Nick Spann is "full of nerves and excitement in equal measure" in the days leading up to the opening of his and his wife's first permanent shop in Cardiff Market. And having bagged a prime spot in one of the capital city's most renowned foodie hotspots, who can blame him.
He tells me: "[I'm] excited for obvious reasons. Because we care. We've put a lot of effort into this moment... It's happening!" Nick and his wife Karolina are the founders of the award-winning Taiwanese street food stall Bao Selecta, whose steamed bao buns, stuffed with things like pork belly, Szechuan fried chicken, popular crispy seitan 'beef' and jackfruit, are fluffy, moorish, tasty and perfect bites of heaven.
Nick stumbled upon these cloud-like sweet buns on a whim almost seven years ago whilst trying to look for a dish to cook for a group of friends. And it proved to be such a hit that he developped it from a simple last-minute creation he shared with friends to a fully-fledged business that has people returning time and again to get a taste.
Read more: Top Pembrokeshire restaurant finds new home after sudden closure last year
Nick explains: "I basically made bao buns for a dinner party, just a get together with friends. I had a Saturday afternoon to kill, my wife was at work and we had people coming over for food and so I thought I'd try something new.
"Had a Google and I thought' Oh that looks like fun'. I made two things. I made gyozas - chicken and peanut, which were alright - and then I made the bao buns which got a much better response! They were really nice about the bao buns."
He then experienced something that had never happened to him before; the next morning he had somewhat of a lightbulb moment. "I was sat on the bed on the Sunday morning, I'll never forget it, and I was just like 'Oh my gosh. Bao Selecta. This is my one thing.'
"We'd waited for so long for an idea. I've never got a tattoo because I could never think of what to [get]. And for the same reason I didn't start this until I was in my thirties because I always knew the ideas I'd had weren't that great. But when I had the Bao Selecta idea, it just felt pretty natural."
To learn more about the type of buns he'd made and the type of cooking he'd fallen in love with, he and Karolina rented out their house and went travelling for a year to Japan, east Asia, Thailand, Myanmar and even further afield. Staying in 'home stays', where they worked in exchange for accomodation, they witnessed food being cooked by local families, learning as they went along. Once they returned, they set out to make Bao Selecta a success and soon took part in their first event.
"We did our first proper event in 2018 outside Barkers coffee in the [Castle Quarter] arcade. On a single trestle table and a load of second hand and borrowed equipment and it sold out within an hour and a half." Over the next few years, Nick, whose background is in kitchens - he worked as a chef at The Vale Resort and for the Welsh rugby team (among others) - would juggle his day job of training up chefs and his passion: Bao Selecta.
In 2019, he made Bao Selecta his full time job with his wife and muses: "I love a cliche. Find the job you love and you'll never work a day in your life. It is challenging and my wife is an absolute saint. She pulls everything together in a very gracious way."
The company has now been going for five years in April and, despite being hit (as did all hospitality businesses) by the lockdown, it didn't stop them thriving. Throughout the pandemic Nick and Karolina made their delectable buns from home to deliver.
"We enjoyed it, we were making the best of what we could. And also, luckily, it helped us build a customer base. Our home kitchen was brand new when we moved into the house. It was knackered by the end of lockdown!" Nick chuckles.
But it paid off as in 2020, Bao Selecta won two awards at the British and Welsh Street Food Awards, respectively: the People's Choice and the Best Sandwich. "It was nice to go and get recognised by somebody who knew what they're talking about. One of the top judges was [The Fat Duck head chef] Ed Cook!"
Nick added with honest modesty: "It was a bit of a surprise for us. The people who we were up against were really good. People from [all over the UK]. And they picked us and... actually I really didn't think we were going to win. Was really surprised when they picked us.
"We try really hard so it's nice to be appreciated by [professional] people, who recognise that. And we thank them for it."
And it's not just judges who appreciate their food as, whenever they appear at festivals and pop ups, people return to their stall time and again and for Nick, that's just the "best feeling". With a new permanent venture opening up on Tuesday, March 21, his customers who work in and around the city are sure to be one of the those people coming back for bao buns.
But why choose Cardiff Market? Nick, who hails originally from Shropshire, says that there's something special when you visit the renowned building - which is a beating foodie heart of the city centre, have a look at our guide to it here.
He muses: "When you're in there, it's like this tiny little microcosm of Cardiff. All within 20 metres by 40 metres. You can probably live in here and never have to leave, because you can get everything."
He chuckles how, with the stall being a compact and cosy one and a half metres by two and a half (as a lot of them are) they've utilised the height of the stall to put up some shelves which "could literally fit beds up there" - perfect.
And it seems when you're new to the market, everyone welcomes you with open arms as Nick tells me how the "guy from the electrical shop" fitted Bao Selecta's extraction fan on Friday morning.
"I can't describe the feeling I get from standing on the balcony at the market. It's super cool. The characters you get in here... it's just a wholesome Cardiff experience with a sprinkle of international street food."
This is Nick's first permanent base for Bao Selecta and he explains how he has no plans of expanding to be a fully-fledged restaurant or empire. "I said I'd never open a stall and here we are," he laughs, adding: "But the Cardiff Market [opportunity] was a chance we wouldn't get again. It's really buzzing [here]. "
He continues: "I'm happy sailing along and seeing what comes up as we go. I can't think of anything better than being eight doors down from Jake at Bearded Taco - which opened just a few months ago - and growing older with our families and saying 'Hi' everyday. Get a bit stability and routine. It just fits perfectly. Couldn't have asked for a better opportunity at a better time."
What's slightly different about the market stall than Bao Selecta's other pop-ups and appearances at food festivals - such as Forest Feastival which returns to this April - is there will be no meat present on the menu. Their best seller is, in fact, a vegan crispy 'beef' bao bun and Nick adds how both he and Karolina enjoy the challenge of cooking vegan - despite being meat eaters themselves.
"I like eating a variety [of foods] and I like looking at new challenges. I've really enjoyed making seitan [used in the crispy 'beef' bun] and it's taken us almost four years to perfect the recipe. We didn't want to stand on anyone's toes that's already at the market and then, obviously, the beef just sells well. And it's my favourite dish out of the lot. We've been working on a couple of other bits and bobs," he says keeping his cards close to his chest.
As for where the name came from, Nick reveals he used to DJ drum and bass, and while it's a little nod to Bo' Selecta - the '90s television show - its main inspiration came from music culture. He explains: "I used to DJ drum and bass and there was a lot of 'when I say Selecta, you say Bo'. [So it's] mostly a nod towards music culture. I met most of my friends through music. It brought me and my friend's together."
And although his DJ decks are gathering dust above the wardrobe, at special occasions he gets them out to give them a spin at parties - "maybe once a year". Bao Selecta opens at stalls 5-7 at Cardiff Market on Tuesday, March 21.
READ NEXT:
- Family apologises as popular Indian restaurant gets food hygiene score of one
- The Italian family who started with nothing and created a fish and chip shop empire in a small Welsh town
- We ate at the new Burger Boyz restaurant -and it totally lived up to the hype
- 'It was my stepdad's dream for me to open a restaurant and now I'm doing it in his memory'
- Popular lockdown business opens new dessert cafe in Blaenau Gwent
