Meet Roosevelt Row's new late-night dumpling house

“I live right on Roosevelt and there just wasn’t any affordable food options that were quick and tasty,” she says. “In England, we have a lot of literal fast food places that aren’t fast food in the McDonald’s sense, they’re just on-the-go and I loved that part of the culture.”

On Feb. 24, Gould opened the doors to Lovesack Dumpling, turning a former bike shop into a grab-and-go dumpling house. The opening has attracted lots of attention locally, with lines curving out the door and onto Roosevelt Street.

The restaurant has also caught the eye of a similarly named furniture company.

Across the front of the restaurant’s awning is a hand-drawn style sign bearing the dumpling shop’s name, with a line crossed through it. While that was a visual design choice, it is also apropos, given that Gould will be changing the name after Lovesac threatened to sue.

“I think the most frustrating part is I did my due diligence,” Gould says, noting she sought legal counsel before deciding on the name. “It’s frustrating that a big corporation can just have more money than you, and even if you’re on the right side of the law, they can keep litigating against you.”

She and her team have asked customers to share ideas for new names in a suggestion box.

“Someone said La-Z-Boy, which I thought was so funny,” Gould says, adding that they received several fun and creative name suggestions. Gould will debut the restaurant’s new name in the coming weeks.

What’s on Lovesack's menu?

The concept is centered around steamed foods, Gould says, starting with her Persian mother’s lemongrass coconut rice, which is made with dragon fruit powder, giving the grains a natural pale pink hue. Cooking everything in steamers also allowed Gould to forgo an entire kitchen buildout in the small space.

“We only have a steamer. That’s how we’re able to be in our 20s and afford opening a new restaurant,” says Gould, who is 25.

Dumplings have always been her comfort food of choice and now she serves them by the box.

“Growing up in Manchester, I grew up on dumplings,” she says. “I think the best way to describe these boxes are my comfort boxes. These are all foods that make me happy.”

Gould wanted to keep the menu simple, saying "sometimes American menus are very overwhelming. There’s so many options."

At Lovesack, customers select a base of Gould’s mom’s rice, noodles, mixed greens or a combination, then add dumplings and sauces. Customers can pick from veggie, chicken, shrimp or pork options.

Initially, Gould wanted to draw more heavily on her Persian heritage but opted for the more widely available and familiar potsticker style to launch. But, the aim is to add a special feature menu each month that spotlights other styles of dumplings, from perogies to Persian versions, general manager Mahdiyya Oke says.

“We’re about love and family and good food,” she says.

Finally, the meal gets a drizzle of yuzu soy, spicy Sriracha or kewpie mayo. It’s all packed into a custom box, which when closed has two tabs that pop up. When Lovesack’s bamboo utensils are slid between them, it becomes a little briefcase brimming with dumplings.

Gould notes that while she loves the fast nature of takeout, she hates the waste of individual cutlery, sauce cups and plastic bags.

“Being Gen Z and Millennial, of course, we care about sustainability," she says. "Everything is in your box."

Gould designed the boxes and the utensils, which blend bamboo training chopsticks, which are joined at the top, with a fork. She has an autoimmune disease that can sometimes make using regular chopsticks challenging and wanted to ensure everyone could use the utensils.

“For the chopsticks, it was all about accessibility,” she says. “But also, I thought kids should have fun with it and learn to do it.”

The boxes cost $12 and are a full meal, Gould says, noting "you have your protein, you have your carbs and you feel full after it."

The restaurant doesn’t serve alcohol but does have a fridge stocked with zero-proof beverages from Monsoon Market.

What’s the vibe?

The exterior of the building, perhaps nodding to its signature rice, has been draped in soft pink paint. Above the awning are chrome cartoons of people eating dumplings, walking with a Lovesack box and shaking their tush, with dumplings in one hand and Lovesack’s bespoke cutlery in the other.

The interiors are spare and modern, with arched faux wood wrapping the entire space. The ordering counter is made of light-refracting chromatic steel, with globe lights hanging from oversized chains. Stools and a few tables are placed outside, including under the mirrored awning. A to-go window peaks out.

If you’re getting the vibe that Lovesack is fast food with on-the-nose flair, you’re not wrong. Gould worked in trend forecasting for a fashion brand and credits that work for helping her see a hole in the market. She saw playful, stylish, gourmet shops popping up – citing local examples like Monsoon Market and Neighbor Market.

“I was like, this is going to extend into the fast food space, so that is when I took the leap,” Gould says.

The response so far has been more than anticipated, Gould says. They’ve seen college students and neighbors alike stopping in, and Gould hopes Lovesack becomes a community spot.

“When you have affordable, easy, fast food you’re able to tap into a completely different market,” GM Oke adds.

Despite the challenges the team has faced with opening and having to change the name, Gould says they are getting their footing.

“We’ve got a really young team that I feel can really learn and grow together and we can start something from the ground up,” she says. “We’ve been thrown into the deep end but we’ve learned so much.”

Gould has been working on hiring more staff to allow the restaurant to expand its hours. It's currently open until 11 p.m. and she hopes to extend to 3 a.m. on weekends.

“There isn’t a lot of food available at that time, and that was my favorite part of going out in England… getting a kebab with my friends at the end of the night,” Gould says. “I love that sense of community but also having food available is going to be a game changer for downtown.”

Lovesack Dumpling

116 E. Roosevelt St.