By Natalie Anderson
Staff Reporter
The Irritable Bao opened its brand new storefront location in downtown Auburn last Friday with a soft opening featuring buffalo chicken dip bao, a spicy and sweet chicken box, chinese street brussels, iced passion fruit tea and more. Whitley Dykes and his wife Kunyu Li first began their business with their food truck, “Dumps Like A Truck,” that focused on overseas donations by giving a portion of the profits and cash tips. After four months of having their food truck, the couple opened their first storefront space near the Goal Post.
With that storefront location closed since the end of April, followers of the restaurant have been eagerly waiting for their favorite meals and to see the new location that is conveniently located near Auburn’s main campus.
“We have designed our new space with promoting community and forging friendships at the heart of it all, so when you walk in you will see a community lounge area and two 10-seat community tables, along with a variety of other seating options, (with) about 40 seats in total,” said Dykes.
“This summer, we will carry over our abbreviated hours from the old storefront and will continue with occasional dumpling pop ups and new late-night window options.”
The storefront and restaurant will hold its official grand opening during the fall when the students arrive back to the Auburn-Opelika area.
“Paying attention to our moves on Instagram or Facebook during the summer is crucial to staying in the know on things,” added Dykes. “For example, you will never know what the menu is for the day or if we are doing special pop ups unless you check in, and we don’t want you to miss out.”
For more information on The Irritable Bao, follow them on Instagram @dumpslikeatruck_irritablebao for hours, updates and daily menu specials.