BB SOCIAL DINING: IS ITS MOST ICONIC BAO THE MOST DELICIOUS ONE?
The Cost - $24 per person
The Atmosphere – The Time Out Market in Dubai features a collection of outposts of well known and respected local restaurants, a bar, and some other great stalls serving up delicious food. It’s a great place for a meal in a faster, more casual setting and a fantastic option for a snack or meal before, during or after a shopping trip at the Dubai Mall.
BB Social Dining has been delighting diners in Dubai since it opened in 2017. Literally located on Happiness Street, the restaurant speaks proudly of its “inclusive menu” that offers accessibility and creativity to people looking for a unique dining experience. While I wasn’t able to visit the location on Happiness Street, I did get to try the Time Out Market location which offers a smaller sample of BB’s most popular dishes.
The Order – Habibti, This is BB and Crispy Duck Bao.
The Fantastic - It is impossible for me to pick my favorite of the night between the This is BB and the Crispy Duck Bao. The This is BB, a bao with braised beef short rib, peanuts, chili and an excellent sauce, was delicious. The flavor profile of the dish was excellent and I loved every bite. The Crispy Duck Bao was more about the duck than anything else and that was a great thing. The duck meat had so much flavor and was perfectly cooked making it stand out for the best reasons. Both of these bao buns, like all bao buns at BB Social, are steamed and then toasted and are some of the best buns I’ve ever had.
The Great - The Habibti, a soft shell crab bao with slaw and wasabi dressing, is BB Social’s signature dish so I was surprised that it was my least favorite of the three I tried. That being said, it was very good and was presented phenomenally. If you like to take pictures of your food, this bao is the most photogenic of the trio. The knock on this bao was that there was so much slaw that it really limited my ability to taste the crab, which is what everyone orders it for.
The Verdict – BB Social Dining was one of my favorite meals in Dubai. I love the restaurant’s focus on Modern Eastern Cuisine as well as the creativity and playfulness that comes through in their food and I think that the Time Out Market is the perfect venue to experience BB’s social dining concept.