Bao Bao 宝包

Bao Bao 宝包 is one of those establishments that do not need much of an introduction for those whom have been following up on the latest news with regard to the various F&B establishments that had opened up in Singapore in recent times. Located at basement 4 of ION Orchard, Bao Bao is an establishment that had garnered long queues subsequent to the media coverage during their official opening. These folks might be new entrance to the local F&B scene; that being said, they are also a brand that is from the Surrey Hills Grocer Group that not only runs the Surrey Hills Grocer brands which has since grown to a brand operating out of five (5) locations around Singapore, but also the Mensho Tokyo, MoVida Original and Bon Broth brands at Raffles City Shopping Centre. Bao Bao differs from the other set-ups by the Surrey Hills Grocer Group where it is operated as a grab-and-go takeaway kiosk, and is also focused on local Chinese-style cuisine; a deviation from the group’s line-up of brands thus far. Bao Bao’s location within ION Orchard is relatively easy to find; one of its neighbours being the only Hang Heung 恆香outlet in Singapore at the point of writing — both of which being located close by to the Hawkers' Street food court there. Despite being a takeaway stall, Bao Bao is decked in a style reminiscent to an old-school shop; the various offerings that it has on the menu being displayed prominently in the display warmer right at the shopfront. The menu of Bao Bao is segmented into a “Traditional Range” and a “Signature Range” for its Bao offerings, with the items being listed under the Sides section of the menu comprising of the Siew Mai, Glutinous Chicken Rice and Fan Choy.

Quite a number of the items that were being listed in their “Signature Range” section of the menu were unavailable during our visit made to Bao Bao on a weekday afternoon — we did find ourselves ending up trying quite a number of the Baos listed in the “Traditional Range” instead. One of the Baos that we usually would not miss when giving a new dim sum establishment a go would be the Roasted Char Siew Bao or the equivalent of such an item at other establishments. Surprisingly, it is also the Roasted Char Siew Bao that turned out to be our favourite of the lot of the Baos that are being offered at Bao Bao. One thing worth nothing about the Roasted Char Siew Bao at Bao Bao is how old-school the fillings taste. Sinking our teeth into the soft and fluffy bun, the Baos at Bao Bao does come without feeling particularly clumpy or dense — that being said, they are still better to be enjoyed as soon as possible out of the box before the condensation sets in. The buns sold at Bao Bao are sold in smaller sizes — something similar to that of what Teochew Handmade Pau at Toa Payoh West Market & Food Centre serves up. The filing of the Roasted Char Siew Bao features a good balance in the texture of the meat that wasn’t too fatty nor too lean; all that smothered in the red honey bbq glaze — the glaze lends a sweet note to the savoury Char Siew whilst the Char Siew still comes with a bit of its meatiness though without any undesirable hints of porky-ness.

Coming in second for us would be the Orh Nee Bao that is listed as an item under the “Signature Range” section of the menu at Bao Bao. The Orh Nee Bao is sized slightly bigger than the Roasted Char Siew Bao that we have also written about above — the Orh Nee Bao can also be distinguished from the other Baos that Bao Bao has to offer with the dusting of purple powder above the surface of the bun; whilst creating an aesthetic that sets it apart from the usual Yam-infused Baos available elsewhere, we aren’t too big a fan of how it looked nonetheless. Interestingly, the approach to the Orh Nee Bao is slightly different from other Yam Pau that we have had thus far — the addition of Gingko Nuts and the inclusion of shallot oil in the fillings of the Bao were the main difference that Bao Bao has to offer. The fillings do come with a darker hue of purple; one can also observe a dark green lining on the bun just where it meets the fillings within. By far, the Orh Nee here is by far the richest, yet smoothest that we have come along in Baos thus far; it actually bears the right density that allowed it to carry an adequate depth of flavours — the inclusion of scallion oil giving a savoury and umami note to the inherent earthiness of the yam whilst not being overly sweet. The inclusion of Gingko Nuts gave a soft bite that provides a contrasting texture to the other elements of the bun as well.

We also managed to give the Rabbit Bao a try. These are essential Baos stylised into a shape of a rabbit that comes with lotus fillings within. One thing to note about the lotus fillings is how they are a little more dense as compared to the other fillings of the Baos that we have had. The notes of the lotus definitely comes with more depth than what one would typically expect out of the commercially-made lotus buns which also tend to be on the sweeter side. When it came to the Coffee Bao, the Coffee Bao came with an all-familiar aesthetic of dark brown. Considering the infusion of coffee in the bun of the Bao itself, the bun of the Bao is slightly drier than the other Baos that we have had — that being said, we did feel a stronger note of coffee within the coffee-infused red bean paste; this is quite unlike others that we have had before where the flavours of coffee within the filling tends to fade off and gets overwhelmed by a note of red bean paste as one goes further into the bun. We also noted that the Coffee Bao wasn’t overly sweet at the same time either.

Bao Bao’s efforts in preserving the local Bao-making heritage is one that we found to be pretty commendable especially considering how the group does not have any prior experience in serving up local cuisine — it does seem that the folks are making quite a risk with the move, though they do seem to also know what they are doing at the same time. Their Baos can be described as one that is done with a more artisanal touch, though we do feel that we preferred a few of the items a lot more than the rest; the Coffee Bao and Rabbit Bao did feel like they pale a little bit in comparison with the Roasted Char Siew Bao that was pretty stellar, and the Orh Nee Bao that comes with its very own twist unlike what we typically see around elsewhere. We still do think that there are some things that Bao Bao can further refine especially coming to the Coffee Bao and Rabbit Bao, though one thing they can definitely work on would be on the service at the counter where the staff just felt rather annoyed in general — not that we are expecting top-notch service at a takeaway kiosk, but the level of hospitality is still atypical from what one would usually expect at establishments operated by the Surrey Hills Grocer Group. Prices of their Bao offerings range between $1.20 to $2.90 a piece, which works as a rather affordable tea-time grab-and-go / light breakfast to go for should there not be a queue for the Baos.