Walked past here when it was closed and made a note to self, this looks interesting. I was drawn by the image of a man stuffing a Bao in his mouth and I liked the illustration. One night in soho, we're trying to decide what to have for dinner and I remember Bao and head over there. I walk into the restaurant so happy and excited to see what a cool place this was, only to find out that there are 30 other people excited and waiting in line across the street! But the line moves quickly and we're in and order cocktail (not the best place to order drinks) and start ordering lots of small dishes and baos. The pickles are a must, order two or three of them as you won't want to share, very small, but you'll want more! The baos were just what I had imagined, salty, yummy meat with a soft sweet bun, yum! Totally reminded me of San Francisco's Chairman Mao food truck. read more

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Lovely place with some phenomenal baos. The dessert bao with deep fried buns and Horlicks ice cream is definitely not to be missed - and serves my childhood memory of the drink very well. Fun combinations of small plates. Long line, but worth the wait. Come early! read more

BAO - Soho - The beef soup with Daikon radish, and classic pork bao - Taiwanese Near Me - London, XGL

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After the much anticipated wait, Bao has finally opened their Soho restaurant! I ordered the peanut milk, which came served with ice in a small glass - it was really tasty and refreshing, and I could have easily downed a couple more glasses. Their menu is divided into three categories: 'Xiao Chi' ("small eats"), Bao, and Sides. The scallop was fresh with fragrant flavours from the yellow bean garlic. I find soup dishes very comforting, and I would highly recommend the beef soup, which seems to be a favourite amongst many who have tried it. The aubergine was really soft and smooth, and it was fun to eat it with the crispy pieces of wonton skin. Their pig blood cake which many had raved about was actually really tasty. After watching multiple videos and 'before and after' shots of that gooey egg yolk, I finally tried it for myself. It had a pleasant texture, and it was really moreish - another favourite from the menu! The trotter nuggets had a light and crisp golden coating with deliciously tender meat inside - so good that I had the whole dish to myself. The guinea fowl chi shiang rice was topped with a bright yellow egg yolk which was great to eat mixed together with the rice. We ordered three different savoury baos - lamb shoulder, confit pork and the fried chicken. I have only ever had their classic bao from their market stall, so it was nice to try a few more variations, all of which I enjoyed. It was hard to choose, but my favourite amongst the three was probably the confit pork bao. And of course I couldn't pass out on dessert which was the Fried Horlicks Ice Cream. It was interesting to see Horlicks being used which was more of a childhood drink for me. It is however not the easiest thing to eat without getting your fingers smothered in melted ice cream... At the end we washed it all down with some foam cold-pressed tea which was really refreshing. The food has definitely lived up to the hype and it is of no surprise that there have been queues of people outside. I will be back for more... Click on my blog link for the full post with photos x dancing-in-high-heels.blogspot.co.uk read more

Overall Score: 4 Service/Ambiance Rating: 4 Food Rating: 4 What to say about BAO? They didn't do anything wrong... but they didn't do anything great either. Like some other reviewers, I don't think I understand what the rave is about. For me, the potion sizes are so small that I can't comfortably enjoy my meal... I just keep thinking how many holes are being drilled into my wallet just to keep my stomach full. While I don't think I will return to BAO, I did enjoy their take on dessert with their ice cream bao. read more

BAO - Soho - Notorious wait for BAO - Taiwanese Near Me - London, XGL

Incredible food and drinks here! The flavor of what they offer is outstanding! This is the kind of place you look forward to going back to time and time again! Always a wait, but they rotate quickly. Pretty quick from sit to eat, almost like fast food speeds. Their baos are all amazing and quite different so best to try all! The classic and chicken might be my personal favorite! read more

What's not to love about hirata buns? Fluffy white steamed buns filled with some kind of goodness. So many places are popping up around London and I love trying the different flavours. So we heard about the queues so we got there shortly before noon and already people are waiting to get in for lunch. I know the place is small but do they really have to trickle people in so slowly? We waited a good 20 minutes outside and finally get a seat for 3. We shared the fried chicken and aubergine as starters. The fried chicken was great but the aubergine was quite underwhelming. Our baos took forever to come out. I think they forgot about it but really does it take that long to pull this together? I had the pork confit and lamb shoulder baos - both very tasty but thinking for what it is - I don't think it's worth the wait or the price. I've had much better in street stalls - which I know thats how they started but seriously. I don't think I wouldn't mind if we were able to get in quickly - order came out promptly. Think it's over engineering something that should be quite simple. Sorry Bao - I love the branding and all but probably won't be back. read more

