Phat in Shanghai

February, 2010

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25
Feb 10

Phat in Shanghai: Chiang Mai

Wow we had some really fantastic weather this week. I think I even saw blue skies on Monday! I took full advantage of it and rode my bike over to Chiang Mai, where we sat outside for lunch. It’s definitely been awhile since I’ve dined outdoors, so it was a lovely treat in the middle of February.

chiang mai shanghai shrimp cakes
Shrimp cakes, $45RMB. I never had these in the states and tried them for the first time in Thailand – instantly hooked! Super crunchy exterior.

chiang mai shanghai curry fried rice
Chiang Mai offers a reasonably priced (around $30RMB) lunch set that includes items like pad see ew, pad thai, basil chicken, etc. My dining companion ordered the curry fried rice, which came with pork floss and pineapple chunks. Tasty.

chiang mai shanghai pad thai
My pad thai was pretty good. I liked the sugar, chili, and peanuts on the side, and that they used chicken thigh instead of breast, which can be very very dry.

chiang mai shanghai black rice
The lunch set also included soup and dessert – black rice with coconut milk. Yum!

Chiang Mai has an extensive menu that includes things like whole fish in tamarind sauce.. your best bet is to stick to the classics, like pad thai or basil-anything. The Tom Yum is worth a try, its perfectly spicy and sour. My favorite on the menu is the pandan-wrapped chicken, its super juicy and delicious.

Enjoy!

Chiang Mai
1019 Kangding Lu at Yanping Lu
康定路1019号近延平路
+86 21 5228-1588

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25
Feb 10

Phat in Shanghai: Franck.. Pt II

I have to sadly say that the worst dining experience of my life was had at Franck, the french brasserie in Ferguson Lane. Now, the food was fucking fantastic – but the service was spit-in-your-face awful. As I left Franck that first time, I swore to myself I would never again patronize this establishment. But then I remembered that perfectly cooked, juicy, ridiculously delicious steak and realized its probably the best in Shanghai and goddammit… I would be back.

STEAK > Principles, every time.

And that’s how I once again found myself face to face with the server from hell… who was quite cordial and actually remembered us. But unfortunately we were not seated in our good friend’s serving area – so naturally the service was impeccable.

charcuterie franck shanghai
Sorry for the poor photo, its dark in there. We started the night with a downsized portion of the grande charcuterie, an amazing spread of foie gras, a terrine de campagne, an onion chutney, and a variety of meats. Delicious. The foie gras was probably the best I’ve ever had – light and airy, with a rich, buttery texture. I would love to come back for just the charcuterie and a glass of wine.

The steak was fabulous as usual. You can read about Franck’s steak in my previous post, here.

Enjoy!

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Franck
Ferguson Lane
376 Wukang Lu at Hunan Lu
+86 158 2167 6767

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25
Feb 10

Phat in Shanghai: Cha’s

Cha’s is a cute spot – if you haven’t been, you should go, preferably not during rush times since its pretty packed. The service is shit, but the food is good (most of the time). It’s done up like an old 50’s style cha chaan teng and serves a mean milk tea.

I love/am borderline obsessed with cha chaan teng food, and on this particular day I was especially in the mood for beef tendon noodles and ngo gun ho fun (greasy, soy saucy wide rice noodles pan fried with beef, yellow garlic chives, and bean sprouts).

cha's beef noodles shanghai
They didn’t have beef tendon on their menu, so I ordered ho fun with five-spice beef in soup. This was close, but no cigar. The broth was tasty, but the beef was tough and stringy – the rice noodles were chopped up and falling apart in the soup. Gah. Face to palm.

Cha's daikon cakes shanghai
We also ordered these fried turnip cakes, which had great flavor but were heavily battered. I did order the greasy beef noodle I was going on and on about, but forgot to photograph it – it was very tasty but only came with 2 meager slices of beef and no yellow garlic chive. Semi-fail.

fried eggplant cha's shanghai
This was crispy fried eggplant – tasty, but not a lot of eggplant.

I usually like Cha’s a lot, but on this particular day, I was really in the mood to taste my favorite dishes.. and the ones Cha’s was serving up just didn’t fit the bill.

cha's banana split - shanghai
And to end this post sweetly… Cha’s banana split! Yummy.. now if only it didnt take f#@$ing forever to deliver to our table..

Cha’s
30 Sinan Lu near Huaihai Zhong Lu
思南路30号近淮海中路
+86 21 6093 2062

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25
Feb 10

Phat in Shanghai: Rendezvous

I can’t believe once upon a time, the delicious chili-coconut broth of laksa had never touched my tongue. Because now, it pretty much rules my life. I’m obsessed with the laksa from Orchard and was very interested in trying it at some of the other joints around town. So with a Singaporean in tow, I headed for Rendezvous for a laksa fix.

oyster omelette shanghai rendezvous
We shared the oyster omelette, which was very good. The egg was nice and fluffy and studded with little oysters. I like it with plenty of belacan-laced chili.

rendezvous shanghai laksa
The main event! I was so excited when this dish arrived, but very confused the moment I dipped my chopsticks into the soup. The laksa had so much coconut milk it in, the noodles were basically sitting in a coconut cream! I couldn’t taste anything except coconut and the entire dish was very hard to eat. Super duper fail, Rendezvous!

