to make and eat dumplings. After many trips to foreign lands where much delicious street food was discovered (and eaten), the 4 friends decided to bring their favorite dumplings to the streets to share with all from a food truck. Late night dumpling pleating parties have turned into inventive taste-​testing and dumpling folding sessions at The Cookery.

Meet the Business Owner

Chief Dumpling Engineer Y.

Business Owner

Yin always seeks answers to the ‘why’s of the world and is especially curious about all things dumpling. From tastes to textures to efficient cooking processes, Yin leads and documents test upon test on everything to make sure each Chirba dumpling is delicious and served with speed.

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20 reviews of Chirba Chirba Dumpling

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Place rating: 5
Raleigh, NC
I tried Chirba Chirba during the Raleigh Food Truck Rodeo after hearing fantastic things about it. I tried the red bean buns and they were great. The dough is really soft and delicious and the filling was tasty as well. They came to my place of work one day and I ventured to try the Veggie curry dumplings and they were fantastic. The sesame garlic sauce was so delicious I didn’t even have enough dumplings to dip in it. I can’t wait until the next time they come around.
Place rating: 4
Durham, NC
I followed the advice of Unilocalers and tried the juicy buns with pineapple curry sauce. Yes, they are small. But they are juicy and packed with flavor. The sauce paired really well with it.
No, the food isn’t super authentic but closer to the real thing than many other Chinese fast food places.
I agree with the other Unilocalers with the price. You are basically paying more than a dollar for each dumpling = more than one dollar/​bite of food. But the food was tasty so I can’t complain too much. I would recommend this truck for snacking (not meal) purposes.
Place rating: 3
New York, NY
Good dumpling, over priced. The staff seems to be high all the time and the hours aren’t always accurate. I’ve showed up on Duke campus at 505 and they didn’t open until 530.
Place rating: 3
Durham, NC
Chirba Chirba makes really solid dumplings. I tried all three that were available (pork buns, pork chive and veggie) and all were delicious. My favorite sauce is the spicy one (which I don’t find all that spicy, but it is tasty). My only complaint is that it is on the more expensive side for food trucks. I need at least 12 dumplings, if not 18 to feel satisfied which will run you between $ 11 – 17. Being that it was Taco Tuesday and a neighboring food truck had tacos for just $ 2, I felt like it wasn’t a great value. I would definitely eat them again if they were in the area but they aren’t a food truck that I would purposely seek out.
Place rating: 3
Holly Springs, NC
Food Truck Tuesday: Chirba Chirba
It has been a while since I had Chirba Chirba and the dumplings I have had in the past were great so I definitely wanted to visit this food truck again! I went with 6 Juicy Buns with Pineapple Curry for my sauce and 6 Braised Beef dumplings which were already tossed in chili oil. My favorite was definitely the Juicy Buns, I enjoyed dipping them in the delicious Pineapple Curry sauce! But, beware because I bit into one and it shot sauce up my nose. As far as the Braised Beef dumplings went, they were a bit too oily for my liking.
Service, luckily I was 4th in line but I do not think that would have mattered since they were moving through the line extremely quickly. I think that from waiting to place my order to receiving my food I waited less than 7 minutes.
If you get the chance to try this food truck then check it out!
Place rating: 1
Durham, NC
The taste of dumplings is nothing special (not bad, but not great either), and yet the cost of them was exceptionally high. For the 7 dollar plate, you get 6 dumplings, which is no way fulfilling even for a tiny Asian girl like me. The name ‘bun’ is misleading because you will NOT get the standard buns, but tiny dumplings that are in the size of typical shumais. If you want to have a proper meal here, you would at least have to order the 19 dollar plate, which in my opinion is WAY too pricy for a food truck meal in Durham. (Well, that’s actually pricy for a food truck meal anywhere in the world.) Overall, the dumplings taste good, but definitely not for the price.
Place rating: 3
Nutley, NJ
Chirba Chirba is a nice little food truck that has a unique dumpling offering in the area. I was able to try these while my friends and I were out at a bar across the street.
This place is definitely does hit the spot for some late night munchies. My friends and I got a bunch of the Juicy Buns, Braised Beef, and Bayside Chive dumplings. They also have a variety of sauces you can use, the Chirba Spicy, Garlic Sesame, Pineapple Curry, and Black Vinegar, I liked the Chirba Spicy and Garlic Sesame sauces the most. The dumplings themselves were good, but nothing incredibly special in my opinion.
