First Bite: New Houston Restaurant Serves Delicious Peking Duck in Rice Village

Peking duck at Duck N Bao Rice Village. Photo by Meredith Nudo.

The husband and wife duo of Houston restaurateurs Grace And Leon Xia started their Rice Village Location of Duck and Baobringing their signature Peking duck and homemade Xiao long bao (soup balls) to 5215 Kelvin.

This new spot joins the Cypress and Memorial locations, open in 2020 and 2021, as well as the all-you-can-eat Korean buffet based in Bellaire. Hongdae 33, part of the Xia’s growing portfolio of restaurants. Houston Food Finder was invited as a media guest to the new Duck N Bao in Rice Village.

True to its name, the restaurant specializes in duck and bao. Both could very well be among the best in the city – and that includes both Asiatowns. The duck arrives perfectly sliced, so that almost every thick cut has deliciously roasted, pleasantly crispy skin. It’s reasonable to want to eat moist (but not fatty!) meat without the accompanying green onions, duck sauce, cucumbers and pancakes, but you’d be missing out on the quintessential Peking duck experience. from Beijing if you do. Bring friends too!

The Peking duck costs $32 for a half order and is served with six pancakes, green onions, cucumbers and duck sauce. A full order costs $58 and comes with all of the aforementioned accessories plus six extra pancakes and a generous family-size bowl of hearty duck soup. Once winter arrives, the cabbage-rich dish will no doubt become part of many Inner Loopers’ comfort food rotation. Lettuce wraps with ground duck meat are available as a substitute for soup for an additional $5.

Dinner alone? Don’t worry, you’re not doomed to staring at neighboring tables filled with smiling faces enjoying juicy duck like a Dickensian street urchin at Christmas. Order some Handmade Fresh Pork or Chicken Soup Dumplings and see exactly why they deserve your attention too. Some xiao long bao spots have structural integrity issues. Either they make the skin of the dumplings so thin that it falls apart as soon as it’s removed from the steamer, or they skimp on the “soup” part – to the point where it might as well not be at all. xiao long bao.

Duck N Bao struck the right balance between chewy filling and sturdy (but not hard) packaging, which may remind longtime Houstonians of the late, great Sarah Place in Bellaire.

If you are feeling particularly hungry, the Squid with chopped peppers makes a decadent appetizer or side dish for ravioli. Duck N Bao doesn’t skimp on the garlic or jalapeños, which is why the tender baby cephalopods are packed with spicy, savory flavors.

When it comes to cocktails, the restaurant is not left out either. THE Dragon Breath Smoked Cocktail is served at the table to make the most of the smoke that lines the glass. Long after the visual element is gone, the flavor remains. Made with Ming River Sichuan Baiju, St-Germain, Cointreau, bourbon, simple syrup and orange zest, the drink tastes like liquid incense — and that’s not an insult. The nose plays as much a role in the experience of taste as the tongue, and Dragon’s Breath makes the most of experimenting with this truism.

Other great options include Mulan, a Maker’s Mark frothy confection made with Great Indian Gin, raspberry liqueur, sweet vermouth, lemon juice and simple syrup, topped with edible flowers, raspberry dust and egg whites. If you prefer dry or bitter flavor profiles, The paper crane (Amaro Nonino Quintessentia, Aperol, bourbon, freshly squeezed lemon and a slice of orange) and Qui Pao (Hendrick’s Gin, dry Champagne, elderflower liqueur, agave, freshly squeezed lemon and lemon zest) are also delicious and creative.

The Rice Village Duck N Bao store is open for lunch and dinner, Monday through Thursday from 11 a.m. to 9:30 p.m., Friday and Saturday from 11 a.m. to 10 p.m., and Sunday from 11 a.m. to 9 p.m.

Meredith Nudo is a Houston-based writer, actress, and voice actor with bylines in HoustoniaChron.com, Houston Press, Texas Signal, Houston Landing and Chronicle of San Francisco. You can learn more about https://linktr.ee/meredithnudo.

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