From the throne of playful bougieness in Beijing, The Opposite House, comes a playfully bougie food concept newly opened in their courtyard: a food truck that serves cosmopolitan baozi and mantou sandwiches. It's called Bao House. It's a truck, a courtyard, and a modernist take on Chinese snack foods. The menu was devised and created in the kitchen of their popular, international eatery the Village Cafe, although the buns themselves are steamed right on the spot. Getting right into it, options are split between a few baozis and a few mantous. The menu tilts towards a modern, international interpretation on Chinese snacks, of course, combining idiosyncratic top-shelf ingredients with a breezy pan-Asian focus. That first one is pretty indicative of the overall ethos: "The Baofather - wagyu beef, mushroom, and black truffle - 48rmb (for three)." Then it moves on over into Thailand: "Bao Thai Thai - Thai pork, red curry, kaffir lime 28rmb (for three)". That last one, the BJ Bao, is the straight-up traditional one, maybe for the grizzled baozi purist who somehow wandered into the Balenciaga and Steve McQueen courtyard totally by accident. For mantous, you've got two: One is a riff on a Korean influence and the other is maybe "An Open Letter to NYC". So. Prices listed on the chalkboard above are for three of the same kind. You can also mix and match -- and, hey, why not -- and the individual prices breaks down like thus: 18rmb for one of the wagyu truffle dealies; 10rmb for one of the Thai Thais; 15rmb for the Captain Bao; and 7rmb for one of the BJ Bao. We just pointed at the menu and said, "All of it, my man. Steam, you bastard, steam!" That's a lot of notches. Notches = class in the baozi game. Verdict: yummy. Really. What can I say, it's a wagyu beef baozi. You knew it was going to be pretty good. But, yeah, it was very tasty. Beautiful and airy outer casing, opening up into a tender, juicy ball of top-shelf meat in the middle. Actually, my preference out of the four are the Thai ones -- the curry's delish -- but if you decide to hit up this place, the menu is manageable enough to try them all out anyways. Onto the mantou. This is the Beastie Boys one -- "Braised pork belly with pickled vegetables, coriander and crushed peanuts". Well I got to keep it going keep it going full steam/ Too sweet to be sour too nice to be mean Also good times. Was giving off a Banh Mi kind of vibe, but the pork is fattier, juicier, and more succulent. Would definitely get this one again. Pretty unique sort of snack in the area. Very rich and fresh. A few people might balk at the 48rmb price tag, but it was also very filling. For drinks, they've Voltron'ed with the ever-diligent Slow Boat Brewery and are serving Honey Helmsman Ale on draft (40rmb), and bottles of Zombie Pirate and Eight Six Golden (30rmb). Beer and baozi -- can't beat that. Of course, with such a close proximity to Mesh, they've also got standard mixes and wines. For non-alcoholic drinks, try out the Lemongrass Ice Green Tea (25rmb). Very refreshing on a hot-ass day. The Details: Bao House is open daily from noon 'til 9pm. The plan is to be open for the duration of the summer, and then the bus drives on into the sunset forever around Septemberish. (Or maybe on over to one of their sister hotels, who knows.) A caveat -- watch out for the weather. Even with the nice umbrella seating, it's getting damn hot. Might be better for a late afternoon or evening snack on really hot days. Bao House is located in The Opposite House's courtyard outside the main lobby, upstairs from Jing Yaa Tang. They're open daily from noonish until 9pm.