The starters had the most international flair out of all the sections on the menu. However, its size and portion were not very impressive, especially compared to the price. The Satay Chicken (60RMB) made from char-grilled chicken breast marinated in spicy peanut, chilli, and coconut sauce was tender and moist with a hint of sweet flavor. The lovely marinated taste was reflected in its equally appealing yellow color. The Chargrilled Lemon Honey Tiger Prawns (85RMB) marinated in special honey marinade was the most disappointing out of all the starters. The prawns were not even tiger prawns! Maybe the kitchen ran out of tiger prawns and neglected to tell its patrons that the tiger prawn species would be substituted for another that evening? Who knows. The grand opening should at least see real tiger prawns. The marinade on the prawns was good, but the prawns were a tad dry as if left on the grill for a few seconds too long. The Duck Confit Samosas (65RMB), a trio of spiced duck samosas served with apple ginger chutney, were also very flavorful and moist. The accompanying apple ginger chutney added a soft and sweet bite to the spiced duck. The wrapper was a bit limp and could have been a touch crispier though. The Chilli and Corriander Calamari (65RMB) lightly-dusted and pan-fried with fresh chilli, garlic, corriander, and soy sauce served with lime and sweet chilli sauce was of average quality. The calamari came out hot and only featured rings cut from the mantle. The dish would have been more interesting if the tentacles were also used. A good squeeze of lemon made the calamari that much better. The Crab Croquettes (70RMB) was made from hand-picked crab meat mixed with freshly chopped herbs, onions, garlic, chilli, and creamy potato accompanied with lime and sweet chilli sauce. It easily could have been the best starter from the meal as the bulk of the croquette was crab meat instead of filler. The onions, galric, chilli, and potato in the croquette were not overpowering the main feature of the dish - the crab meat.
The mains were significantly better in terms of price compared to size and quality. The selection leaned more toward an American menu with a few popular English choices such as the curries. The half slab of Hickory BBQ Baby Back Ribs (145RMB) is slow-cooked in a hickory oak burning smoke pit and finished on the chargrill before getting smothered with homemade bbq sauce. The ribs were actually full-sized pork ribs and was a massive portion. The meat was incredibly tender and slipped easily off the bone. There was great caramelization on the meat underneath that sweet barbecue sauce. Like most of the mains, it was served with hand-cut steak chips, battered onion rings, roasted cherry tomatoes, chargrilled mushrooms, and crisp mixed leaves. With the size of the mains, the steak chips and onion rings were almost unnecessary filler. The texture and taste of the mushrooms was more marinated than grilled. Half of these sides (the mushrooms and juicy cherry tomatoes) almost did give me the impression of an English breakfast. One diner was disappointed with the size of the Chargrilled Honey and Coriander whole Sea Bass (180RMB) marinated in coriander, cumin, ginger, Manuka honey, and fresh chillies. The fish was small, but tasty, especially with the marinade creating a barely there crust on the skin of the fish. The beef fillet (238RMB) raised some eyebrows because it did not taste like a solid beef cut, but rather marinated in soy sauce (manuka honey marinade), which masked the flavor of the beef. Also disappointing was the London-Style Chicken Tikka Curry (110RMB) with tender chicken pieces in tikka sauce flavored with fresh garlic, cardamom, coriander and fresh chilli. The curry was put in a bread bowl and served as a platter with poppadoms, kal cucumber, toasted coconut, and apple ginger chutney. There were too many grain products to go with the curry so you were getting more full from the papadoms and bread than the actual curry. The Parma Ham Pizza (115RMB) had tomato, torn buffalo mozzarella, olives, and marinated mushrooms slow-roasted in garlic and herb oil finished with slices of Parma ham, fresh rocket leaves, and a drizzle of extra-virgin olive oil. The crust of the pizza is thin, crispy and oval-shaped barely fitting the board it came on (with accompanying pizza cutter for a more hands-on experience). The marinated mushrooms were the same as the ones served as sides on the grilled mains and fell off the thin slices too easily. The Parma ham and rocket was abundant in every bite. When glo London rolls out its pizza delivery service, this would be something to look forward to. After all these mains, our party of five was absolutely stuffed.
And then came out the desserts. With all the food from the first two courses, it was a surprise there was any room for dessert at all. The Jam Roly-Poly (50RMB) is labeled as "an old-time favorite" traditionally hand-rolled sponge cake smothered in raspberry jam and covered in custard. The custard really came in a gravy boat instead of covering the layered sponge cake. It was light, the sponge cake a tad dry, and the jam flavor barely there. The Hot Chocolate Brownie (60RMB) referred to as the "ultimate pudding for chocolate lovers with a fudgy texture" and chocolate chip topping served with honeycomb ice cream and fresh whipped cream was more a dry cake than brownie. The brownie fell apart for the lack of any fudgy texture to hold it together. The chocolate flavor was actually more on the bittersweet side than too sweet, but the consistency of the brownie destroyed the whole dessert. More familiar to an English dessert palate is the Bread and Butter Pudding (50RMB) mae from baked bread pudding with raisins (none of which were present), nutmeg, and vanilla pod served warm covered with strawberry jam and custard. The bread pudding was dense and too dry as if the moist quality of a good bread pudding would soak into the bread by the custard alone. It was not. The bread pudding was baked to a golden brown and the light custard could barely hold on to its gleaming surface.
Everyone was left with stomachs bursting from all the food that was shared and consumed. Overall, the food came in large portions (aside from the starters) and was incredibly filling. The mains from the grill and especially the pizzas are better choices for eats. The drinks were plentiful as well and ranged around 60RMB, which is average for its location in the former French Concession. While being a London-based chain, the majority of the menu was more reminiscent of an American casual restaurant and respected its serving size as well. The glo London Gastro Grill brought over more the chic atmosphere infiltrating the Square Mile's modern bar scene than a gastropub ideal with more English favorites. A return visit is likely in the future to sample the brunch and Sunday roast. The simple and clean interiors of glo London with its wide dining selection would definitely attract the roving expat in Shanghai.
glo London. 1 Wulumuqi Lu (by Dongping lu) / 乌鲁木齐路1号 (近东平路), Shanghai 200031, China. Tel: +86 21 6466 6565. glolondon.com
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