STREET STYLE

In the market for snappy modern Asian but want to keep it casual? You’re about to get lucky

LUCKY BAO

6/90 MARKERI ST, MERMAID WATERS

Book it: 5679 6517 or luckybao.com.au

Open: Wednesday to Monday from 11.30am for lunch and dinner (closed Tuesdays)

HITCHED to the bao bandwagon it may be, but Lucky Bao is no one-trick pony.

Firing up a new autumn menu, Daud and Emmi Kendall’s little Mermaid Waters eatery is turning out dishes that would give our top restaurants a run for their money.

See your way past the suburban carpark setting to discover addictive street-food flavour executed with unexpected finesse.

The cute, compact dining room is Emmi’s domain, while Daud heads up the fittingly dominant open kitchen.

A long, concrete bar stocks a surprising bounty: sake, spirits, beer and cider, Vietnamese coffee and Blackboard brews, well-chosen wines and a concise cocktail list (The Baoist with yuzu caramel whisky, cassia bark and bitters is just the tonic for a cool night).

Any of the above is sufficient excuse to dive into an original bar-snack menu, starting with thin fried tortilla rounds providing crunchy contrast for raw ocean trout with smoked Kewpie, truffle and chives.

The same textural play elevates a wonton “sandwich”, the crispy wafers containing a moreish mix of miso cream cheese and pickled onion.

The flavours flow to elegant share plates, the highlight being ocean trout sashimi dressed with a delicate hand, balancing lively ponzu citrus with the warm bite of pickled ginger.

Dumplings bring the autumn comfort factor, with wagyu brisket, red vinegar and peanut, and prawn and pork with xo sauce joining the ranks.

If there’s a dish to get me uncharacteristically excited about tofu it’s Lucky Bao’s silky Chengdu street tofu — there’s nothing bland about its chilli, Sichuan pepper and fried shallot bath.

White cut chicken salad, with red cabbage, smoked green chilli dressing and a soy cured egg, is one to share around the table, and a round of bao will always be welcome (go the brisket or tempura soft shell crab with the whip of wasabi).

For mid-priced fare in a casual setting, Lucky Bao punches well above its weight.