A range of Filipino and Asian flavours find their way into specialty sauces and fluffy bao at this Scarborough spot. When you can't choose between adobo or crispy chicken, deep fried pork hock or tofu and mushrooms, order the entire menu and save yourself the stress of having to decide.

There's no shortage of punchy, saucy, herby eats at this tucked-away, Vietnamese takeout spot in Chinatown. Preface a specialty banh mi and Viet coffee with a snack of banh bao, stuffed with haus pickles, fresh veg, a jumble of herbs, a slick of mayo, and one of a dozen proteins — from fried chicken or cod to five-spice tofu and betel beef.

Quality dishes lead to lines spilling out the door at this mini-chain with locations on Queen West, at Yonge & Eglinton and Yonge & College. Inside, regulars tuck into a tidy selection of bao plumped with savoury proteins, from five-spice pork belly to panko tofu. De rigueur cucumbers, pickled carrots, cilantro and house-sauces liven up every bite.

Populated by fast food that's fresher than most, the menu of bao buns and bowls at this spot boast the flavours of Korea, Hawaii, and Asia-Pacific. Head to locations in the Financial District and Harbourfront for ribeye steak bulgogi bao with hoisin, spicy mayo or sriracha.

There's no finer duo than a bracing cocktail and a loaded bao inhaled against the convivial din of this Leslieville snack bar. With eight varieties to choose from — including jack fruit, smashed burger, Korean fried chicken and duck confit — you can spend many happy hours finding your fave.

This sibling to Basil Box doles out Southeast Asian comfort food to the masses, in North York and Dundas West. Every bao order includes two puffed buns overfilled with a tasty combo of ingredients — from Malaysian braised beef and cheese to crispy butterfly shrimp with sweet chili mayo.

A food-court star, this takeout spot in the South Core and Financial District fuels office workers with bao that are as light and tender as they are hearty and fat with flavour. With toppings customized to each protein — from apple slaw with pulled pork to bok choy and Taiwanese pickle with braised beef — each of these bao buns has its own personality to share.

House-made Vietnamese staples draw crowds to this relaxed Scarborough spot. Bao buns loaded with braised pork belly, grilled beef, lemongrass chicken or BBQ pork offer a similar wallop of flavour as the team's banh mi, just in a more pillowy package.

Snacks, including superlative bao buns, disappear fast at this beloved Korean snack bar on Ossington. True, there's a no reservations policy. But catch a glimpse of the team's pork belly bao — an item so laden with tasty, saucy, crunchy toppings it has no hope in hell of containing them all — you'll wait as long as it takes to try one.