Juk Pou is London’s first congee and youtiao street food concept which can be found in global food hall Design District Canteen on Greenwich Peninsula. Founded by Shiqi Liu and Stan Yang who both have a shared passion for street food, the pair have taken inspiration from their childhood to recreate authentic dishes around these two Chinese staples.
First up: Youtiao, which are a type of Chinese deep-fried breadstick and widely eaten across China. While congee, which is perhaps a little more well known in the UK, is a creamy porridge made from rice and water or both, that's slow-cooked for hours over a low heat until the rice disintegrates and becomes comfortingly starchy. Congee can be sweet or savoury, but tasty toppings on offer at Juk Pou include pork and vegetable, chicken and mushroom and prawn and sweetcorn, while a unique sweet option includes multi grain and black sesame milk.
Alongside various combinations of congee and youtiao, guests can find plenty more rice and noodle bowls of pork, honey BBQ chicken and Yuxiang tofu. While sides feature a soy egg, roasted peanuts and pickled radish.
To drink, look out for bubble red bean milk tea, red bean milk tea and traditional Hong Kong style milk tea. Juk Pou works closely with their producers, sourcing all their meats direct from UK-based farms and butchers.
Before launching Juk Pou, both Shiqi and Stan were immersed in the world of food. Shiqi was running a foodie channel, Xiaohongshu, described as China’s answer to Instagram, while Stan travelled to more than 25 countries in his quest to discover global street food.
Design District Canteen houses imaginative food vendors from all over the world, from Malaysia to Mexico. It also offers a fully-stocked bar including craft beers, natural wines, spirits and specially crafted cocktails.