Living in the suburbs about an hour and a half away from downtown Toronto, I don’t have that many opportunities to explore Toronto’s delectable local eateries. After a night out at Canada’s Bridal show (as a bridesmaid), we were quite famished. Lugging around bags on bags full of magazines, portfolios and pamphlets isn't easy! It was 10PM on a Friday night and surprisingly, some of the local spots on Queen West were closing up for the night. We took to Instagram and TasteToronto to find some other options. Within a few minutes, we found ourselves at Mean Bao!
Mean Bao actually started as a small food court vendor in Village by the Grange. Bathurst is their second location in Toronto. The menu consists of half a dozen steamed buns, all priced around the $3.45 to $3.60 range with options like pork belly, chicken, braised beef, pulled pork, tofu and enoki mushrooms and the house specialty, "Sloppy Jones". Aside from baos, the menu also includes a few dim sum items like siu mai, shrimp dumplings, tofu pockets and sticky quinoa.
What exactly is a bao? Bao is a traditional Chinese steamed, filled bun. It is normally filled with delicious meats and vegetables.
I ordered the Pulled Pork (I love anything pulled pork) and the house special, the Sloppy Jones. As I put the order through, I was asked how spicy I wanted it - mild, medium or hot. Without thinking, I said hot and was secretly hoping I wouldn't regret it.
I was eager to try the Sloppy Jones first. It is made with minced pork, chili oil and scallions. It was dressed with cucumber, green onion, cilantro, crushed peanuts and some extra Sriracha to amp up the spice level I had requested. It had good flavour and reminded me a bit of a traditional Laos noodle soup from the North, Khao Soi. The version my mom makes is made with minced pork, tomatoes and fermented soy beans.
The pulled pork came with apple slaw and was dressed with cilantro, crushed peanuts and some extra Sriracha. To me, this was nothing special. The pulled pork was tender and juicy, but tasted just like any pulled pork. I thought the Sriracha was an odd mix with the pulled pork but all it did was amp up the spice level. The pulled pork and apple slaw was a good combination, but if you are looking for something out of the ordinary, look elsewhere.
Mean Bao was a great choice for a late night snack. Two baos were more than enough to fill me up. No line up and plenty of space for us to enjoy our hot bao's. The place gets great business during lunch and rush hour and also has the added delivery service through www.orderit.ca for those looking for quick, cheap eats delivered right to their door.
Mean Bao
165 Bathurst Street Toronto, ON M5V 1Y9
Price: $
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