Bao

Should You Book Bao on Lexington Street?

Yes — but know what you're walking into. Bao in Soho operates without reservations, which means the queue on Lexington Street is part of the deal. On busy evenings, that can mean 30 to 45 minutes outside before you're seated. The good news: for a Michelin Bib Gourmand-recognised Taiwanese restaurant at this price point, the wait is genuinely justified. If queuing isn't your thing, arriving at opening (noon or 5 pm on weekdays) cuts the wait substantially. This is one of the easier-access venues in London's recognised dining scene — the challenge is purely timing, not booking.

What Bao Lexington Street Actually Is

Opened in 2015 by chef Erchen Chang, this was the original Bao site, the one that started as, by some accounts, little more than a stall before becoming the template for multiple London locations. The Lexington Street branch remains the reference point for the group: a compact, tick-box menu format built around steamed bao buns, xiao chi small plates, a short list of drinks that includes homemade peanut milk and sake. The format is democratic and fast-moving. You work through the menu with a pencil, dishes arrive in waves, the whole experience is designed to feel casual without being careless.

The atmosphere leans into that informality. The room is small, the energy is high, noise levels rise quickly at peak times, this is not a venue for a long, quiet dinner conversation. Lunch service, especially mid-week, runs noticeably calmer. If the atmosphere you want is low-key and you're after something you can actually hear across the table, earlier is better. Solo diners are explicitly accommodated: the venue runs a dedicated 'long day menu' framed around a moment of solitude, which is a practical solution that few London restaurants of any price tier bother to offer.

The Food: What to Order and Why It Matters

The steamed bao buns are the centre of gravity here. The classic braised pork version with peanut powder and fermented greens is the benchmark, the fried chicken marinated in soy milk with Szechuan mayo and golden kimchi is the bolder alternative. Neither needs much elaboration, both are well-executed in a format where consistency matters more than surprise. The xiao chi small plates extend the meal usefully: pig's blood cake with soy-cured egg and mapo aubergine on chi shiang rice are the ones most frequently cited in the venue's own materials. Sides include sweet potato chips with plum pickle ketchup. Finish with the fried bao filled with Horlicks ice cream if you want to understand what makes the format work at its most playful.

Food is designed for sharing, but single-portion bao buns make solo ordering entirely logical. Two bao and two xiao chi is a reasonable solo lunch; a group of four can work through the whole menu comfortably. The tick-box format makes this easy to calibrate without over-ordering.

Does the Food Travel? Takeout and Delivery

Steamed bao buns are a format that degrades quickly off-premise. The pillowy texture that defines the in-restaurant experience relies on freshness and heat, buns that sit in a delivery bag for twenty minutes lose the quality that justifies the trip. If your plan is to order delivery, the xiao chi plates and rice dishes hold better than the buns, but the core of what Bao does well is an in-venue experience. For Taiwanese food that travels more cleanly, rice-forward dishes from comparable spots will serve you better. Bao is worth eating at the source; treat it as a sit-down proposition rather than a delivery option.

Value and Recognition

At the £ price tier, Bao Lexington Street holds a Michelin Bib Gourmand for 2024 and 2025, the guide's marker for good food at moderate prices. It also appears in the Opinionated About Dining Casual Europe rankings, listed at #695 in 2024 and recommended in 2023. For London, where a Bib Gourmand venue at this price is genuinely unusual, the recognition matters. You are getting award-acknowledged Taiwanese cooking for the cost of a mid-range fast-casual meal. The comparison to the city's tasting-menu restaurants is irrelevant at this price tier; within walk-in, affordable dining in Soho, Bao sits near the best of the credentialled options.

That kind of volume at that score signals reliability, which is what you want from a no-reservation, high-turnover format.

Booking and Logistics

No reservations, walk-in only. Hours run Monday through Thursday noon to 3 pm and 5 to 10 pm, Friday and Saturday noon to 10:30 pm, Sunday noon to 9 pm. Friday and Saturday evenings generate the longest queues. Mid-week lunch is the path of least resistance. The address is 53 Lexington Street, Carnaby, W1F 9AS, well-placed for Soho, a short walk from Oxford Circus or Piccadilly Circus. Dress code is informal; there is no expectation beyond being comfortable.

If you're building a Soho evening around dinner here, treat the queue time as fixed and plan accordingly. This is not a venue where you arrive five minutes before a reservation, it's one where you arrive, join the line, know the food will be worth the wait once you're in. Quick reference: walk-in only, arrive at opening to minimise wait, budget £ per head, Bib Gourmand recognised.

Explore More in London

Bao sits firmly at the affordable, walk-in end of London's dining spectrum. For a broader view of what the city offers across price tiers, see our full London restaurants guide. If you're also planning where to stay, our full London hotels guide covers the full range. For drinks before or after, our full London bars guide has options across Soho and beyond. And if you're interested in Taiwanese food in its home context, Fujin Tree Taiwanese Cuisine in Taipei and Golden Formosa in Taipei are worth exploring for comparison. For UK dining at the other end of the price and ambition spectrum, Waterside Inn in Bray, L'Enclume in Cartmel, Moor Hall in Aughton, Gidleigh Park in Chagford, Hand and Flowers in Marlow, and hide and fox in Saltwood represent the range of serious UK restaurant options worth knowing. London wineries and experiences are covered at our full London wineries guide and our full London experiences guide.