In my disappointment, I forgot to photograph the other dishes we ordered. We shared beef and chicken satay, which was delicious. The chicken is a better choice, its juicier and easier to remove from the skewer. We also had an order of very bland, lifeless mee goreng noodles, and chai tow kway, or fried daikon cake with egg. We had the dark version, which is cooked with sweet soy sauce. It was pretty good.

Probably won’t be going back to Rendezvous any time soon, but I look forward to trying out other Singaporean spots in Shanghai! Laksa 4 Lyfe!

Enjoy!

Rendezvous
1486 Nanjing Road at Tongren Lu
南京西路1486号,近铜仁路
Kerry Centre, Unit 107
+86 21 5298-6126

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21
Feb 10

Phat in Shanghai: French Toast

Today was a really beautiful Shanghai Sunday – gorgeous clear skies and warm weather just as our CNY holiday comes to an end and we head back to work.. what a tease. I had a few slices of Queen Bread from Japanese chain, Yamazaki Bakery, and knew exactly what to do with it..

With some fruit from Wulumuqi Lu’s fruit vendors and maple syrup from recently-renovated, local laowai grocer – Pines, I whipped up some damn good french toast for breakfast. I love Yamazaki’s Queen Bread for this because the thick brioche-like slices are perfect for soaking up french toast batter. A bit of freshly-grated cinnamon over the top made this a kick ass breakfast. Excuse me if I toot my own horn, my last attempt at French Toast was an epic, eggy FAIL.

PS – The new Pines is looking awesome – a huge wine section, more fresh meats (though still questionable at times), and international items like bak kut teh mix and laksa spices! Time to make my own…

Enjoy!

Yamazaki (inside Fresh Mart) – 山崎面包 (久光店)
1618 Nanjing Zhong Lu near Jingan Temple, Basement
南京中路1618号, 静安寺广场

Pines The Market Place
322 Anfu Lu at Wukang Lu
安福路322号近武康路
+86 6437-6375
www.chiro.com.cn

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21
Feb 10

Phat in Shanghai: Sakura Do Cafe

I love Japanese cafe culture, and we are lucky to have some cute cafes in Shanghai. One of them is Sakura Do on Xinle Lu. It’s a lovely little spot with a really homey vibe and magazines to peruse. Upstairs there a plenty of plushy couches to lounge around and soak up the free wifi on. I came here with my friend Ilene who was visiting from LA/NYC. She makes great murals/paintings/art and you should check out her stuff! Sakura Do is great for light Japanese desserts and coffee, and they also have a menu of lunch items that include Japanese staples (curry rice, omu rice) and Western pasta dishes.

Ilene went for the omu rice. It was tasty as you can see from the white spaces on her plate.

sakura do carbonara shanghai
I had the carbonara ($40RMB). It was pretty good, with lots of onion in a creamy white sauce – not a true carbonara but certainly a tasty Asian rendition of it. I liked the small dish of cold appetizers that came with the meal.

sakura do green tea latte shanghai
Sakura Do’s green tea milk tea. Green tea is really lovely because it lends such a subtle and gorgeous flavor to whatever it touches. Get this piping hot so you don’t swallow it all in one gulp.

hot pancake sakura do shanghai
Of course we had room for dessert…. I had the hot pancake plate ($38RMB). A trio of pancakes came with a sweet and chunky red bean paste and a scoop of vanilla ice cream.

green tea ice cream set sakura do shanghai
Ilene had this green tea ice cream set, which came with the red bean paste, syrup, and some chewy dango rice balls.

Enjoy!

$$$
Sakura Do Cafe – 樱花堂
142 Xinle Lu at Xiangyang Lu
新乐路142号近襄阳路
+86 5404-1683

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21
Feb 10

Phat in Shanghai: Shanghai Aquarium

Soo… I guess this isn’t exactly a food post.. or it depends how you look at it *side eye*… but I recently visited the Shanghai Aquarium and loved it. They have lots of great stuff in there.. seahorses, lionfish, gators! Just be prepared for some really obnoxious crowds. Personal space, anyone??

shanghai aquarium
jellyfish shanghai aquarium

Enjoy!

Shanghai Ocean Aquarium Park – 上海海洋水族馆
158 Yincheng Bei Lu at Lujiazui Huan Lu, Pudong
银城北路158号近陆家嘴环路
+86 21 5877 9988
www.sh-aquarium.com
$135RMB Adult Entrance