Okay, Fun Buns is technically run out of a cart, but the offshoot from the Bian Dang folks has been up and running for the past month. Fun Buns serves Taiwanese-style bao—yes, the open-faced bougie kind.
Yesterday, Fun Buns had the braised pork belly—which is slow-cooked with Taiwanese five spice and served with pickled mustard greens, crushed peanuts and cilantro— and spicy beef shank, which was stewed with star anise, cinnamon, and cloves and also served with pickled mustard greens, crushed peanuts and cilantro. The pork belly was deliciously fatty and rich, while the beef was truly spicy and full of flavor. The peanuts added a nice sweet mild flavor to both.
Individually, each bao costs $3; for $8, you can get two baos with chips (shrimp-flavored crackers or prawn chips) and a drink while $10 will get you three baos plus chips and drink. While they are tiny, they were stuffed—two baos were very filling! Now we hope Fun Buns will come up with a vegetarian option so our non-meat-eating friends can enjoy them: Pickled cabbage? Mushroom? Glass noodles? Bamboo? Crispy bean curd? The possibilities are endless!
The Fun Buns cart is at Park and 25th Street today (May 23)!
