TP Banh Bao 5

Fresh warm bags. Delicious. Meat buns were good, but the custard bun was not as smooth and custardy as I thought it would be, reminded me of a sweet potato filling.

Final Thoughts: 4.39/5Quaint little steamed bun shop in Vietnam town. My friends introduced me to this place a while ago. My parents enjoy the items that they've eaten here, so I've gone to get a few times now.Food:1) Bánh Bao Thập Cẩm Trứng Muối (Pork, Salted Duck Egg, and Sausage): 4.3/52) Bánh Bao Thập Cẩm Trứng Cút (Pork, Quail Egg, and Sausage): 4.4/53) Bánh Bao Gà Trứng Cút (Chicken and Quail Egg): 4.2/54) Bánh Bao Gà (Chicken and Egg): 4.0/5Their buns look very simple and each individually assembled, which I personally enjoy because it gives you that warm homemade feel to it. Texture wise, the buns are still very soft and fluffy. There is an outer skin on the buns that has some elasticity and resistance to it. Might be because of how they're shaped and cooked. The inside is really soft and area surrounding the meat is very flavorful. Flavor wise, I've enjoyed the ones that I have tried here. There has only been one place that's impressed me with their buns and that place is in Orange County. This place does quite a good job with it there. Good balance of sweetness, saltiness, and ratios. Ratio of dough to filling is appears optimal in regards to their cross-section. I've seen dough to filling ratios be so unbalanced with 70% of it being dough and remainder 30% being filling. While I understand that if there isn't enough dough, the dough might not have that fluffy texture. However, I get tired all the dough in excess.Looking at the meat/filling, the texture is nice. There is some bite, so its not just completely minced and pureed meat. From what I have seen, there's the meat, wood ear mushrooms, green onions, onions, black pepper, and possibly other items that I can't make out. For the buns I typically buy, an egg is included inside. Options are the salted duck egg, quail egg, or your usual chicken egg. My personal favorite is definitely the quail egg, but the other options are good too. Regarding saltiness of the salted egg, I believe they're brined just enough to give the yolk that light saltiness. It's not overly salty and will just compliment the filling if you decide to get a bun with it included. Eggs add that additional texture and component to the bun. Chinese sausages are included in some of the buns, as well. It's a fairly small sliver, so nothing significant, but again, it adds another component to the bun.Other comments:My one note is that the buns themselves are not labeled externally, so it is difficult to differentiate between them sometimes if you get different kinds. They do write which one is which on top of the box, but if you accidently mix them up, it may be difficult to differentiate between them again unless the buns purchased have significant differences. Even with a cross section, I struggle with differentiating between proteins. What I've seen other shops do is label each one with a colored mark on top or even make the buns look slightly different from each other. Just something to note if you do purchase all different kinds like me. ---------Quality: FairFrom their outer appearance, they appear to be frozen and then reheated. The top shows some cracking, which is why I believe this is part of the process. This is a fairly common thing to do and we can just reheat it later. Flavor and texture are still quite nice though. Price: AverageFor the item itself, I believe that the price is average. For one bun, the average price is $2.25 to $3.00. For the Bay Area, that is an average price. An option to purchase a box of 9 buns is available. I believe you only get to choose one flavor though, but the price per piece is lower. Price range for the 9 piece box is within $14 to $20.Service:Seems to be a family-owned business. Everyone that I've interacted with there have been friendly and nice. I've had concerns with using Zelle to send them the money before, but they were very nice and patient about it.Ambiance: SmolIt is a fairly small storefront space. Interior is simple. The back of the store where the kitchen and prep areas are appears to extend pretty far, but the shop where their items are sold is fairly small. No seats or tables are provided here, but not a concern for me here. This isn't typically a food where you would need to sit down and eat it. It's more of a grab and go kind of food, so no tables, chairs, or anything is really warranted.Location/Parking: Vietnam TownAnother place in Vietnam Town. It is a fairly small storefront, but their sign is pretty noticeable within the line of stores. Big and thick letters for everyone to see. Parking wise is fair on a normal day. My recommendation is always to caution the rush hour times and weekend days though. Even though there appears to be optimal parking, there's an abundance of shops, cafes, restaurants, etc. for people to go to, so there's always a crowd. If you're lucky, you'll find a spot quickly, but if not, it might take some patience. A small parking garage is available, as well.

