Though called simply BAO Battersea, the 78-cover site will offer two different styles of Taiwanese beef noodle soup alongside the group’s signature bao buns and ‘a line up of dishes exclusive to the restaurant’.
Overlooking the high-ceilinged Turbine Hall A, the space will feature a U-shaped counter wrapping around the open kitchen and bar and a hatch alongside the restaurant that will serve a shorter menu of the brand’s most popular dishes including Taiwanese fried chicken with hot sauce; and the Classic BAO.
BAO Battersea will also feature a 10-cover private KTV room which can be booked for karaoke parties, with decor inspired by the old Power Station control panels, as well as the futuristic set design of the Jacques Tati movie Playtime.
BAO will deliver their noodle dishes for the first time, dropping them off at doorsteps around Battersea.
New dishes exclusive to Battersea include sanbei tofu BAO, made with breadcrumbed tofu fried then glazed with sanbei sauce, a mixture of sesame oil, soy sauce, and cooking wine, then finished with vegan mayonnaise and fresh basil; crispy cheese croquettes served with pickled plum ketchup and hot sauce; and danzai noodles, a snack from Tainan featuring noodles in a pork and shrimp broth topped with prawns and pork mince.
BAO Battersea will also serve a kids’ set menu for the very first time, featuring dishes such as Baby BAO (boiled cull yaw dumplings); and Taiwanese dried chicken with garlic mayonnaise.
“As we all have backgrounds in art and design, it feels very special to be opening BAO Battersea in such an iconic building. Our KTV room in particular feels like a glimpse into an imagined future from the 1960s, with references to the Power Station’s industrial past as well as one of our favourite films, Playtime,” says BAO co-founder Erchen Chang.
Arcade Battersea follows the launch of Arcade Centre Point on Tottenham Court Road last year and will have some of the same menu concepts, including Indian fast food brand Hero; Nepali street food brand Tipan Tapan; shawarma-focused Middle Eastern brand Shatta & Toum; and Sushi Kamon.
New brands will include Luke Farrell’s Isan-inspired Phed Power; roast meat-focused Cantonese comfort food brand Siu Siu; and Leccami Gelato.
BAO will be one of three standalone restaurants, the others two being US-style smash burger and fried chicken joint Manna; and a new grilled chicken and steak brand from TĀ TĀ Eatery’s Ana Gonçalves and Zijun Meng.
