Lunch: Baohaus

So I was going to post some more places with my iphone pictures, but I stopped by this place today and couldn't wait to show off my pictures with my new camera! I first heard of Baohaus through SeriousEats and was really curious to try their Taiwanese Gua Bao ( steamed buns) and sweet bao fries. I got here right as they were opening, and I was starving! Be prepared for some food porn worthy pictures :D

The Outside

The inside seating, the window in the back is where they cook and you order in the front. This place is pretty tiny but seemed to be able to cozily seat 10 people

The Uncle Jesse

This place is best known for their pork buns but I ordered the vegetarian pan fried tofu bun. It  was coated in sweet potato starch topped with "Haus" sauce, cilantro, crushed peanut and Taiwanese red sugar. It was a little smaller than the size of a CD disc.  The owner (Eddie) was there and we got talking about how this was actually his favorite and we both agreed Tofu was a very under-rated protein. I will admit to everyone right now that yes, I am Chinese; and yes I would pick tofu over pork any day ( please don't hate me!) Anyway I really enjoyed this bun.

Taste: Yum! This had the perfect balance of all flavors. I am not a huge fan of cilantro, but I actually enjoyed it in here. It was spicy, sweet, savory, and nutty all at once.

Texture: The bun itself was super soft and so was the tofu. I loved the crunch the peanuts added to it

Price: $3.50

Sweet Bao Fries

Let me just tell you I am a HUGE lover of black sesame. Any kind whether it be sesame sticks, sesame seed balls, sesame ice cream, sesame soup....I think you get the point. So naturally I HAD to get these. Anyway, these were sweet fried slices of Bao topped with a sweet sesame drizzle. 

Taste:The drizzle was sweet, but not too sweet. I kind of wished there was more because I found myself scraping the excess off onto the bao, but maybe that is me just being greedy.

Texture: The fried bao had a nice crunch and the center was still fluffy and light. Though this was the same bao as the sandwich, there was a definite distinction between the two in terms of texture

Price: $3.50

Eddie let me know that on June 15th, they are opening up a sit down restaurant with bar specializing in just Asian street foods (woo-hoo)! The place is called Xiaoye, I will definitely be checking it out.
Verdict: I really enjoyed my meal here, but if you are super hungry I would suggest you get 2 or 3 of the baos. They also offer meal deals like the Straight Flush, where you can get 3 baos and a drink for only $13.00. The sweet bao fries was a nice dessert too! I will definitely be coming back.

BaoHaus

137 Rivington Street

 New York, NY 10002

www.baohausnyc.com