Vietnamese Steamed Baos or Banh Bao! I haven't had these in a while but was suddenly in the craving mood for it. Since we were near Vietnam Town, I found this shop and we decided to make a stop for it.They're located in a big plaza and it's a small shop made for takeout only. I got an order of 4 buns, 2 of the Pork, Quail Egg & Sausage, and 2 of the BBQ Pork. The banh baos were exactly what I was craving for. The savory stuffings inside the baos really satisfied my cravings and everything tasted great.

This was my third time here and I ordered a box of deep-fried buns and steamed buns. Both types of buns are filled with a combination of pork, Chinese sausage, and egg.The fried buns were generously stuffed, with the filling leaning towards the sweet and savory side. The pork filling was slight sweet, but had good flavor. The buns were crispy and golden on the outside, and fluffy and light on the inside. A solid 7 out of 10 for me.Unfortunately, the steamed buns had a very strong soapy taste this time. I really liked their steamed buns in the past, the dough to filling ratio was solid! The dough was airy with a generous amount of meat. But due to the soap taste I would have to rate it 1 out of 10 this time around. The soapy taste was stuck on my tongue for a while despite rinsing with water a few times. I hope this was just a one time thing and doesn't happen again.

Who doesn't love a good steamed bun? Well, I've had TP Banh Bao 5 bbookmarked for awhile and I finally tried it out. I ordered the steamed bun with the pork, sausage and quail egg filling. The steamed bun is soft and has a lot of filling inside. Good flavor and texture all around. I also ordered the fried buns and they are crispy, not greasy, light and fluffy on the inside. You must order a minimum of three if you are buying less than 3 fried buns. But they are totally worth it!The cashier was extremely friendly and the way she spoke to me, I knew she cares about the business and the customers. They accept cash and zelle which will help you save 4%. If you use card, they will charge a 4% fee onto your total. If you're craving a snack that's inexpensive, I highly recommend it and you can get a few buns for just less than $10. There's no seating on the inside other than just two tables that are not available so it's more like a grab and go place. I definitely cannot wait to try their other buns especially the dessert buns.

Idk why it took me so long to try this place but I finally did and was so satisfied with my food :))The lady working there (I'm assuming is the owner) is so nice, friendly, and accommodating! My group of 4 wanted to try most of the items on the menu so we asked if we're able to mix and match into a box and she said yes although they were busy!Steamed buns - Dough to filling ratio was pretty even and we loved how soft the texture of the bun was. Everything tasted so delicious and our top ones were chicken + salted duck egg and bbq.You HAVE to get their deep fried buns-- they are perfectly fried.. a bit greasy but SO TASTY. Hands down, our fav ones out of all the flavors.

Decent Baos! Got a box of 9 of the pork, quail egg, and sausage baos for $19. The filling inside was surprisingly sweet! There was a generous portion of meat inside each bun. The bun itself sticks to the roof of your mouth so it was a little bothersome to eat. I also don't think these buns were the freshest; the man handed us a box that had been sitting on the counter next to a bunch of other boxes. They weren't warm either, but a quick microwave with a wet paper towel did the job.This is a small grab-and-go shop. The one man working at the counter was very blunt and not the most welcoming. Willing to give their buns another try, hopefully fresh next time!

I love their baos. I'm biased but this is the best place for banh bao in SJ! The outside is so fluffy and soft and the inside is always flavorful. This is my go to spot for apps.

service could be better. ordering was confusing and they weren't the most helpful or attentive. baos were just alright, not the best...

Yummy Baos!TP Banh Bao is one of my family's favorite go-tos for banh baos. There's a good dough-to-filling ratio. I also really like the smaller-sized baos, however, the cost is kind of steep at $2+ each. I have only ordered the original (pork, egg, and sausage) bao and it has been consistently good. The interior is small and doesn't look like anyone would actually dine here, mostly takeout. Prices have gone up to $14.99 per box of 9 baos now. Payment: They only accept cash or Zelle which is annoying. I'm personally not a fan of businesses like this, but it's quite common in large Vietnamese areas.