Túmén Cháo Kǎo 图门串烤

From the shadows barbecue hawkers come out with their coal grills and boxes of skewers for late night eats. Some places have a stand outside that will do it for you. At Túmén Cháo Kǎo 图门串烤, you can grill your own barbecue yourself. My Shanghainese colleague informs me that Túmén is in the northeast region of China and that the name of the place means "Túmén a lot of barbecue."

The restaurant is small with little ventilation so it is better to get a table in the front room or by the door. This will help from not coming out of the restaurant smelling like barbecue. Each table has its own grill where fresh coals are places along with a few embers and is then covered to heat up to an appropriate temperature. You place the skewers on top of the grill to start cooking. The restaurant gives you cloth napkins practically soley for the use of protecting yourself from the jumping embers and sparks shooting out of the coal grill whilst cooking.

To order, the server hands you a checklist of all the possible varities of meat and veg you can order and you just note how many you want of each. The price is also included on the menu ranging from .5-6rmb per skewer. If you need it, they have an English menu, but each line does not necessarily match the Chinese-only menu to the exact point, so you have to make sure that the characters match. Also, there were a few items on the menu that are not translated. We chose a selection of beef, spicy beef, lamb, lamb on bone, green beans, shiitake mushrooms, enoki mushrooms, chicken hearts, chicken wings, bread, aubergine, peppers, and other random items.


At each table is a shaker of salt, cumin, and a spicy powder, which you can sprinkle on your skewer at the desired stage of cooking. In this case, you have control of the entire cooking process. This, however, may be disastrous if you do not pay attention to your skewers causing them to overcook or burn on one side. After cooking on the grill, you can rest the skewers above the flame to keep warm while cooking other skewers at the same time.

Seeing as there were 6 of us, there was a bit of madness. Not enough skewers cooking fast enough for hungry men and all so little. It is however, a very fun and social way of eating. Plus, there is a steady flow of cheap, cold beer to keep everyone happy.

Túmén Cháo Kǎo 图门串烤. 192 Wanhangdu Lu by Wulumuqi Lu. Shanghai, People's Republic of China

The Original Da Marco

The curiosities of an Italian friend on the authenticity of the Italian cuisine Shanghai has to offer led us to Da Marco. The restaurant had been recommended by several Italian-experienced friends and about every single restaurant guide in Shanghai.

The restaurant is hidden on the ground floor of the Golden Bridge Garden hotel to the back and left of the lobby entrance. When you enter, the scenery becomes very Italian and so Western, it seems that there are little to no Chinese influences in the restaurant. The decor gave a feeling that you were definitely in a Western place. The restaurant space is huge and there were people everywhere, even at 21:00 on a mid-week day. Granted, the majority of the diners were not Chinese or other Asian. Reserving a table in advance was definitely advisable.

I allowed my Italian friend to order for the both of us, as an Italian should know what is good to sample. There was a sense of nostalgia in the selection for food from the home country. We had three antipasti, one pasta, and one pizza. There was a chalkboard with the daily specials, but we just ordered off the menu. They also put a big basket of breads and mini bruschetta in front of us, which my friend reacted to in delight as other Western restaurants here never give you enough bread.


To start, we had the buffalo mozzarella with rocket salad (mozzarella di bufala capana), crispy bread with grilled vegetables and melted cheese (verdure alla griglia con scamorza gratinata su crostone di pane), and a sort of aubergine parmegiana. The mozzarella came on top of the rocket and baby tomato salad as a generous ball. The cheese was soft and slightly salty, but definitely locally made instead of imported. Receving fresh shipments of real mozzarella di bufala would be a costly affair, so this is understandable. The grilled vegetables with cheese was not so special, but at least the vegetables were not too oily. The aubergine was really nice though. Grilled slices of aubergine were stacked with slices of cheese (mozzarella it seemed) and had a sauce made of fresh tomatoes (it did not taste preserved or canned). Overall really tasty. With a glass of red wine, we were already feeling full and the pasta and pizza had not arrived yet.

The gnocchi and pasta came at the same time, which we placed between us. The server was attentive enough to bring us two clean plates and set them down in front of each of us at the same time. Service at Da Marco is definitely at a higher standard than most other establishments that cater to foreigners in Shanghai. A server was present when we needed one and did not infringe on the flow of our meal with constant attention. A great balance.


The pizza was huge. I was not sure how we were goign to finish it. The pizza had layers of aubergine with a layer of cheese on top, which was almost exactly like our antipasti but on a different medium. The crust was crispy, yet still thin and emphasized the toppings. If you peek into the kitchen, you can see the giant brick oven that is used to bake the pizza. The homemade gnocchi was perfectly cooked, rich and tasty. Each bite was soft and the spinach cheese pesto melted in your mouth.

The portions were generous enough that we could have done without either the pizza or the pasta. Next time perhaps we should try the second courses (fish, meats, etc) and forgo the carbohydrate overload. Prices were above average, but that is expected of non-Chinese establishments in Shanghai. The value for the food was totally worth it. The entire meal at Da Marco was simple and tasty. My Italian friend gives it a thumbs up for authenticity, especially considering the availability of some ingredients. Da Marco is definitely the prime pick when seeking out a close to authentic Italian meal in Shanghai.

