Crayfish Boil at The Public [Shanghai]

On Shouning Road in Shanghai, mountains of shells litter the streets as people come out in flocks during warm weather to enjoy the crayfish or 小龙虾 xiǎolóngxiā by the kilo. It is one delicious mess that even disposable plastic gloves cannot stop.

The Public is jumping on this warm weather treat by offering Wednesday night crayfish boils. 180RMB gets you 2kg of crayfish and the equivalent of one corn on the cob (cut into 4 pieces), 1-2 sausages cut into medallions, and a sprinkling of new potatoes. Butcher paper is laid out and it all comes out together on one big platter along with lemon water and wipes for cleaning. The source of the crayfish is unknown and very, very small. The corn was not the freshest with its deflated kernels and the sausage was so dry and chewy. The potatoes seemed to be the only item in this boil that was cooked properly. It was not overly impressive and not worth the trip for 180RMB since the boil did not include any other sides or beverages. It just makes you nostalgic for the trips to Shouning Lu with the beer you brought, fresh corn on the cob, and other barbecued vegetables. The crayfish boil at the Public is a bad deal, especially considering there are other establishments in Shanghai that specialize in xiǎolóngxiā for at least half the price. Well, unless you like to dish out for modern atmosphere.

Stick to the Public's fried chicken offered on Sunday and Monday nights. A half-chicken, 2 biscuits, a dollop of mashed potatoes, and a dollop of slaw is only 125RMB.

The Public. Sinan Mansions Bldg 2, 4/F, Lane 507 Fuxing Zhong Lu (复兴中路507弄思南公馆2号楼4楼)

McFlurry International - China 2 Part II

Yes! The "blackberry jam flavor" McDonald's McFlurry sampled in Harbin is back on the McDonald's China menu in Shanghai. My Chinese character recognition improved significantly at this point. Please allow me to correct that entry in that this 麦旋风 (mài xuànfēng) is in fact 黑加仑 (hēijiālún) or black currant. The price has gone up from 10RMB to 11RMB since last year.

The servers pulled down the lever and filled the cup with soft-serve and topped it with what looked like black currant puree or syrup and crushed Oreo cookies. All this went in the special McFlurry machine and mixed with the McFlurry spoon. The server must be well-trained because the ice cream was completely mixed with the fruit sauce, as shown by a fairly even color. The resulting mix filled at most 2/3 of the cup, but it was still more like halfway full, which is a tease considering it is obvious how full the cup could be. The Oreo provided nice texture, though it would be nice if there were some larger chunks in it. The black currant flavor also was good and refreshing, though reminiscent of the really good berry or grape candies you would get as a child (not grape Bubbleicious).

Now Open: CaliBurger ie "The Fake In N Out"

CaliBurger finally opened its doors near the end of Chinese New Year holidays in late January. All is right in the CaliBurger world post-settlement with In N Out with new signage, menu names, and revamped interior.

I am not sure who picked that brown color scheme for the dining area, but the original mockup on the CaliBurger website had shown a black and white scheme. It is now this unappetizing light brown reminiscent of a chocolate shake. The rendering is now updated on the CaliBurger website. The art in the wall alludes to the vibrancy of California. The speakers blared current hits, a welcomed change from Celine Dion.

The number of staff running the place is considerable. They are everywhere. One opens the door for you; one escorts you to the counter; a couple people take your order; and a kitchen team whips it up in viewing distance. The menu is still basic and kept to a minimum, which is characteristic of the In N Out menu. "Off-menu" requests are also granted like a mustard patty, whole grilled onions, and extra-crispy fries.

Staff ready and awaiting command to serve / Menu display
Not only is CaliBurger a fast-food restaurant, they also do table service. Instead of waiting by the counter for your order, you are given a number and a team member will deliver your cardboard box of food. Better yet, they tout table service for wine. The wine is imported from California and sells at 44RMB for a glass or 132RMB for a bottle. The label looks like Clint Eastwood, but Roy Newman claims it is an image of himself. To be honest, I did not see the resemblance (see for yourself). Edward, one of the CaliBurger team members, came over to the table with a white cloth napkin draped on his arm to uncork the wine and pour it into real wine glasses. He was very polite offering a tasting immediately after the uncorking before serving the rest of our table. This is fancy. You are at a fast-food joint and wine is being poured at your table with a white cloth napkin to clean up spills and breakable glasses. It makes me wonder a takeaway glass of wine is packaged. Loving this perk.