My boyfriend (now husband) and I went to Bao for the First time and absolutely loved it! We each ordered about 3 different Baos, I ordered a Beef soup and we shared the Taiwanese Fried chicken as a starter. We both loved the Fired chicken with hot sauce. - perfectly crunchy and delicious. I also ordered the peanut milk which had a nice subtle peanut flavour although it was slightly too sweet for my taste (I'm not used to much sugar so I'm sure for most it's lovely). We can't wait to go again and get a Bao Bag as well! read more

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These were definitely tasty, but a bit pricey. I'd rather just go to Chinatown for the same products but much cheaper. The menu and vibe of the place was very hip though, and the drinks were tasty! read more

Horrible experience Been standing in the cold 30 minuts before opening and no one told me i need to que across even though there were 5 waitors inside chitchatting. Had to go to the end of the que even though i was the first one. The interesting part was that the waitors dont even know what they are serving. I have ordered one each for every bao and apparently the waitor served me classic bao twice and said that this is confit bao, which thankfully i did know it isnt because i have checked the pictures thanks to yelp. She was keep on saying that it is confit and had to call another waitor to prove it is not Food is cold and below standard, very slow on serving foods. read more

I am Taiwanese. The food made me homesick. Indeed a must-try in London! Though we don't have some of the dishes back in Taiwan, all dishes tasted pretty well, especially the Classic Bao. I have it all the times around my house in Taipei. read more

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Following restaurants on Instagram can be torture. Constantly looking at pictures on your newsfeed can make you want to almost consume your phone at times. However, once I booked my ticket to London, the realization of actually eating a bao was shortly approaching. Bao was the first place that we went to after dropping our bags off at our hotel. As we approached, we noticed a line that we ended up waiting in, until a Bao staffer came out and personally invited us into the place. We were lucky enough to sit at the bar. The two bartenders were straight business. There wasn't much dialogue between them, instead they were focused on executing very intricate beverages. We ordered the peanut milk, which come in a little bowl. The flavour of peanuts hits you right away, and the texture was so smooth and velvety. We ordered three bao each. The first was the classic, with peanut powder, fermented greens and pork shoulder. Each element in the pillowy bun balanced out the whole dish beautifully. My only complaint was I wish there were more of the fermented greens. The second was the fried chicken bao. This one had far more texture than the first. I liked how there weren't any crazy ingredients to out shine the super crispy chicken. The last was the fried bao with ice cream. This was super neutral and clean. I think one more element really would have put this over the top, either something fruity or something with some texture. Overall, we will always remember the amazing flavours that danced across our palette in the first restaurant that we visited in London. read more

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If you want to eat at BAO store then prepare to queue. The shop is small so no surprise there is a queue. It is defintely not suitable for large groups here but a place to consider for one or two people. When you finally do get a seat, you would place your order by filling in a order form and hand it to one of the staff. The menu is broken in to three section - small plates, bao and sides. The drinks are on a separate menu and there are a selection of hot or cold oolong tea. The hot oolong tea is served in a small clay teapot. You will see the staff use a timer to brew each tea to work out when its ready to seve. When you visit BAO you have to order at least one of their bao which is what make them popular. There is different fillings to select including Fried Horlicks ice cream, which is deep fried bao (instead of the steam bao) with Horlicks ice cream. The steamed bao are soft and fluffy. The Classic Bao consist of braised pork with fermented greens and peanut powder. I preferred this over their Confit pork bao consisting of pork belly with a hot pork sauce and dried shallots. Eating bao can get a bit messy but don't freak because you will get wet tissue to wipe your hands. One of my favourite on the menu is their Scallops with yellow bean sauce which cost £3.50 and come served in its shell. Guinea Fowl Chi Shiang rice for £5.25 comes served in a small bowl which make it great size as a small plate. You can consider having one of these rice bowl and a bao, instead of muching yourself through lots of bao to get full and have your money draining away quicker. read more

