Tuesdays with TT: Baorrito

The day after Thanksgiving is the ultimate lazy day. Mostly due to the fact of the extreme eating and drinking the day before. CT and I decided to go to the movies since that doesn’t require much movement. We ended up seeing Due Date, which was pretty good. Afterwards, we wanted to get something to eat with one stipulation, NO TURKEY! Therefore this was a great opportunity to try Baoritto. The Mexican/Asian reboot of the Baoguette in Gramercy. When Michael “Bao” Huynh isn’t opening a new restaurant (approx. every 2 weeks), he’s changing a space he already owns. While he was changing Baoguette into Baoritto, he simultaneously changed Bia Garden in the Lower East Side into Chinito. I guess he wanted to follow in the footsteps of the Kogi Truck in Los Angeles and the Korilla BBQ Truck right here in NYC.

Note this place was small. Only about 8 or so stools and all ordering is done at the counter. No waitress service and apparently they don’t have a liquor license.

Since CT & I did have quite the feast the day before, we shared an appetizer of Mole Buffalo Wings. Although these were some of the smallest wings I have ever seen, they gave enough to justify the portion. The flavor was quite good, but leaned towards the sweet side. The sauce had a mild kick to it, which enhanced the dish.

CT says: These were a saucy, messy and tasty starter! I wasn’t particularly hungry when we sat down, but these definitely whet my appetite. Sweet with a hidden spice – even after finishing my meal and couldn’t stop munching on these. My only complaint would be the lack of carrots.

There are seven different protein options served in a variety of formats (Burrito, Baorrito Bowl, Crispy Taco, Soft Tacos, Salad).

CT ordered two Crispy Tacos.

First was Bimbibao with hanger steak, kimchi, hot bean sauce, and fried quail egg. I had a bite of this messy taco. It was spot on with all the flavors of bibimbap. As CT will probably mention, the crunchy taco shell isn’t a very good vessel for this. After it fell apart, it got soggy from the different liquids. Regardless, it was very tasty.

The other was Spicy Braised Shortrib with charred scallion, napa cabbage slaw, horse radish cream.

CT says: I loved both these tacos! The bibimbao taco really tasted like a bimbimbap stuffed into a taco. It had all the right flavors. The Shortrib was great too – very tender meat. Both had a good balance of flavors and perfect meat-to-toppings ratio. Also, those who know me know how I usually add a bit of hot sauce to almost everything I eat, but these flavors needed nothing extra. Though not spicy, they were spiceful! The hard shell taco made it a little difficult to eat, as the first cracked apart and the second was a bit soggy by the time I got to it, but isn’t that half the fun of eating them?! They are definitely two tacos I would happily eat again and again.

I ordered the Chili Basil Beef in a burrito with spicy lemongrass ground beef, green mango salsa and basil. This burrito was huge. It was super flavorful, but very hard to pick up on the individual flavors of the ingredients. i.e. I couldn’t taste any basil. I still enjoyed this burrito very much and would order it again.

CT says: I stole a bite and really liked the flavor of the beef. I could really taste the lemongrass, but it wasn’t overwhelming the rest of the burrito either. It will be a hard decision which protein to choose next time!

Since Baoritto doesn’t have a liquor license, we got soda and tea. CT got the Mash Citrus Zing, which is now one of her favorites. I got the teany white tea with pomegranate. It was a refreshing tea with not too much sweetness, which was perfect for me.

CT says: I love the Mash sodas – they are not too sweet, more like a fizzy juice than a soda (even though I don’t think there is actually any juice in it). I usually get the Blood Orange-Mango flavor, but something about the lighter citrus flavor called out to me, and it too was delicious!

All in all, I am happy with what Michael Bao has done with Baorrito. It offers a nice twist on some traditional Mexican fast food dishes. I just hope to be able to return before he changes it to another format.