Acclaimed Maum Chefs Return with Relaxed Korean-Taiwanese Restaurant at Los Altos Food Hall
Bao Bei, the highly anticipated Korean-Taiwanese spot for former Maum chiefs in Palo Alto, is now open inside the State Street Market in downtown Los Altos.
Meichih and Michael Kim, whose Korean gourmet restaurant Maum has been awarded a Michelin star, have turned their attention to more casual dishes. In Bao Bei (170 State St.), they serve up comforting noodle dishes and Taiwanese gua baos, steamed buns stuffed with gochujang-glazed pork belly and sweet shrimp.
It might be a counter service stand inside a food hall, but the Kim’s gastronomic training is evident in the choice of ingredients and the attention to flavor and texture. The richness of the pork belly bao is cut with pickled cucumbers, caraelized peanuts and strands of bright red chili grated with saffron. The pork sauce in dan dan mian clings to the thin, custom-made wheat noodles they purposely selected for their thinner, ramen-like width and texture. It also comes with a vial of Taiwanese black vinegar for drizzling and a flowing vacuum egg.
Bao Bèi peanut dan dan mian with pork stew, vacuum-packed egg and chili oil.
Elena KadvanyAnd for dessert, an old soybean bud, or pudding, is silky and rich, topped with Taiwanese black sugar and roasted rice whipped cream.
They plan to keep the menu compact, but will swap different gua baos and other new dishes down the line. For drinks, Bao Bei serves Korean soju and Taiwanese beers.
Bao Bei, named after a affectionate term the Kim’s call their young son, is a reflection of how they blend Korean and Taiwanese flavors at home. The project grew out of the pandemic disruption, which shut down Maum and put them out of work for months.
Kim’s are one of the main draws of the State Street Market, which opened in September. Bao Bei is the first chef-owned stand to open in the food hall. Most of the other options currently open were created by food hall developer Los Altos Community Investments in tandem with Bon Appétit Management Company, the large restaurant management company based on the peninsula.
Other acclaimed Bay Area chefs are opening restaurants in the food hall. Srijith Gopinathan (Taj Campton Place, Ettan) opens a quick and laid-back Cal-Indian stand called Little Blue Door. And Traci Des Jardins de San Francisco Standby Jardinière brings its new Mexican restaurant, El Alto. Cowgirl Creamery, which makes some of the Bay Area’s most popular cheeses, will open a store in the Food Hall in early 2022.
Other stalls already open at State Street Market include Peninsula Tin Pot Creamery Ice Cream Shop, Ostro Brut Bar, and Murdoch’s Bar.
Bao Bei at State Street Market. Takeaway meals, indoor and outdoor meals. 11 a.m. to 8 p.m. Wednesday, 11 a.m. to 9 p.m. Thursday-Saturday, 11 a.m. to 8 p.m. Sunday. Statestreetmarket.com/baobei
Elena Kadvany is a writer for the San Francisco Chronicle. Email: [email protected] Twitter: @ekadvany