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2015-01-15
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Little Bao was recommended to me by a friend who is usually trustworthy, but I fear that her advice was wayward in this case. I had the beef Bao (800), truffle fries (900), and the current beer special (800). The Bao was tiny - a slider missing its siblings and I found it average, with the bun itself seeming like a clever idea, but the filling lacked the oomph I was expecting. Basically, you need a potent, gorgeous filling for that kind of dough and the burger with 'asian' dressing was severely
The truffle fries were similarly low on flavour, especially for their exorbitant price.
The beer was decent, but it was a 375ml can. I'm used to a markup on imported craft beers, but this was taking the piss. Give me a pint at least.
The dining experience felt fairly rushed due to the limited space. I'd have no problem with that if the food was delicious (the queue and subsequent deathstares from those who are waiting at Tim Ho Wan is worth it, for instance) but I found the Little Bao experience mostly reminiscent of a Burger King at lunchtime, except with well heeled clientele. It was a safe, fairly boring meal and I expect that's exactly what many expats want.
If you're dying for a burger you'd be better off dining at Texas Burger, which actually lives up to the hype. You may also be well served by actual fast food places, where you'll get similar flavours, albeit without the pretence.
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