There is no other shop like “Thess Bao” in Thessaloniki. A place that moves completely in the philosophy of bao ban, this soft bread of Asian cuisine, with its special taste, which literally matches with all the ingredients.

With exclusively their own bao bans, which are made daily, the owners of this particular street food spot in Kalapothaki street and Lori Margaritis street, offer a type of food that can be consumed by everyone at any time of the day, ideal for street food that, however, it’s not junk.

“Thess Bao” opened in Kalapothaki str. in November 2019 and the second store opened in Lori Margaritis str. in April 2021, by Yiannis Pateikas, Dimitris Pamporis and Yiannis Ziagas, who wanted to introduce the philosophy of bao ban a little more into the city, taking it a step further.

The idea of ​​this particular creative street food place quickly took shape and a menu was created with recipes based on both Asian and Greek cuisine, consisting almost exclusively of proposals in bao bans with various flavors, with raw material fresh breads that leaven on our own – says the baker of the two shops at 6 in the morning, with his own recipe, who wants them softer, bigger and more satisfying than the classic Asian ones.

The flavors of bao

The menu includes bao bans with suzukakia, beef cheeks, caramelized pancetta or breaded chicken – the caesar’s, as the owners call it – that people love, the classic bao ban burger with bacon and egg or and its Mediterranean version, with the breaded shrimp bao with spicy cannabis cream, being one of the very special flavors.

Of course, there are also other more classic flavors, such as the Peking duck, with Thessbao ketchup – ketchup made from Florina’s pepper, which is made on site, by the cooks – but also the vegetarian and vegan bao bans, with chickpea meatballs, pumpkin meatballs or mushroom gyro.

The proposals in bao bans are complemented by delicious, fresh salads, veloute soups of the day and the unique crushed potatoes of “Thess Bao”, baby potatoes boiled, churched and then fried, which come in many flavors of toppings and are liked by young and old alike.

Stand out are the extravaganza with fried egg and black truffle mayonnaise, the Mediterranean with basil mayonnaise, Parmesan and tomato powder, the “indo”, with Mandras curry mayonnaise and lime.       

The sweets on the menu

The bao bans here are also eaten sweet, in three or four versions daily: sweet, fried bao ban with cream, like a baguette, fried bao ban banoffee with merenda and caramelized bananas and other suggestions, which certainly do not exist elsewhere in Thessaloniki.

What is ‘Thess Bao’ in a nutshell? One concept, two stores in Thessaloniki, the feeling of a gourmet dish in hand, as befits a street food, with the soft bread starring in every meal and quality and handmade ingredients, made daily on site.

It is rare, people like it and it gives a different note to the gastronomy of Thessaloniki, another twist in its Asian part, which ends up being something completely different.

Whether on site, at the store stands, or with take away or delivery, every taste of “Thess Bao” remains extremely unique and the menu is constantly updated, based on customer preferences.