Roy Newman California Red Wine / Table service for wine by Edward
The "Wild Style" fries (38RMB) had melted American cheese, chopped grilled onions, and special sauce on top. Others who were better versed on the original "Animal Style" fries said that these were pretty good. CaliBurger does claim that their fries are always fresh, but we were informed that they were currently using a "high-quality" frozen fry. "Frozen" does not necessarily translate to "fresh," though "freshly frozen" or "frozen fresh" may ensure some bit of quality. In any case, the textures did not impart any qualities that freshly cut potatoes do. The sourcing team is waiting until spring for this year's crop of potatoes to see if they will match standards. So in the meantime, if you are thinking you are getting a freshly cut fry, do not be fooled. On top of that, Australian beef is still being used.

Set meals will soon be added to the menu as follows: Meal A = Hamburger + French Fries + Soda = 35RMB (a savings of 23RMB); Meal B = Cheeseburger + French Fries + Soda = 40RMB; Meal C = CaliDouble + French Fries + Soda = 55RMB. Now that is 5RMB extra for a bit of cheese or 15RMB for an extra burger patty with cheese. But Wild Style fries are 38RMB, so that may tack on another 20RMB to your meal set. Check out the set menu here.

There are still people skeptical if CaliBurger could even live up to the fraction of the greatness that is In N Out, which it is attempting to pay homage to. The only true test is the taste test, which is already subjective, but even then comparisons to those using California-grown produce would be difficult to make.

CaliBurger. 98 Yanping Lu (near Xinzha Lu), 新闸路98号(近新闸路), Shanghai, China. Caliburger.Asia

First Look: CaliBurger ie "The Fake In N Out"

Gasps of amazement and horror rippled through Shanghai amongst those familiar with the California burger joint, In N Out. CaliBurger is opening a 山寨 shānzhài (refers to Chinese imitation and pirated brands and goods) store in front of the cheap compound popular amongst expats, SanHe HuaYuan 三和花园. It was set to open on Friday, December 9, 2011, as reported on various Shanghai lifestyle websites. CaliBurger apparently had a media night on the eve of its opening as well as to introduce the three finalists of the CaliBurger Girl Contest. Passerbys that the couple weeks up to this date reported that the burners were on and vigorous testing was being done as the kitchen ventilators emptied out street-side.

I am there at 12:30 on Friday, December 9, 2011. I wanted to see what they were about and how CaliBurger was at its attempt to ape the beloved In N Out. The CaliBurger sign does not hang outside, aside from the wires that will be used to power it. There are two people standing at the door to greet me as I walk in. Roy Newman, self-proclaimed wine distributor first and investor second, and Jon, the Californian beach-blonde guy doing business development, basically stared at me when I entered. The place was void of customers not to mention a menu.

"Hi, how can we help you?" Inquisitive stares. Awkward silence.
"Online it says you are supposed to be open today."
"We are not open." More staring.
"Then why does it say online that you are supposed to be open today? I have friends already on their way."
"A lot of friends? Um...what can we do?" They look at each other.
"Are you from California?"
"Would you like a sample?"
"Yes." Free food!

I take a seat in the booth behind me and wait for my friends. Roy Newman takes the time to sit and talk. He is excited that an actual Californian in Shanghai would visit CaliBurger. We know that CaliBurger had bought the rights to use signature trademarks of In N Out in China, Russia, Hong Kong, and Australia, among other places as In N Out had failed to secure this previously. There were some legal issues with In N Out that even went so far as to provoke an In N Out popup for the purposes of "soft market research." I am informed that CaliBurger has come to an amicable agreement with In N Out only the day before that basically "gives [CaliBurger] well-wishes on the international venture." Since this agreement, the menu items known as "Double Double," "Animal Style," and "Protein Style" are now referred to as "CaliDouble," "Wild Style," and "Garden Style," respectively. CaliBurger did not want to copy In N Out, but merely pay homage and spread its greatness abroad.

The menu was limited that day as only burgers were available and they have not yet found a suitable supplier for potatoes. We ordered from our table a cheeseburger with whole grilled onions and no pickles and a couple CaliDoubles Wile Style. We did not have to go to the counter to pick up our order since CaliBurger decided that diners will have the option to order from their table.