The First time I tried Bao burger , it was in Paris (Siseng restaurant) so when I saw in London they have a popular Bao place , for a food lover like me, I went and tried! And no disappointment at all! It was quite different to what I have tried but still as good! We had various little meals we shared : aubergine, fried chicken , scallop (difficult to share this one but still have tried a tiny bits) Guiana fowl rice and sweet potatoes fries. All were delicious and worth to try. Now the Bao: we all went for 2 Bao each as suggested by the waitress. We found them small when we saw them first but it was actually just right if you take into account the starters (if not for a big eater like me, it would not have been enough) . I have tried the classic pork Bao, the fried chicken Bao and the lamb Bao! All of them are EXCELLENT! They are really flavoured, with the right amount of spice Tips: if you don't like spice, that might be difficult for you to eat as it might burn quite quickly but if you can handle a little bit of spice you will be fine! My favourite Bao was the classic one. The braised pork was sooooo good! Then the chicken, the sauce they put in it was really really good and the chicken perfectly fried. And I love the bread, like my friend said it is so soft and light , it's like eating a cloud (like she knows how a cloud taste ) And finally, we tried the ice cream Bao. That was original. Other tip: if you are like me with sensitive tooth and you can't bite on an ice cream, ask for a spoon to eat it. The ice cream was nice, the warm Bao that come with it as well but I would rather get another salty Bao than this dessert. Not a problem if you don't try it! Oh and I almost forgot the drink: I went for the cold tea with with peach and verbena. So refreshing, the perfect summer drink even if I went there end of September but who will say no to a fresh and refreshing drink. That's it, I can't sell this place more than with this review and the pics! Final tip: go there either at 6.30 or after 8.30/9 on a Monday, the wait won't be long! And if you have to queue, do it! The food is worth the wait! read more

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Having had the luxury of a second visit to Bao, I have been able to try some more tasty bites: the House Pickles were intriguing but a couple were a little too sharply sour for my taste, the Pig Blood Cake was sumptuously soft and well matched with the perfectly round egg yolk (although I am told it is very much like black pudding, which I have not tried before), the Trotter Nuggets are well proportioned (you get four decent sized pieces) and they are lightly crispy on the outside with an interesting mix of meat, fat and possibly potato on the inside, the Scallop with Yellow Bean Garlic was bursting with flavour and served up a good whole scallop immersed in a delicious dressing, the Aubergine Wanton Crisp seems a bit of a bizarre combination as the fried wanton is simply provided separate from a small dish of aubergine (nevertheless the aubergine is pleasantly topped up with herbs with a bed of spice underneath), and finally the Daikon Bao was a decent vegetarian option for Bao as the Bao is the same white fluffy Bao as for the meat varieties and the Daikon is a block of crispy and subtly fragrant turnip on a bed of herbs and accompanied with a smoky sauce. read more

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Must have been the third or forth attempt we tried to eat here.. The queue always put us off -(restaurant is so small that waiting is outside over the road where a Bao bus stop resides, I guess not to annoy the pub patrons next door). Even on a Monday, there was a queue before the lunch service! But must say it has Lived up to the hype! Super Tasty and interesting flavours. We tried each and every bao available and was not disappointed. Will have to order a fair few if you're there for dinner! Drinks are tiny, but everything about the place is on point. You see why the queues are long. Many similar places are beginning to open up .. But these there the OGs! read more

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Thanks to reading other reviews I knew to stand in line across the street and to arrive before they opened. I arrived a little after 11. The sign was placed across the street for lunch at about 11:30 - first in line! For the next 30 minutes I watched as the line grew behind me starting to wrap around the corner. Unlike another restaurant I recently posted about, this one is worth the wait! Beef Soup, Braised Daikon - Light, refreshing, hot! Great flavor for such a basic broth. Classic - not a fan of the peanut flavor, but that's just personal preference; otherwise very good. Lamb Shoulder - my favorite; loved the spiciness from the jalapeno Fried Horlicks Ice cream - wasn't quite sure how to tackle it, but still very good Sweet Potato Chips - that plum pickle ketchup was unexpectedly good read more

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Spending the week in London and wanted to try a Bao place. This one is small but efficient with very friendly and helpful staff. We tried a few sides and apps and two Bao each. The standouts were the trotter nuggets, the sweet potato fries, the mushroom app and the currywurst special Bao but all was good. read more