Da Marco. 1/F, Golden Bridge Garden, 103 Dong Zhu'anbang Lu, near Jiangsu Lu. 东渚安浜路103号1楼, 近江苏路. Shanghai, People's Republic of China

French Crepes at work

Even in a country and city with delicious Chinese food from different regions, special treats from home are often yearned for. At a leaving lunch, crepes were prepared in the office. The actual crepe was prepared the night before and was to be filled with a savory and sweet filling right before lunch.

Typically French, butter was used. A lot of it.The first crepe had mushrooms, ham, emmental cheese, and a fried egg. The mushrooms were probably sauteed in a lot of butter as well. The pan was prepared with a nob of butter melted and coating the entire pan. The crepe was gently placed on top and the filling was carefully distributed in one quarter. After this perfect quarter section of the crepe was covered, the crepe was folded over to cover the quarter. In order for everyone to eat at once, they were placed in the oven to keep warm. ::gasp:: This place had an oven - in China!


The sweet crepe was a classic crepe suzette. As really lovely fresh oranges were not found at the fruit vendors, orange marmalade was used and mixed with a lot of butter. This orange marmalade butter was melted in the pan in large portions. About 3/4 cup first. Then pre-folded crepes were placed in the pan in quarters and more of the orange marmalade butter was melted on top, about another 1/2 cup. Midway through the cooking, the crepes were unfolded and refolded to soak up more of this melted buttery mixture. The Cointreau was prepared in a second pot, simmering to reduce. After part of the reduction, a flame was held against the fumes to burn off the remaining alcohol and also provide a show as well as the possibility of burning the kitchen. The Cointrieau was then poured on top of the crepes bubbling in the pan. These were definitely more decadent in taste from the buttery richness and tartness from the orange flavors.


It was nice to have something decidedly French in a palate primarily taken over by Chinese food as of late. All were left full and unable to move. Just don't think about the amount of butter used.

Sorry, no recipes available.

Bellagio for Taiwanese Shaved Ice

A bunch of friends tell me about the glorious food a Momofuku in NYC. Then CNNGo comes out with this article about David Chang preferring to go to Bellagio for late-night dining in Shanghai. I must try it.

The location on Xikang Road had mostly foreigner clientele and plenty of female servers running around with crew cut hair. Although it was already late in the evening, people were still ordering dinner items. Not wanting anything too heavy, my companion and I ordered shaved ice and dumplings.


My passion fruit shaved ice came out first. It was huge! On top there was a small spoonful of passion fruit seeds. The shaved ice was smooth and the passion fruit flavor did not taste artificial. It was a little on the tart side, perhaps for the lack of quality and ripe fruit reaching Shanghai. It was refreshing though.


My companion ordered the strawberry one, except the ice was blended with condensed milk so the flavor was more of a sherbert (less creamy than ice cream, but more creamy than sorbet) and sliced strawberries decorated this mountain of a dessert. It was also very tasty. We ended up alternating the sweet with the salty when our dumplings finally came out accompanied by soy sauce, vinegar, and spicy pepper sauce. The dumpling skin was a little thick, but the filling was lovely not being too greasy.

Bellagio is much better for dessert than an actual meal. The minimalist fashion interior and super clean presentation of the servers may equate to you paying more for the ambiance than actual food. The desserts, however, are spot on. The menu for is quite extensive and the varieties of shaved ice are enough to keep you cool during the unbearable Shanghai heat of summer. I must go back and try the peanut shaved ice.

Bellagio. 111 Xikang Lu, near Tongren Lu. 西康路111号, 近铜仁路, 地铁2号线静安寺站 Shangahi, China

Sichuan Citizen

Been curious about this swankily decorated restaurant on Donghu Lu with its red lanterns and wooden accents. Plus, expats have gave it a lot of hype maybe because its sister is Citizen Cafe and they also serve lovely drinks.

Being only two people at the dinner, the variety of dishes to try was limited. Might as well stick to the standard favorites. We ordered the tea smoked duck, mapo dofu, fish fragrant aubergine, and spicy bullfrog.


It took a short wait for the food to come out, the first being the tea smoked duck. The duck was not too fatty and the smoked process gave it a nice flavor. It was served warm to room-temperature. The duck was nothing extraordinary and it would have been nice if the duck skin had a bit of crispness to it.


All at once came the bullfrog, mapo dofu, and yuxiang qiezi. The portions were quite large for two people to share. The tofu in the mapo dofu was slightly hard and not as tender as expected, but still spicy enough. The bullfrog came in a huge bowl of oil and floated around a mess of greens hidden in the depths of the bowl. It was also the same spiciness as the tofu and served really hot. The cuts of bullfrog were large and generous. As for the aubergine, upon the first bite, it strangely had a buttery taste to it. The skin of the aubergine was also slightly tough.

Overall, I would say that Sichuan Citizen is more for the ambiance (or drinks) than the the cuisine. Dishes are slightly more expensive than if you went to a standard Sichuan restaurant. When choosing between Xin Xiang Hui and Sichuan Citizen, always go for the first unless the wait is excruciatingly long down the street.

Sichuan Citizen. 30 Donghu Lu, near Huaihai Zhong Lu. 东湖路30号, 近淮海中路. Shanghai, China