It might sound like a fitting end to a night on the lash, but ‘on the bab’ has nothing to do with picking up something from a kebab shop. Instead, it refers to the Korean word for rice – bab, or bap – and there’s plenty of it on this menu.
Jumping on the Korean fast food trend currently doing the rounds on London’s street food scene, the menu here features Korean-style fried chicken in spicy sauce and steamed, meat-stuffed buns. Our Korean fried chicken sprinkled with chopped peanuts was fine, though they do this dish better around the corner at Jubo. A fusion dish of deep-fried arancini risotto balls filled with spicy kimchi cabbage pickle, on the other hand, was a surprising winner.
Sporting a decidedly distressed look with exposed brickwork, diner-style fittings and enamel serveware, this hip upstart makes a fun spot for a meal. But we still prefer On the Bab’s more sophisticated central London sibling Koba.