Honest Bao

When you're craving proper Chinese food in London, your brain immediately screams 'Chinatown!' and you're mentally bracing for the jam-packed street. But London's culinary map is expanding faster than my waistline after a day out. I was loitering around the Temple station area, pretending to be a fancy lawyer (didn't work, my shoes were too muddy), when my stomach issued an urgent demand for noodles. A quick search later, and I found myself staring at Noodle Nova, a new kid on the block that's doing Lanzhou beef noodles. The Vibe and the Broth Giant vase in the centre First impression: Nice décor. And true to its Chinese name, Qing Hua Yu (青花鈺), which means something like 'Porcelain Jade,' there was a rather large, fancy vase in the shop. Clearly, they've gone for aesthetic as well as noodle. Spicy broth taste good too but I prefer non-spicy one Now, onto the main event. As a specialist beef noodle joint, they offer a whole spectrum of noodle thi...

When the calendar flips to September, signaling the glorious return of oyster season! And where did I find myself celebrating this auspicious occasion? Alsace, France. A landlocked region famous for Riesling, half-timbered houses, and... absolutely no sea. It's a bit like looking for a decent curry in Antarctica. But where there is great wine, there is usually a desperate need for great food—and a surprising number of places happy to oblige with the fruits of the sea. After some serious digging, I found two spots that prove you don't need a salty breeze to enjoy a fresh oyster. Chère Amie: The Unexpected Speed Date Picture this: my dining buddy and I are aiming for a late dinner, but the pre-dinner hunger pangs were a real issue. So, we thought we'd try to squeeze in a 'quick' seafood hit beforehand. No reservation. No plan. Just sheer, unadulterated gluttony. We waltzed into Chère Amie in Strasbourg and, luckily snagged a spot. Fresh oyster in a reasonable price Th...

Emerging from a cloud of steam and wok hei to bring you the lowdown on Birmingham's sneaky-good Hong Kong Cha Chaan Teng scene.  For the uninitiated, a Cha Chaan Teng (or "tea restaurant") is Hong Kong's glorious answer to a diner—a place where East meets West on a plate, delivering comfort, speed, and enough stir-fries to fuel a small army. While there's no single fixed menu, you can bet your last pork floss on finding dishes kissed by that smoky, magical wok hei essence. I've been rummaging through Brum's Chinese Quarter, and let me tell you, while you can't book a flight to Mong Kok, you can find some seriously authentic CCT vibes right here. Kei Hing Restaurant: From Stall to Star Tender and well marinated with wine Now, Kei Hing is a bit of a local legend in the making. It started life as one of those humble, unassuming food hall stalls and now they've got their own bona fide setup within the food hall. And thank goodness they did. '...

Right, let's talk about food halls. You know the drill, that buzzing concept that's everywhere now. Everyone's losing their collective mind over the fancy new spots like St Paul's Market. But I'm not here for the glitz. I'm here for the flavour. And in Birmingham, there are a few older, slightly rough-around-the-edges food halls that are hiding some serious Asian culinary gold. Forget the fancy decor and the 'vibes'—these places are about authentic, belly-stuffing goodness. Let's dive in, you bao-hunting maniacs! 1. Tin Tin Food Hall – The city edge bargain Stir fried beef rice noodles Nestled near BCU, or what will soon be the booming Curzon Street HS2 station (when it finally arrives), is Tin Tin Food Hall.  I've banged on about their Siu Mei (roast meats) before, but there are a couple of other Hong Kong-style spots in there that are genuinely decent. Nothing that will make you weep with joy, but they serve up those lesser-seen Hong Kong d...

The Matcha Misadventure: Caffè Nero's Pistachio Plunge As you might recall from my previous chain cafe matcha reviews (a truly harrowing journey), the track record of British high-street chains handling the delicate green powder is... unimpressive. Like, spectacularly bad. I did left a few gaps, either because the chains hadn't caught the matcha bug yet or the chain is not common enough.  Looks good on the advert Caffè Nero. I was strolling by and saw the sign of their new Pistachio Matcha drink. Pistachio and matcha! Two of the most ridiculously hyped-up ingredients of 2025, fused into one potentially glorious beverage. It sounded like a wellness guru's dream. My impulsive side (the one that pays for my blogging habit) screamed: "Records are meant to be broken! Maybe, just maybe, they got it right!" So, I paid £4.80 to get it. A small price for journalism, a huge price for a bad drink. The Taste Test: The Betrayal Disgusting green drink (I can't say it is mat...

Airport food is usually the culinary equivalent of a lukewarm, soggy handshake. It's overpriced, underwhelming, and you feel a bit foolish paying me £10 for a sad-looking sandwich you know a pigeon wouldn't touch or by trying to get yourself ready for holiday by drinking the 3rd pint at 6am in Weatherspoon. Thanks to a glorious, 2 hour-long flight delay at Birmingham Airport, I found myself with a mission: To see if a lounge could actually make airport dining not feel like a daylight robbery. Let's enter The Club Room. Nice decor with dark tone The decor is actually rather good. Think sophisticated, dark tones, moody lighting—the kind of place where you could almost forget you're about to be crammed next to a snoring stranger for 2 hours.   Service was friendly, if a tad slow on the food delivery front. Maybe they were hunting down the ingredients in the local farmer's market, who knows? Good crab toast, surprise me only serve 1 piece of toast Now for the main event...

Today’s mission: a nostalgic trip to the land of Cantonese roast meats, or Siu Mei, right here in the heart of Birmingham. Now, let's get one thing straight. Siu Mei—the trinity of glorious, glistening roast duck, caramelised char siu, and crispy-skinned roast belly pork —is my ultimate Cantonese soul food. It's the flavour of home, the taste of a thousand happy memories. But here’s the unvarnished truth,  finding truly great Siu Mei outside of a bustling Hong Kong eatery is tough. The enemy? Logistics! These meats take time to prepare and must be served fresh, but keeping that perfect, juicy tenderness and crisp skin at a high volume is a culinary war zone. Too often, you get served something that’s merely lukewarm, which, frankly, is a crime against pork. I've sniffed out two spots in Brum that, despite the inherent challenges, deliver authentic flavour and frankly unbeatable value. They are definitely by no means perfect, but they are a fantastic, generous fix of Cantone...