Mei Lai Wah
Chinese restaurant · Chinatown
62 Bayard St, New York, NY 10013
Highlights
Iconic Chinatown bakery known for pineapple roast pork buns
Iconic Chinatown bakery known for pineapple roast pork buns
"Though it moves fast, Mei Lai Wah is consistently the longest line in Chinatown, where everyone wants a taste of this pork bun — an affordable snack anytime of day. Fans differ on whether it’s really Chinatown’s best — you can get great buns on nearly every block in the neighborhood — but it is certainly the most well-known and the first name if you’re just visiting for the first time." - Eater Staff
"Mei Li Wah is a Chinese bakery that makes some of the best pork buns in the city. The buns come steamed or baked, and there’s even one with chicken and egg in addition to pork. The baked ones with barbecue pork are the best, though. They're perfectly soft, with a golden brown top, and caramelized pieces of pork steaming on the inside. While there are plenty of people who come to Mei Lai Wah to pick up buns and leave, you can also sit down and have a full meal here that involves some pretty good rice rolls and fried rice dishes with eggs, vegetables, and sausage mixed in." - bryan kim, molly fitzpatrick, willa moore, neha talreja, will hartman
"After more than 50 years at its current address, the Chinatown bakery known for its char siu bao is moving to a larger space at 41 Mott Street, at Bayard Street — the former New Golden Fung Wong Bakery, which closed in July after having been there since 1961. The owners declared on Instagram, "We are EXPANDING!! FINALLY!!," adding "No more lining up outside on the smallest street in Chinatown!" They told Eater they’re aiming for a reopening in November or December, and the bakery remains open during the transition. The Chens said over DM to Eater, "the landlord is trying to push us out to sell the lease" at double or triple the price; if they can keep the original 62 Bayard location they plan to hold onto the space. This move is one of several recent expansions: in 2023 they took over Wonton Noodle Garden and rebranded it as a wonton noodle bar at 23 Pell Street, maintaining a menu of pork wontons and pan-fried noodles, most priced around $10. Earlier, Ivy and Ben Chen opened Munchiez in 2022 in Greenwich Village, channeling Hong Kong convenience stores with items like barbecue pork buns, cheung fun, tea eggs, and grilled skewers til 3 a.m.; they closed it in August, calling it a one-year pop-up on Instagram. The bakery has weathered temporary shutters before (in 2008 and again in October 2016) and, following COVID-era challenges, it later saw an influx of tourists and locals after being discovered on TikTok." - Melissa McCart
"Ask a bunch of random New Yorkers where to find the best pork buns in the city, and more than half of them will say Mei Lai Wah. Is that all hype? No—their pork buns are some of our favorites, too. The baked ones are the best. They’re soft with a golden brown top, and once you break one open, steam will pour out from a hot caramel-y pork blend. Devour them right away at one of the handful of booths, or if a craving strikes later at night, head to their Greenwich Village offshoot called Munchiez. It’s open late." - hannah albertine, carina finn koeppicus, kenny yang
"The baked pork buns at Mei Lai Wah are New York City icons, right up there alongside Rosie Perez and the Wu-Tang Clan. They’re dense and glossy, with a sweet, meaty filling, and you’ll see people walking away with big boxes of them. There’s often a line outside, but don’t worry about that. It moves quickly. If you want to get a few different things, add a flaky pineapple bun to your order." - bryan kim
