Bao Soho on Lexington Street: what to order and when to go

A quick correction before the stools: Bao Soho is not on Berwick Street. It is at 53 Lexington Street, a short walk from the market. Same Soho, different pavement.

What it is

This is the original Bao, a Taiwanese xiao chi (small eats) house that has been on Lexington Street since 2015, according to its own site. The menu runs on steamed milk buns, Taiwanese fried chicken, rice dishes and bubble tea. It holds a Michelin Bib Gourmand, and Bao says it has won one for nine years running.

The room is small and slick, with counter seating, so expect stools rather than a leisurely table for six. Hot Dinners calls it one of the toughest places to grab a seat in Soho, and that is the whole game here: timing.

A short history

Bao began at Netil Market in Hackney, as a stall and a six-seat bar that became the market's most popular vendor. The founders are Erchen Chang, her husband Shing Tat Chung and his sister Wai Ting Chung. Chang and Shing Tat Chung met as classmates at the Slade School of Fine Art, according to WWD.

The Soho restaurant was backed by the Sethi family, behind Gymkhana and Trishna, and Hot Dinners reported an opening date of 7 April 2015. The idea drew on the small-eats restaurants of Chang's hometown, Taipei. Bao has since grown into a small group with other London sites, but Soho is the original, and it carries a few dishes the others do not.

What to order

Start with the Classic bao: braised pork, peanut powder, fermented greens and coriander. It is the signature for good reason. Add the Confit Pork bao, which a Tripadvisor editorial blurb singles out.

Then use the Soho advantage. Bao lists three dishes as exclusive to this restaurant:

• Pig Blood Cake with Soy Cured Egg, made with pig's blood and glutinous rice and topped with a cured egg yolk.
• Guinea Fowl Rice with Egg Yolk, inspired by the turkey rice bowls of Chiayi.
• Grilled Beef Rice with Chi Shang Rice, made with 40-day aged Denver steak finished over charcoal.

Add the battered sweet potato chips with pickled plum ketchup, and finish with a hot tea. The fried chicken bao (soy-milk marinated, with Sichuan mayo, hot sauce and golden kimchi) is the other one to consider if you are staying for a second round.

If you want a plan: a Classic, a Confit Pork, the grilled beef rice, chips and a pot of tea.

When to go, and booking

Bao's own site says Soho is walk-ins only. Hours are Monday to Thursday, midday to 3pm and 5pm to 10pm; Friday and Saturday, midday to half ten all day; Sunday, midday to 9pm all day.

Reviews mention waits at peak times, so go at opening, either midday or 5pm on weekdays. On Friday to Sunday the kitchen stays open through the afternoon, which makes the mid-afternoon lull a sensible bet. Monday to Thursday, remember the kitchen closes between 3pm and 5pm.

What it costs

Check the menu on the day for current prices, as they move. Delivery listings show baos at roughly the £6 mark and rice or fried chicken plates around £9 to £10, and SquareMeal places the restaurant at under £30 a head. Bao Soho is on the Neighbourhood Card scheme, according to This Is Soho.

Where to go after

Walk down to Bar Termini, 7 Old Compton Street, a tiny Italian coffee, cocktail and aperitivo bar. The Nudge says it feels as if it has been there since the 1950s, and it serves four house negronis. Order a negroni, and check the hours before you set off.

If you would rather have a daytime wander, Berwick Street market runs Monday to Saturday and is closed on Sundays. Or, for something later, Bar Italia at 22 Frith Street, a family-run café established in 1949, is the classic: espresso at the bar.

More detail on the restaurant is on Bao's own page, and Hot Dinners has a review of the Lexington Street original. For the bar, see The Nudge's Soho bars guide.