Mama Lan (Shoreditch)

Authentic, handmade dumplings, noodle soups and street snacks from the heart of Beijing, China, served in the heart of London.

Our locations

We would love to welcome you to one of our London locations: Clapham, Dalston, Shoreditch, Brixton, East Village and Boxpark Croydon.

Our Story

Well, just after the cultural revolution in China, my granddad and my mum used to run a dumpling and snack stall in the bustling street markets of Beijing.

As a child, I remember that running the market stall was a real family affair. Each morning my mum and my aunties would form a production line in the front room of the family home to make the fresh dumplings, pickles and various goodies to be sold that day. Much to the amusement of my granddad, I made myself the official food taster – a very important job indeed!

I moved to London in my teens to study but I always longed for the food I grew up with. In 2010, I started the Mama Lan Supper Club in my own home to bring a taste of Beijing to London. As you may have guessed, the Supper Club is named in honour of my mum, the person who taught me how to cook my granddad’s recipes.

The supper club led to the opportunity to open our first restaurant in Brixton Village and now we are operating over 6 sites across London!

Today, the food we serve at Mama Lan’s is the very same food that was sold on my granddad’s humble little market stall all those years ago.

Ning Ma