404. Mr. Bao

A lovely little place in Peckham, Mr. Bao has had residency for the last couple of years. Bao's seem to be the craze as of late making their appearance at most pop-up street markets and the well known Bao in soho.
This little place is a perfect for a light lunch or evening cocktails and tit-bits.

Menu Done asian style, you get handed a little menu which you tick what you want. Split between the side dishes and bar's there's a great variety between veg and meat. Well balanced I'd say.

Interior Nicely done, nothing fancy. Nice exposed light bulbs, bit of floral tiling. However this place is very small and they've made good use of the space they have. Fits about 25 people.

Food Tapas style each plate came out as soon as it was ready. We opted for four sides to share and a bao each for a light lunch. This was the perfect amount.

First came the pork dumplings. Probably my least favourite out of everything, but that doesn't mean I didn't enjoy them because I did. The only thing was that the pastry didn't taste fresh and split easily when picked up. They should've been slightly more crisped, however the filling was great, well seasoned and light. Although the biggest faux pas is that soya sauce was not provided! Sriracha sauce was instead... 6.3/10

Next came the sweet potato fries with wasabi mayo. Ooo lordy these were good. Almost like tempura, the batter was lightly crisp and semi flaking off. The wasabi mayo was delicious (although could've been stronger personally) but they were great. A lovely little side dish. Highly recommended, however they are a bit stingey on the mayo. 8.4/10

Then followed by Soya and Ginger Edamame beans and Fried Chicken with siracha mayo. The edamame beans were delicious, the sauce was great sweet and salty. Can't go wrong. The fried chicken was good, nothing to rave about. But great if you can't resist a bit of some crispy fried chicken. Came with siracha mayo, which for me was ok but would've preferred a sticky honey and soya sauce. 6.1/10

Lastly came the Bao's. These were pretty darn good. Lots of flavour, fresh and tender. A good size too, you might think they were a bit small but the dough is rather filling but light at the same time. I opted for the Chicken and Kim Chi whilst the sister went for the Slow braised pork and Peanut powder.  Delicious. 6.8/10

Price Sides £3-4 / Baos £4 - £5

Rating 7.6/10

Verdict Service is a bit slow, very small restaurant and do need a larger venue especially when you allow large family with buggies. However bang for your buck. All the above came to £22! Great food too.

Address 293 Rye Ln, London SE15 4UA