Bao expansion
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| Classic pork bao |
The Bao story was a touching story, it all started off life as a street food store before spotted and fallen in love by a restaurateur. With the financial backing, it opened a restaurant in Soho and gained phenomenal success in no time. The second Bao in Fitzrovia was a touch bigger than its Soho site, span across two floors with more small plates on offer beside the classic Bao dishes. And what made this new site awesome, was you could book in advance which was music to my ears. As both Bao sites right now are still some of the hottest restaurants in London, it is normal wait over an hour before you can get a table.
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| Soy pork loin |
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| Beef bao |
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| Fried chicken chop |
The soy pork loin was an interesting dish, thinly sliced pork in a sweet and garlic dressing, almost like a sashimi dish. All the bao were outstanding, soft and milky, just like the good old time back in the street food days. The cod cooked in squid ink was the best bao on the day, the robust profile of the ink matched wonderfully with the sweet cod. Just as good was the classic braised pork, it was loaded with a lovely depth of rich sweet Asian flavours, all absorbed by the soft bun. The only dish that failed for me was the sha cha squid, which was far too salty and intense in taste to a level that almost killed off my taste bud, luckily it was the last dish to arrive.
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| Aubergine rice pot |
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| Cod bao |
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| Sha cha squid |
The overall quality of the meal was at a very good standard, I especially enjoyed how the kitchen has taken on some very classic Chinese and Taiwanese concept with a modern twist without losing the principle element. However, I did find the dishes portion size to be too small for the cost. Almost every dish were only a few mouthfuls which naturally made you want to order more. My final bill came to £70 for two people without alcohol, that kind of money have got me a 3 course dinner in a Michelin restaurant at pre-theatre time. To sum it, good quality and unique Oriental food, but with a cost, not to mention the mad queue you will need to put it with if you haven't book in advance.
Food 3/5
What I paid:
£35pp
Average cost without drinks and services:
£30pp
31 Windmill St, Fitzrovia, London W1T 2JN, UK
https://baolondon.com/
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