STUFFED! Happy Dumpling Delivers Delicious Dumplings
by Ted Scheffler
At the recent Made in Utah Winter Fest, one of the food vendors I came across was Happy Dumpling Delivery Service. I sampled a couple of dumplings from Happy Dumpling, and boy did they make me happy! They were absolutely delicious. If you’re looking for a tasty way to enliven your party or event, I heartily recommended ordering dumplings for you and your guests to nosh on.
The Happy Dumpling Delivery Service is owned and operated by the husband and wife team of Kate Stalsberg Gurung and Robin Gurung. Kate describes their products this way: “We make handcrafted dumplings made from fresh ingredients and lots of love. We cook them, cool them, package them and deliver to your door. We offer four different types that include Pork, Chicken, Gourmet Chicken and Vegetarian/Vegan.”
Prior to launching Happy Dumpling, Kate was a chef for a catering company and a massage therapist, while Robin was a truck driver and a roofer. When asked what led them to create Happy Dumpling, Kate says, “My husband and I started this business simply because we wanted to get our delicious dumplings out to the public. We decided to do the delivery service since it was the most cost effective way to start a business and flexible where we could work our other jobs as well.”
She continues, “The first time I met my husband’s family they served these amazing dumplings or MoMos is what they are called in India. They were like no other potsticker, gyoza, or dumpling I have ever had, and I knew we needed to create a business centered around their dumplings. It wasn’t long after that I brought some into the spa I was working for at the time to share, and by the end many of the staff wanted to buy some dumplings the next time we made them. This is when we decided that we can cook them, cool them, and package them for people and just deliver.”
Describing Happy Dumpling’s niche in the local marketplace, Kate says, “We definitely have a unique place in the market. No one in the Valley is doing what we are, and our product is something you can’t get out of a bag in the frozen food section.”
How do you get your teeth into a Happy Dumpling? Kate says, “You can order online and we will deliver to your door if you are within our delivery zones.” Although, soon there may be other options for getting your hands on Happy Dumpling products. “We are working on getting a food trailer up and running which will be serving our signature dumplings, different curries, and rices. We would like to have our dumplings in a couple different local stores here in Salt Lake, as well,” says Kate.
When asked about individuals or groups who have helped to launch Happy Dumpling Delivery Service, Kate says, “Some of the most supportive people have been our families; they have been able to give us a lot of advice and funding for the start up. We also had a lot of support from the Utah Women’s Networking Group. They offered many classes that were very useful in getting our business off the ground.”
Asked for what sort of advice they would give to someone wishing to create a business like Happy Dumpling’s, Kate says enthusiastically, “Believe in yourself and keep pushing through the tough times, don’t give up!”