CaliBurger Cheeseburger and midway through its consumption
Now on to the actual burgers. They arrived in a box and wrapped in a branded hamburger sleeve. They did not go so far as to copy the hidden Bible verses on select In N Out packaging. The cheeseburger arrived with whole grilled onions and pickles "Wild Style," which was a fail since the girl who took the order was clearly fluent in English. Not wanting to make a fuss, the pickles were picked out. The CaliDouble looked really good and it smelled great. The burger was pretty solid for that price point (28RMB for a burger, 33RMB for a cheeseburger, 48RMB for a CaliDouble). It was of appropriate size and had great texture: crunch from the lettuce, softness of the bun, girth of savory meat, sweet grilled onion, juicy tomato, gooey cheese and soft zing from the sauce. Breaking the burger down to its individual components was a slightly different story. The buns are made locally and were toasted on the inside so the bun never got soggy, but I swear the In N Out buns were lighter and spongier. Few produce can compare to what you can get in California. The lettuce may not be as green, but it was crisp the whole way through and not browning. You cannot expect to get a decent tomato in Shanghai, especially asking a winter tomato in Shanghai to meet Californian standards. The American cheese melted the way through and did not have that over-processed gag-inducing flavor that is commonly found in Chinese-made American sandwich singles. The burger patty was dry. There was not indication if the patty was pressed whilst cooking (Roy was not aware of the cooking methods used). Luckily, the cheese and sauce were able to cover that fact up. CaliBurger was thinking of importing beef from the States, which is illegal, but sourced Australian beef instead. They claimed that Chinese beef is not up to their standards. However, this does not take into consideration the CaliBurger motto of "Always Fresh." Putting together different cuts to create a great burger is a bit of an art, so perhaps they should consider further testing of different combinations of Chinese beef cuts.

Vanilla Spiked Shake and CaliBurger branded wine
Newman claimed to be a wine guy first and an investor second. He brings out and offers us a bottle of CaliBurger-branded Californian red wine that they will be offering. The wine was chosen to compliment the burgers and is not very heavy. Then we are offered a cup of their spiked shakes (28RMB), which is the standard milkshake spiked with bourbon. The vanilla Spiked Shake was pretty tasty and the bourbon flavor was clear. The milkshake could have been thicker. There is still discussion on what the final bourbon source will be, but Jim Beam was mentioned. After the wine and the Spiked Shake as well as the convenience store beer we brought since drinks were not available, this lunch chat was getting tipsy. You can call it either a way to win us over or to blur newly made memories. Still thinking about that vanilla Spiked Shake...

Let's say the visit was during its "soft-opening" (they had planned the real opening for 9th December after the media tasting the night before) so CaliBurger still has time to work out the kinks for its January 2012 opening. Though, this is not a particularly opportune time with the Christmas holiday season just ending and Chinese New Year being the last week in January. Roy Newman and his team were eager to listen to criticisms and suggestions for improvement, so here is to CaliBurger being able to produce a solid product and maintain oversight to ensure standards after turning it over to a local team. Or so you would hope.

CaliBurger. 98 Yanping Lu (by Xinzha Lu), Shanghai, China. 中国上海市静安区延平路98号 (近新闸路). CaliBurger.Asia

Salute

If you are of the persuasion that a great neighborhood includes a cozy, homey wine bar with cheap bottles and nibbles, Salute is your Italian spot in Shanghai. House wines (imported) start at 130-160RMB per bottle.

Salute has a small retail store and display case for cured meats, cheeses, and other antipasti. You can buy bottles and meats, cheeses, and other cold items cut to order to have at home or enjoy it right there. The dining menu is written on a small chalkboard featuring simple Italian fare. For seating options, there is the outdoor patio, covered patio, or the few small tables in the store. All the furniture are dark, rustic wood pieces. There are even blankets available if you feel chilled from sitting outside. A couple air-conditioner / heater units are fixed where there is space, but there were also a couple portable heating units that could be rolled adjacent to the table.