What to note is that these «Juicy Buns» are like a poor’s man Xiao Long Bao (soup dumplings). If you expect them to be soup dumplings you’ll be disappointed. I also feel that the price is a little high for what you get, as these dumplings small.
Place rating: 1
Chapel Hill, NC
No vegan dumplings. They add egg to the delicious sounding veggie dumplings at the end, so they are not vegan. Perhaps they used to have vegan dumplings, because they are mentioned in multiple reviews. But nothing here for vegans, aside from edamame.
Bummed. If they decide to make their veggie dumplings with something other than egg, I will happily come back.
Place rating: 2
Raleigh, NC
While I do really enjoy their dumplings, I’m so sick of the snooty service. It can be so hit or miss but at the last food truck rodeo, the girl who was handing out food was SO rude. I asked for a piece of foil or some sort of container for sauce because my kids were freaking out, it was raining, and I wanted to take my food to go. The attitude she shot me in return was so ridiculous. ‘*We* don’t give that out during rodeos’ Um, ok. Well, I need to take this to my car. ‘Well, if I give one to you then everyone wants it’ Really? Eveyone? There’s going to be a mad rush for a piece of foil? There’s plenty of other delicious food trucks to not have to deal with that. I’ve heard a lot of similar complaints recently from friends so I might visit again, but only if she’s not in attendance that day.
Place rating: 3
Oak Ridge, NC
I’ve only ever gotten the Juicy Buns at Chirba Chirba, and so far, I think that the food is great: although not quite authentic, the taste is still delicious and savory. Nothing too exceptional, but I would probably drop by if the food truck happened to be in the area.
The sauces that come with the dumplings are very unique and flavorful; I honestly like all four of them, but the Pineapple Curry and Garlic Sesame flavors are my favorite.
For me, the biggest drawback is the price. 12 dumplings cost $ 11, and the portion size is pretty standard, which is definitely smaller than I would expect for $ 11. Overall, though, Chirba Chirba is definitely worth a shot if you have a dumpling craving and (a lot) of change to spare.
Place rating: 1
Cary, NC
I’ve had their food three times now, and while it’s not bad, it’s not exceptional either – aside from the hipster chic of pan-​Asian food with cutesy names, served from a food truck. A bag of frozen Ling Ling dumplings are comparable.
The real problem is how they treat vegetarians. Yes, they have a vegetarian entrée: «Choy to the World.» But there’s no consideration for serving them. If you order the vegetarian dumplings as a group, the truck plops them in with the meat dumplings… meaning that you’re playing meat roulette. They love vegetarian money, but they stop caring as soon as that swipe hits the iPad, the signature goes on the screen, and the «done» button is hit. Poor form, Chirba Chirba. Poor form.
Place rating: 5
Garner, NC
I personally loved my food and service! I was only able to go one time when the truck came by my office recently. I had the Bayside Chive dumplings, and some Spicy Glass Noodles. YUM! I’m a happy camper, and look forward to enjoying them again soon!
Place rating: 2
Fairfax, VA
First experience with them at the Raleigh food truck rodeo. I honestly can say there was nothing memorable, we went with a pork dumpling that was recommended by the order taker.
Overpriced, average dumplings.
Place rating: 2
Raleigh, NC
Hate to sound like a broken record here and basically repeat what everyone else has to say about Chirba, but yes. rip off, overhyped. yada yada yada.
Service was fast, so i gave stars for that. And the dumplings are pretty ok, don’t get me wrong. But these were NOT soup dumplings. it was just like regular dumplings. except TINY. like slightly larger than a hershey kiss, i kid you not. Smaller than a bon bon. Seriously. So yes, you basically have to order at LEAST 12 (they come in 6, 12, or 18) and that makes it like 10 bucks or something. ridiculous! And it sucks because by dumpling #6, you’re already getting tired of eating these one-​dimensional flavored things. But you have to finish the next 6 because you’re still hungry.
At least make sure you get different dumpling flavors. I’m glad they let you do that. So you can split 6 and 6, pork and veggie, etc. But in the end, they all still taste sort of similar.
Their spicy chili oil was my favorite dipping sauce of the 4 they offer, so if you’re not going to heed our advice and plan on STILL going here, at least get that sauce. It is pretty yummy.
