Fatty Bao – The Baobhali Of Baos

The Baobhali of Baos

Fatty Bao is the second outlet of the infamous fatty bao in Bangalore. There was a lot of hype in social and print media when their second outlet in india was going to go live in Mumbai. Many of my fellow epicureans visited the place as soon it opened up and started singing odes to its greatness and I for one always wanted to visit this place but as the trend has been for all these happening down south joints they are always full and have more waiting then what you would find in a neighbourhood doctors clinic. I tried and I tried but I didn’t succeed so I finally decided to go stealth mode. Picked up my bag, my wallet (made sure it has enough money in it) and did a journey down south to enter the resto as soon it opens for the day. And to my horror I still had to wait for a table for an hour because they were reserved. But as directed by Master MS I waited on the bar table and clung onto a table for 2 at the first opportunity.

“The Bao”

Fatty Bao is known for its south East Asian cuisine. We definitely are familiar to this cuisine which was brought to us by mamagoto, hometown etc but what this outlet does is something completely innovative. It brings to you some of their game changing Dishes and one of them is definitely “THE BAO” or as some say the Chinese burger. In a world where burgers has become a drug for us epicurean addicts The BAO hit me like an obsession. The only thing left for me now is to have a “Wada Bao”

Vibrant & Artistic ambience

Fatty Bao from the outset can appear to be a very tiny totter like outlet but that’s not the case. It’s pretty spacious and has a fun and vibrant ambience. The décor is top notch with cute artwork on different walls, bright shades of green, blue and red painted on them walls and matching colour chairs to go with them walls. It consists of an al fresco section, a bar section which consists of bar stools and tables as well as a dining section.

Once you get seated you can’t stop to notice the cute Asian lady salt, pepper and chopstick containers that are there on each of the tables. Small things which just add to the fun.

All Baoed Up

As soon as I started to look through the menu I had already made up my mind that I have to try their signature baos because a good bao will make you go wow at fatty bao. And I did exactly that

Chicken Teriyaki Bao

As I don’t eat pork I started my feast with the Chicken teriyaki bao. What do u get when u mix succulent pieces of tender pan seared chicken with sweet and smoky teriyaki coupled with spicy mayonnaise, pickled cucumber and shichimi? You get a bao so baotiful that it makes you go baow in delight. Of course we have the char siu fan boys out there but for the people who prefer their meat white the Chicken teriyaki bao is definitely the one to go for. The bao was soft and fresh and everything was perfectly mixed and matched that you would want to have more. I would recommend this to all chicken lovers

Duck Bao

Next up was the duck bao. These consisted of 4 round buns within which hid some perfectly made duck fillings served with 3 different sauces. These soft, warm buns were sweet from the outside subtly spicy with juicy morsels of duck from the inside. This duck was worth every damn buck. I have started being a fan of ducks and turkeys these days. Maybe the quacker from indigo left a long lasting mark inside me.

Not So Spicy Fried Fish Bao

Now that I have tasted blood I wanted more of it and that’s when we ordered the 3 round of Baos. This time was the Fried Fish Bao. This bao however was a tad bit dry and didn’t have much of spice. It consisted of fried tempura sea bass with curry mayo and pickled Chinese cabbage. It was definitely worth going for but when u compare it to the other baos I just had I felt it was a tad bit dry. After having 3 rounds of Bao I wanted to go for the 4^th one but opted to go for something different.

All the 3 baos were great. Who had thought that “made in china” would show its dominance even in the culinary scene. American burgers must be hiding in shame somewhere with the emergence of such yummy, light and delightful baos.

Dancing Prawns

After a lot of discussions we decided to go for the dancing prawns. It consisted of stir fried spicy prawns with peppers, Chinese cabbage with homemade chilli jam and lemon. First bite into one of those juicy prawns made me realize why they kept the name dancing for them. That’s because the spice content in them would make you dance in distress when it burns your tastebuds. It was more of an Indianized version of prawns to suit the spice eaters. I definitely liked them but I would want them less spicy and less oily. Though they were spicy we licked the bowl clean in no time because the crunch of the veggies negated the spice slightly.

Some East Asian Curry Time (Chicken Malaysian Kapitan Kurry)

Now that we were done hogging on chinese street food aka their version of “Wada Bao” we decided to go for some serious currying. That’s when I decided to go for the Malaysian Kapitan curry served with chilli basil rice. First things first the way this dish was served was right upto my expectations. They served the curry with sambal, fried onions, peanuts and “Papad” LOL. Yes that one was a bit of a surprise. The curry was great but not one of the best ones in the city. There are certainly many other places out there which can give their Malaysian curry a run for the money. The best thing of the curry was that it didn’t have a very over powering flavour of coconut in it and was fairly light on the tummy. Many curry loyalists would want it more overpowering but they have kept the right balance. Add in the condiments and you would feel like having a home cooked and light meal.

Japanese cheese cake

For desserts we ordered the Japanese cheesecake. This certain cheesecake is a very special dessert for me as it was one of the first cheesecakes I had and loved. It was widely made and sold by breadtalk but all of its outlets have shut down in time making this cheesecake almost extinct for me as I can’t find it anywhere. Having one slice of it here gave me a very nostalgic feel of those good old days. The cheesecake was exactly how I loved it served with a dollop of ice cream. I asked the staff if I could order a cake but they blatantly refused to give me one or even recommend where I could get one. If you know where you can get this cheesecake please do let me know.

Final Verdict

Fatty Bao delivers to all the hype that was and left me a happy customer. I am sure I will come back for more in the future. A meal for 2 would cost you rs 2500. If you visit the place you have to definitely go for the baos. Like, Share and comment if you liked my pictorial reviews and if the recommendations helped you in your dining experience.