Warily eyeing the 40+ person line at 6:30 pm on Saturday, I silently cursed my affinity for instantly joining queues, even if it was to wait for a table at the very popular Bao. As soon as the host came out of the restaurant, I asked him how long the wait would be. He answered, "For one I can probably seat you now!". Sometimes, it pays to be a loner. I immediately went instead and perused the menu. The only bad thing about eating alone is that you can't order everything without looking like a pig, but I have no shame. I ordered the fried chicken bun, the pork belly, and the stewed pork. Out of the three, the fried chicken was the best with its sesame bao, and I wished I ordered another one. The pork belly was also delicious, and the stewed pork was nice but I would want to try something different next time. To top it off, I had the fried milk bun with Horlicks ice cream, and it was heaven. I am definitely coming back, with or without friends. read more

The original had way too much peanut powder on it. The pork confit was supposed to have dried shallots, but it was actually raw shallots, which was unpleasant. Scallop was fishy and rubbery. Eryngii mushrooms were okay, salad was decent. Oolong tea was tiny and overpriced. Also, why wouldn't you just put a sign on the door instructing your patrons to wait on the other side of the street? Such a simple fix. Prob won't come back. read more

Little pieces of melt in the mouth clouds filled with succulent pork, deep fried TENDER chicken breast or shredded minty lamb. The pepper sauce of the scallops is to die for and the aubergine chargrilled to perfection. My only problem was the ice cream bao, messy as hell! read more

BAO - Soho - There's always a queue in this place. Be prepared to wait - Taiwanese Near Me - London, XGL

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The reviews for this place are definitely right... WORTH THE WAIT. We shared and tried the classic, pork, lamb and chicken bao's. My favorite were the classic and the pork. The sweet potato fries with the plum sauce were also very delicious as was the scallop. The only reason I didn't give it the full 5 stars was due to the trotter nuggets, while they didn't taste bad they didn't taste like much except fried food. Other than that food came quick, service was friendly and the food was good! read more

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One of the most interesting restaurant in London It is surprising how smart they use ingredients to complement the food. Price: not expensive at all. What I had around 22£. You pay 30$ for a noodle soup and buns at Momofuku tho. What I had: - scallop. Scallop is nicely cook. I was noticed the green powder around the shell, and I gave my best guess: it tastes like seaweed powder. Those gave the scallop more sea flavor, if you add some of those on your scallop. - pig blood cake. I think this is alright. - trotter nuggets. Trotter is a common Chinese like food. However, the meat is tender on this part but if you eat too many trotter, the greasy taste will overwhelm you. The sauce (with some wasabi and something else I forgot) complement with the meat makes it perfect. - classic bun. The peanuts make it more tasty. - lamb shoulder bun. The green sauce is a finishing touch. I feel like there had cumin flavor in it. Lamb always go well with cumin. I think the restaurant used a lot Chinese cooking style and integrate them into a more western friendly dishes. Brilliant. Definitely will go again. read more

