THE culinary scene is busy with pop-up operators taking the leap up to permanent premises. Less common is a high end restaurant hitting the high street with their own take on street food, but you guessed it, King Street newcomer Taberu is a chain in the making.
It’s the brainchild of Victor and Vinny Yu, the brothers behind the award-winning Yu Chinese restaurant in Alderley Edge, and the focus is firmly on bao, those savoury steamedbuns with a variety of fillings you find everywhere from Korea to Taiwan. Victor spent time in Hong Kong researching.
Definitely fast, finger food, it took hands-on Vinny just three minutes to rustle up his ‘ultimate bao’ for ToM, featuring both char siu pork and toothsome Peking duck, hoisin sauce, pepper and cucumber strips, a smart hit of spice in there. It would cost you £5.95 as standard with £2 for the extra meat. There’s a halloumi bao for veggies.
Taberu means ‘eat’ in Japanese for eat; here it means pretty big portion. Tear into the filled bread that come sin a carton. Attempt to pic up the whole bao, burger-style, could easily end up with a messy lap. Especially with the breakfast bao stuffed with black pudding and caramelised onion, sausage and egg, or eggs, cheese and spinach.
Alternatively there’s also be a selection of noodle dishes, a blackened salmon salad, a Chinese twist on Caesar salad with wonton pastry croutons and yuzu mayo, and Far Eastern drinks, from smoothies through to a range of Chinese teas.
It’s basically a takeaway operation, though there are a couple of tables and a tight terrace. With aspirations to launch Taberu nationally, the Yu brothers plan to open three sites in Manchester – Spinningfields and MediaCityUK are on their radar – before expanding nationwide.
Taberu, 53 King Street, Manchester, M2 4LQ, taberu.global
