Xiao Bao Biscuit

Reviews 8

MA

Max M

Nouvelle Asian Culinary Adventure On Nov 14, 2015, our party of three enjoyed a culinary adventure at Xiao Bao Biscuit, a casual restaurant offering nouvelle Asian cuisine, located on the northwestern outskirts of downtown Charleston, South Carolina. It came highly recommended by our waiter at one of Charleston’s best downtown restaurants where we had dined a couple of days earlier and inquired about other great food destinations in town. The eatery’s unusual location in a converted gas station/garage is matched by its unique offerings of East Asian and Southeast Asian foods served up with an adventurous, modern sensibility. The lunch menu offered a choice of seven dishes from China, Japan, Thailand and Vietnam - we chose three of them (one was a special) and enjoyed each one. The first person in our party had okonomiyaki, a delicious Japanese pancake made with shredded cabbage, carrot, scallion and kale, held together with a bit of flour, flavored with special spices and topped with a farm egg. The second diner loved the pad kra pow, a moderately spicy Thai dish of minced beef, beans, thai chili, and basil over rice with farm egg. The third person in our party chose pho – a Vietnamese noodle soup consisting of a very flavorful broth with distinctive Asian spices, noodles from pig skin (instead of the usual rice noodles) and pieces of pork shoulder meat, topped by a pile of mung beans and fragrant greens including basil and lots of cilantro. The verdict? “A treat for both the eye and the palate.” The only caveat: watch out for the chanh muoi – a housemade Vietnamese ‘lemonade’ which contains salt as well as sugar. (Can’t complain: the waitress did warn us about the salt). You can dine inside or alfresco at one of four street-front picnic tables. Wait service is professional and friendly. The atmosphere is very casual and the emphasis is on the food. Parking is available right on the premises (for obvious reasons!) The price is right: $38.00 for three entrees and a non-alcoholic drink (including tax). Open for lunch and dinner (check days, hours). Save us a table: well definitely be back!

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Noah Wilson

Best Szechuan meal Ive had outside of Chinatown. Everything was very inventive and thoughtfully plated and prepared. Portions werent heaping, but provided plenty to share with at least one other person. And they were *packed* with flavor. The Snap salad of purple string beans, mild chiles and sweet corn was brilliant. Perfect crunch, heat, and fresh flavor. And the Mapo Dofu was redolent with spices, served up in the form of a thick almost-gravy-like sauce of chiles and Szechuan peppercorns and umami goodness enveloping miraculously intact hunks of silky smooth tofu. This was definitely an unusual approach to this dish, but it worked wonderfully. Chinese broccoli was fairly pricey for a small plate, and seemed over-salty at first, but proved a perfect counterpart to the huge spice bombs of the Szechuan-style dishes next to it. Not a highlight, but a solid side. And our bowl of rice? It was absolutely perfect, and seemed tailored to the meal. Aromatic and just slightly sticky-sweet, it was cooked to perfection - just enough stickiness to eat with chopsticks, but each grain remained intact and distinct, with just the right amount of chew. Our server was spot-on, informed and attentive, and everything came out quickly and smoothly from the bar and kitchen. I also love that they have the option to "buy the kitchen a beer" right on the menu - its not often that places make it easy to thank the cooks and share the

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MI

Mike Pernecky

Literally everyone in the food service industry of Charleston recommends this place, and we were lucky enough to be staying a couple blocks away since its a little off the beaten path. The food and drinks were delicious and the service was top notch. Why the 4 stars then? I think its a little overpriced, and some of the seating is cramped. We sat about a foot away from the couple next to us and we were both able to hear our conversations easily. Not a deal breaker, but not perfect either. They recommend sharing 4 to 5 plates for a couple, and each plate is about $10, so theyre recommending you spend $25 per person on very minimal animal protein and mostly sauce and veggie fillers. Also, we ended up ordering 3 main dishes plus one bowl of rice and that turned out to be enough for us. Not super filling but a little more protein would have been fantastic. If you love Asian inspired food then youll love Xiao Bao Biscuit...we will definitely be back.

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Ray Philyaw

We started out with 2 cocktails. I had the Sun Wukong and my wife had the Borneo Sunrise. I do not recommend the Sun Wukong. Its advertised as spicy but it was more like drinking the juice out of a habanero pepper bottle. They changed for me at no extra charge. Both drinks were small and, at $8 a throw, not worth it. We had 3 dishes and alk were very good. The okonomiyaki pancake was fantastic. The Jiao Zi were the best dumplings Ive ever eaten. Spiced just right and the pastry was perfectly cooked. The special was a dish of lamb belly and mixed veg. Very nice! This was our second attempt at eating here. We made the mistake of showing up on the night of the Chinese New Year. It was packed! Worth the trip and we will go back.

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JB Galos

XBB: “I Have My Rules” – And They’re Not Customer Friendly Three of a party of four arrived at XBB and were told by the vacuous hostess we couldn’t be seated until the 4th arrived (we should have lied and said we were a party of three and then been pleased and astounded when our fourth friend arrived.) The owner then explained this was because “[He] has his rules.” If he had seated us, the 3 of us would have had a pre-dinner drink – as opposed to standing at the entrance. I guess when you’re All-Knowing, creating decrees works. But if you’re in the hospitality business, you might want to get off your throne. So, we left and had a nice dinner at Lana’s. Thank goodness Charleston has lots of restaurants.

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Lori Dinh

The vibe was cool and the restaurant appealed to the yuppie hipster in me but the food was straight up not good. We got the banh xeo, shaking beef, blackened chicken, som tum papaya salad, dumplings, okonomiyaki with candied pork and a sunny side egg, and a side of sticky rice. The best thing was the som tum and the second best was the okonomiyaki. Everything else was super pickled, super salty, and just not even close to the dishes they were trying to emulate (banh xeo and shaking beef, Im looking at you, you pretenders). Overall: cool place to grab a drink. Id skip most of the menu.

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Angela Knutson

This was by far the absolute best meal we had in Charleston. Initially, I was hesitant to try it as our family is vegetarian, but there turned out to be plenty of delicious options for us. Weeks later, Im still thinking about the cabbage pancakes! I have no idea what anything we ate was called, but it was fresh, flavorful, nicely presented. We dined outside which was nice, especially considering that we have two toddlers. If we ever find ourselves in Charleston again, this place will be at the top of the list to return to.

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Jordan

I visit Charleston often on business travel, and stumbled upon this place when I took a wrong turn during one of my visits...thats when my hunger kicked in so I stopped in for a bite. This is my go-to place every time I visit. I LOVE the food, it is incredible and the menu is always changing. The presentation is beautiful, the staff are friendly and inviting, and the atmosphere is unique and relaxing. Highly recommend this place, and definitely try the cabbage pancakes with everything on them:)

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