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Has anyone played Chubby Bunny Cheeks here? I wouldn't mind if you mistook me for a person who could probably eat enough to qualify as a contestant or thought I was able to confidently enter any sort of competition involving winning a prize for eating whilst reigning triumphant. Bao down to me. Sometimes I can be greedy. Especially if the food is delicious. I'll take you back to summer camp, the mid 90's. I was wearing Hammer pants, an Ace of Base T-Shirt and a waterproof pink and orange neon Le Coq Sportif cagoule. (It was England, so of course there was drizzle). My kinder gang and I had successfully collected enough kindling to get a crackling, cheek roasting, polyester-cagoule melting, roaring fire going. It was at this life transforming event that I was introduced to marshmallows, but not just any marshmallows, these were brought by our exotically tanned American, camp-leader Justin; Prince of all Knots, all the way from the land of Shee-Cahr-Goh. This miraculous bag of giant, child's fist-sized puffy white clouds of powdered sugar were toasted in a fire, where the gelatine emulsified creating globules of sweet crispy toasted candy which dripped down my twig just savagely ripped off a nearby tree, glorious. Hot strings of melted happiness. The reason I fondly recalled this memory at Bao, was I believe, a survival technique that kicked in. A happy place I went to when, I was served... tiny preschooler-fist-sized scantily filled steamed rice buns. Back to camp nostalgia. I was thoroughly enjoying the, little did I know, to be revered experience until I recalled when some fool of a child said: "Bet you can't stick 4 of those in your mouth at once". Before I knew it, 8 year old Craig and I were at war. Stuffing our mouths with mallows in a competition of 'Chubby Bunny Cheeks', where the object of the game is to stuff as many marshmallows into your mouth in a game of one-upmanship in speech articulation. "Tschubby Buhnny Scheeks"! I exalted, stuffing a 8th in to match his 7th. It was his turn next. "Kubby Bungy Keeks"! He yelped victoriously. 'Kubby Bungy Keeks is not the game", I intensely corrected. "I win". I went in for the kill with the 10th while sugary saliva dried in my hair and dripped down the middle of Ace of Base. I'd won. Justin, supervising, helped me raise my fist-punch into the air triumphantly. However it was to be a bitter sweet victory. We could no longer toast the mallows on the fire as we'd eaten them all. The moral of the story is that Bao steamed buns are slightly harder to play Chubby Bunnies with, needless to say, I bet you've probably wanted to. Although the little steamed poppets look like teeny, you'd probably fit about 4 into a standard sized mouth, so it's potentially an expensive game at £5-£6 quid-a-pop. Another little trip down memory lane incurred after trying Bao's darling little trotter nuggets. I'd have fayre like trotters at my nan's as a kid. Delicious and she'd laugh her bloomers off at their reintegration as 'hawte kwizine' today. I'd often stay with her and I fondly recalled having the them for tea on my return home from camp sodden with mud and full of flu. Now due to that dratted Jamie O having outlawed anything nugget or twizzler shaped, I haven't been able to get my hands on anything processed or nugget-like since. So thank you Bao for taking me on a trip down memory lane, to a time when nuggets were a currency and nothing to be ashamed about. I'm proud to have been one of the first in the queue to get served. Only a mere half an hour of an undignified wait to get in at 5.30, much like waiting in a school lunch line. In Soho. Whilst cool people with table bookings elsewhere walked by in bemusement of the line forming behind me. So the last little touch I liked, was what really I needed to get me in the spirit of things: sitting on child sized furniture and eating kiddie portioned food at adult prices. Although I loved the coat pegs on the walls! It've been a nice touch if once I was through the door, they could have labeled it with my name and a picture of my nursery school totem creature; the unicorn. Now, where can I find an old fashioned sweet shop so that I can remark on how a packet of foam shrimps, cola cubes and a few flumps no longer cost 25p but the amount I'd spend on a dessert at a La Gavroche. Chubby Bunny Cheeks anywhere else, anyone? I'm game. read more

I went around 3pm and there was no wait. I was immediately seated. The guy next to me recommended the scallops and I'm glad I ordered them. It was delicious. I had the classic and the chicken bao. I liked the classic slightly better. Also, I got pineapple drink (forgot the name). The foam on top was tasty. Overall, service and the food were great. read more

BAO - Soho - Fried chicken and classic bao - Taiwanese Near Me - London, XGL

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Um good!! But not worth to be in line for 1hour.. Small portion too small space There are other good taiwan restaurant .. If theres no line just try read more

Delicious! I had the classic bun and the pork confit bun and both were well worth it. I also had the sweet potato fries as my side, very crispy and a good sized portion. I tried the peanut milk out of pure curiosity as I had never had it before and was intrigued. It's exactly what it sounds like. The space is small, but the service is excellent. The waiting queue is across the street which is slightly unusual, but the hostess is very good at keeping track of the queue and letting people know realistically how long the wait might be. read more

This place has had such rave reviews that I have been nervous it may disappoint - IT DIDN'T! I finally got to go midweek after work with a friend and even then at just gone 6pm there is a queue of 10 or so people waiting to be seated - it is a small (& popular) place so it is understandable The queue does move fairly quickly however so we only had a 15 minute wait (I have heard people have waited over 30 minutes). You have to have your whole party their before you are seated which is standard but to be honest I don't think the venue is suitable for more than 4 people and even then it is a push, just because of the seating arrangements. Once seated with your menu you tick which items you want along with the quantity and hand it to the waiter asap (sort of like Ping Pong?). The menu is split between Bao's, sides and then other dishes. All the Bao's sounded amazing so I was keen to try as many as possible and the other half of the menu isn't really my thing (pig blood cake, century egg, trotter nuggets, soup) so we tried nearly all the bao's (£4-5 each) - Classic, Fried Chicken, Confit Pork & Lamb. We shared each, which is quite tricky as they are fairly small and there are no knives, but luckily we are good friends so don't mind! If on a date or with someone from work I would definitely stick to your own dishes. My favourite by far was the Lamb but also high up on the list was the Classic. We also got the sweet potato chips which were so good - super crispy! For pudding we got the Horlicks Bao - horlicks ice cream sandwiched between a fried bao (one each as that would have been impossible to share!) and boy was that a brilliant finish to the meal! We stuck with tap water throughout as weren't so fussed about trying their teas etc and in total it came to a reasonable-ish £30 I cannot wait to go back! read more