Enjoy your hershey kiss dumplings y’all!
Place rating: 4
Raleigh, NC
Today was my second Chirba Chirba experience. What a cool dumpling truck!
You can choose orders of dumplings in quantities of 6 and you get one sauce per order of 6. I had the Braised Beef and one order of Bayside Chive. The Braised Beef has braised beef with carrots, daikon, plum sauce, and chili oil. The Bayside Chive has pork with cabbage, carrots, and chives. Each order of 6 is only $ 6. I got the garlic sauce, which was more smooth liquid, and the chili sauce, which is thicker and quite spicy.
My friend got the Fluffy Bun and let me try it. Made with Carameal and Coconut Cream, it was just the right amount of sweet and soft dough. I’m not much for coconut though so I wouldn’t order one of my own. They’re pretty big and only $ 1.50!
Drinks — water, soda, and Chinese drinks are for sale. Water and soda is only $ 1.25 and the Chinese drinks are $ 1.75. I didn’t know what the Chinese drinks were so I stuck with Pepsi. Next time I’ll have to try one.
These are certainly some really lunch «treats,» things I could never make like them. My mouth is still tingly from the spice, but they were seriously so good! Definitely living up to the legend!
Place rating: 5
Chapel Hill, NC
Their soup dumplings are something else. They’ve been to my apartment complex a few times and I wish they were here every month. I also love their sweet Chinese sausage, which they slice thin and fry up like bacon. Delicious.
The first time I tried them I had wanted to try the sausage but they were out so they gave me an extra dumpling. I actually got two extra dumplings because they were running a st Patrick’s day special and giving a free extra dumpling to anyone wearing green. Listen, I’m not too proud to put on a green tee shirt if it means I get free anything, especially food. I’ll wear a springy shamrock headband or a leprechaun hat if it means I get free food. Well maybe not that. But I can wear a green tee shirt without shame.
Anyway come back to Meadowmont please.
Place rating: 1
Durham, NC
After hearing so many rave reviews about Chirba Chirba, I was excited to find the truck at the Apex Jazz Festival, only to be let down by the service and never get a chance to try the food.
Me — What is your favorite dumpling on the menu?
Girl in the window — Choy To The World.
Me — Can you tell me about that?
Girl — Its a dumpling. We sell dumplings.
Me — Got that, can you tell me about THAT dumpling?
Girl — You have to read the menu.
Me — Im not trying to be difficult, just want to know what’s in your favorite dumpling.
Girl — Read the menu.
Me — Thanks. I think I’ll go to the next truck.
Place rating: 4
Wake Forest, NC
I love Chirba Chirba, but unfortunately so does everybody else. This can make waiting in line here at the larger food truck events an ordeal (once I waited in line for over an hour just to place my order). Because of that, I usually try to catch them when they’re at less packed venues.
My favorite thing to order are the Juicy Buns, which are stuffed with a slightly sweet pork filling. I love the basic black vinegar sauce, but honestly you can’t go wrong with whatever dipping sauce you choose. You should also definitely try the chinese sausage on the side.
They are a little pricey, but totally worth it!
Place rating: 2
Raleigh, NC
The Chirba Chirba food truck has a faithful following and great word of mouth marketing. The menu is interesting; it feels like there’s something for everyone. I tried the Veggie-​ling dumplings, steamed and stuffed with button mushrooms, shitake mushrooms, peas, carrots, mung bean vermicelli, ginger and 5 spice tofu, and I went with the pineapple curry dipping sauce. The dumplings were good, and that sauce– I’d bring a gallon of it home if I could.
Overall, I find Chirba Chirba pricey (about $ 1 a dumpling) considering you typically have a bit of a wait for your food and you stand in a parking lot eating.
Place rating: 2
Charlotte, NC
QPQs (Quality, Price, Quantity, Service): 2324
Q: Meh. I’ve experienced better. That being said, I experienced better while I was in Asia so maybe I’m a little biased. But even then, I’ve made better with my friends as well. I tried the Porkelicious and Juicy Buns. I didn’t dislike them, but nothing amazing.
P: Overpriced, especially for the quality, especially for the quantity, especially for a food truck.
Q: They were a little smaller than the dumplings I’m used to eating.
S: They workers were super friendly when I came up. I got there a little earlier than when they planned to open, but they rushed and got everything up earlier for me. On top of that, I really wanted to try multiple types for my first time. Since there wasn’t a line yet they let me get multiple types for my order of 6, which they don’t normally allow. I really appreciated this.