Honest Bao

Kyoto in the name, Manchester in the blood.  That surprised me: The Matcha Kyoto isn't a Japanese import at all. It's a Mancunian brand that grew from city pop-ups into two Manchester sites, with matcha shipped over from Japan. Now it's landed in Birmingham's Selfridges. I went hungry, and I came back… thirsty.      Classic match latte, it's ok, I expect stronger flavour as mine is no sugar  🍽️ Food & Drinks The Manchester shops do cookies and desserts, so I'd hoped for food. No such luck. Birmingham is drinks only, with a heavily trimmed menu. The good news? The quality holds up. The ube (sweet potato) matcha latte beat the classic matcha latte for me. My pro tip is to add the flavoured cream on top. It's worth it. Pop-up set up without proper equipment 👋 Service There were plenty of staff and only about 15 people in the queue, yet the wait still dragged. Workflow is clearly the problem. It just felt disorganised behind the counter. The ube one is q...

The McDonald's World Menu Heist crew are back. This time they've raided China for the loot I've been waiting for: Chicken McWings . Riding along are the Paprika McShaker Fries from the Netherlands. One is a proper steal. The other I could've nicked from my own spice cupboard. All world heist menus items keep their original package Honestly? The McWings caught me off guard. They're juicy and properly flavoured, with a soy-based marinade that tastes broadly East Asian rather than strictly Chinese. Call it Chinese, Japanese or Korean and you wouldn't be wrong. Love the flavour and and also not a heavily battered chicken The best part is that there's no thick batter jacket. Most chain fried chicken comes armoured in the stuff, and frankly I'm tired of it. These let the chicken do the talking, and it's a fresh change for the tongue. The Szechuan dip (also heisted from China) is peppery and gingery. It isn't the fire I'd braced for, which is good...

Birmingham, meet your new noodle spot. (Going to have another one soon!) Tucked behind Bank Street Coffee, right beside the tram track, Gulnar Noodle brings Uyghur-style hand-pulled noodles to the city centre. Yes, I had to try it. 🍽️ Food & Drinks You can tell straight away that these noodles are hand-pulled. They're irregular, uneven and full of character, which already puts them ahead of the uniform factory stuff. I love a chewy noodle, but these were very chewy, verging on firm. I'm still not sure if that's the house style or slightly undercooked. Chew fans, brace your jaws. Clear beef broth noodle The broth is a classic beef number: rich, well-flavoured and comforting, a bit like pho (both are beef-bone broths at heart). The beef itself was nicely marinated with a familiar Chinese-style seasoning. Tasty stuff. 👋 Service I ordered takeaway, but still had a fair wait in the shop. Nothing dramatic, but not the quick grab-and-go I'd hoped for. ✨ Decor & ...