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I had the fortune of trying Bao back when they were a stall, and was keen to try their permanent residence in Soho! Admittedly, the first time I went I tried all of their bao varieties and was actually a little underwhelmed, thinking that going permanent meant they'd sacrificed some of the quality of their food. On the second time though, we worked our way through the starters menu and I was blown away. The aged beef rump cap is hands down, one of the BEST single dishes in London I've tried. The classic Bao is actually not their best I think, I much prefer the braised pork or the lamb! And avoid the drinks - overpriced for the size of the pot/glass you get! Besides that though, well worth getting in here if you can and don't mind queuing for the opportunity! read more

Very pleasantly surprised. The service was fantastic. Showing up early is key as the queue tends to get quite long. All of our dishes were unique and phenomenal. I suggest the classic Bao and the house pickles. The queue is on the other side of the street, so don't get confused and go to the door like so many! read more

BAO - Soho - Classic Bao - Taiwanese Near Me - London, XGL

Lovely little place serving lots of baos. We waited for an hour (AN HOUR) to get a table on a Friday evening. Once in, food was served fast, and things ran efficiently. We ordered the classic, pork confit and chicken baos. Also had the scallops, soup and aubergine as starters. Everything was rock solid -- appropriately delicate but also no-frills. I particularly liked my pork confit and chicken baos -- very flavourful with just the right combination of everything. Service was good, though I felt like some of the staff were bossy at times. I hope its early success doesn't get to their head. The place is quite small, so don't expect to linger their for any meaningful conversations. It's a bit of in-and-out type of place. Still, very good for baos. read more

Bao is a popular place at the moment, and it's quite small inside, so there was a queue outside, but the line went along quickly. The main attraction is the 'bao' - a steamed white fluffy bun with meat or veg inside. I went for the daikon one (for vegetarians) and it was good, although was slightly dry and could've done with some more sauce on it. Everything else on the menu seemed interesting. I had some sweet potato fries in a lovely plum sauce and also some interesting pickles I had never seen before, including one that was a bit like a soft cherry tomato. Strange and cool! Next time I'm going to try the fried horlick's ice cream bao... read more

An unassuming restaurant that we happened upon, as we were on our food crawl. Luckily we got here in the nick of time. 7 minutes later and the kitchen would have been closed. There's a great selection of items to try. Being on a crawl meant we limited ourselves to only 4 items. We went for the pickled veg, traditional pork bao, fried chicken and the fried ice cream holicks bao. We were not disappointed. When each of the dishes arrived in turn, there was something about the way the food was presented that made me feel excited to try it. Everything tasted exquisite. The steamed, pillowy, bread that cradled the succulent flavour filled pork is a must try item. The fried chicken was spicy and crunchy on the outside, yet meaty on the inside. The horlicks ice cream bao was the greatest way to round off the meal. The fried bread tasted like a doughnut and the horlicks flavour from the ice cream took me back to my childhood. The drinks, whilst small, were also worthy of a mention. We could see the bar from where we were sat and they looked to be made with great pride. I had a berry concoction whilst my fellow patron went for the lemon and lime To round it off we had the most lovely service, and it wasn't just the guy who seated us, or the lady who brought over our food or even just the lady who got us our bill. Everyone seemed to want to be there and provide a great service. Thank you for an amazing snack. read more

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Firstly, I love this place. I had waited for Bao to open a proper place since discoering it in Netil Market in East London and their little food shack. Taiwanese street food, mainly of Bao bun form was a winner when I had gone to visit the market. Unfortunately like what seemed 100 others I queued up, in the rain, on a Saturday morning for what seemed like an hour. But I wanted to try this food bad. And boy was it worth it. So upon sorting a meet to try the new shop in Soho, I again waited. this time for an hour. It was like Groundhog Day. It's also the main reason why I cannot give this place 5 stars. It has ALWAYS got a queue. Whatever the time of day. Well ok maybe if you go about 2.36pm por something I'm sure it isn't as bad. But let me tell you about the food. There isn't a bad thing on the menu. At all. I loved it. All of it. My favourite being the lamb bao, blood cake with egg and the guinea fowl mix bowl. You could get anything and be happy. Though I heard a murmur that maybe the bao buns might be smaller here. I do love that they are social media happy, which means that they are very open to suggestions and a lot of 'off menu' items. So start mixing items...like putting an egg in a bao, or a blood cake in it, or doing something a bit photo worthy. If you ask nicely of course. And yeah, come as early from work as possible! Either that or bring a bottle of beer for the queue! read more

We got in after just a short wait. We tried a few different baos, our favourites were the lamb and pork confit. The sweet potato chips were good too! read more

I had heard about BAO online and had two friends that lived in shanghai and Singapore who wanted to try it out so we headed down to Piccadilly Circus to look for the famous bao restaurant. We had a sneaking suspicion the line across the street was not for the pub or the health food shop on either side of it, and a very friendly waitress confirmed that we would need to wait in line for about 45 minutes, as they had just opened and the whole first wave of people had to finish eating. As we were on a mission for bao, we decided to stick it out. It was a sunny day so waiting in line wasn't too bad, and we were given a menu to look at while waiting. The only item they were out of was the fried ice cream. Once seated, I admired the minimalist decor and efficient ordering system (you mark what you want on a paper and hand it in- they were great about me writing in a request for no kimchi on my fried chicken bao!) I highly recommend the sweet potato chips with the sauce and the peanut milk. My friends had the classic bao and the pork confit and seemed to love the pork. All looked amazing though! Another girl that came with us had a nut allergy, and the staff were wonderful about giving her safe foods and passing the information along to the kitchen as well. Amazing and fast, efficient service (once inside) and really friendly, cool waiters and waitresses! Love it and will be coming back! read more

BAO - Soho - YUM - Taiwanese Near Me - London, XGL

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This place is really to die for!!! We waited in line 45 minutes in the cold to get in and it was really worth it!! The dishes are tasty and different! The service is kind and efficient. We will be back soon!! read more

Wow. Simply great. We tried all the Baos, here's our ranking: 1) classic 2) fried chicken 3) pork belly 4) diakin 5) lamb (feel free to skip). Ice cream bao is also great. Starters are great too. Just have the whole menu. read more

BAO - Soho - Hibiscus coldbrew, Kopiteé, and Taiwan lager. - Taiwanese Near Me - London, XGL

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I have never queued for a restaurant in London, I just don't believe in it. It was going to take a special special place to make me stand in the streets. For 1 hour. I had visited the stand in Hackney several times and have bleated to anyone who would listen about the dreaminess of their fried chicken and how excited I was about their first restaurant. I am happy to announce that this place is freakin' awesome and totally worth the wait! I liked the minimalist interior, the tight seating hardly distracts you from the amazing food, I sat looking at the toilet for goodness sakes! I was still extremely happy to be there. We ate many things.....scallops in glorious garlic sauce, fried chicken is still great, trotter nuggets were cute and yummy, the lamb bao was delicious with many layers of flavour and fun. We also enjoyed the guinea fowl rice but wanted to eat everything on the menu, twice over! The only thing I didn't enjoy was the sweet potato fries, they just seemed abit random and didn't have the same flavour offerings as anything else. Peanut milk is offered on the menu and we were advised to drink it with the savoury food....which didn't work at all. However, as a separate drink? Delicious. We also tried the cold foam tea, so weird, but nice. Service was good, friendly, informative, interested, not slow at all, the table space is not huge, so actually, dishes coming out in a staggered manner is perfect. People were asking us if the food was good, what type of food is was and how long we had waited for whilst we queued. My advice? Come to Bao, eat, enjoy and feel happy. I can't wait to come back. Just at a quieter time! read more

Great little spot! Wait is well worth it - plus they are super fast with bringing out the food. I highly recommend the scallops and the lamb shoulder bun. read more

BAO - Soho - Scallop in an amazing broth that you sip. - Taiwanese Near Me - London, XGL

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After waiting nearly 2 hours in a queue, we managed to get in. After we got in, waited 20 min to order. After ordering we waited at least 30 min to get served. Taste was alright. Never again. I had to download yelp, to leave a review for the first time in my life read more