The service seems a bit short-staffed or still in training. After being seated and asking for glasses of water, the water jug never came until the server was asked again. The wine bottles came, but without wine glasses. The server went to help another table first, leaving a bottle of wine sitting in front of anxious patrons. However, the food came out quickly after it was ordered and the plates were distributed evenly between the diners.


The salad plates were generous. The caprese (58RMB) had large, thick tomato slices accompanied with generous medallions of fresh mozzarella. The cucumber and tomato salad (35RMB) was also large. However, a sprinkling of dried basil was used in both instances as if hoping to impart the essence of basil. No one is really sure what could be accomplished with dried basil, except for a few mao. There was also a green salad, the bulk of which was an artfully arranged bed of lettuce leaves and tomatoes, but it was nothing more than that.


The antipasti special platter had preserved ham in oil, green olives stuffed with anchovies, black olives, cauliflower in vinegar, and cold aubergine. The vegetables provided a sharp, acidic tang to the salty meats. The charcuterie plate (68RMB or 98RMB for large) had several slices of cured ham, salami, and mortadella. The prosciutto is cut on-site, though the slices were not as thin as the ones cut at City'Super. The cheese plate (58RMB or 88RMB for large) had four cheeses: parmesan, cheddar, bleu cheese, and emmental. The blue cheese was soft and moist, looking like it was cut from a round. Its color was mostly creamy beige with some darkened areas from the mold. Out of the four, the aged parmesan and bleu cheese were the clear winners for quality. The emmental or the cow-milk cheese that it was most similar to was flavorless against the other three it came with. The bright orange cheddar cheese sticks tasted and looked cut straight from the Land O'Lakes block. The bread did not come out until after everything was served, so the meats, cheeses, and antipasti did not get to see the bit of bread it was asking for. The panini was made with prosciutto and salami and pressed in a proper panini grill that left wonderful grill marks and a lightly caramelized exterior from being brushed with olive oil. It was an even balance of bread, meat, and gooey cheese and worth throwing 50RMB down for.


It is already a bad sign when the strawberry sauce accompanying the cheesecake tastes like cheap store-bought, watered-down jam. The cheesecake was bland and lacked the rich and cheesy quality known of cream cheese. The tiramisu was was made up of layers of thin, spongy cake and flavorless cream constructed in a square of perfection. Not a single ladyfinger broke up the monotony of the precise lines. Salute exudes a cozy, comfortable, at-home ambiance, but these desserts do not reflect that in the least.

For 11 people on a Sunday night, 1340RMB covered 2 bottles of house red, 2 caprese salads, 2 salads of tomato and cucumber, 2 green salads, 1 platter of special preserved items, 3 charcuterie plates, 2 cheese plates, 3 panini, 2 tiramisu, and 1 cheesecake.

Salute, at the moment, is better suited for drinking wine at than for a meal, unless too much wine requires some bit of food to absorb the alcohol. The ambiance is comfortable and would make a place to spend a lazy night. So yes, Salute could be your neighborhood wine bar.


Salute. 59 Fuxing Xi Lu, by Yongfu Lu (复兴西路59号,近永福路), Shanghai, China. Tel: 3461 9828

McFlurry International - China 5

In China, you can call 4008-517517 and get your fix of McDonald's delivered to your door, someone else's door, or a street corner at 04:00am. Even better, avoid talking to anyone and order online in Chinese and English at 4008-517-517.cn with only a 7RMB delivery charge.

Màidāngláo (麦当劳) has a new McFlurry (麦旋风, mài xuànfēng) flavor and it is the Tiramisu McFlurry (提拉米苏麦旋风 Tílāmǐsū MàiXuànfēng) for only 10RMB. Crumbled Oreo cookies are mixed in the classic vanilla soft-serve with a thick coffee syrup swirl. At the standing McDonald's locations, you would be lucky if your McFlurry cup is filled to the halfway point, but when ordering for home delivery, the cup is almost full. The actual flavor did not fulfill its potential and could have benefited from using a vanilla cookie instead of a chocolate-based one to better capture the essence of tiramisu. This flavor combination would have been better suited for a "mocha" concept.

Here is a fun fact about the McDonald's hotline. The phone number uses a phonetic homonym. In Chinese, "517" or 五一七 (wǔ yāo qī) sounds close to 我要吃 (wǒ yào chī) or "I want to eat." "Yāo" is used instead of "yī" in oral conversation to clarify the number in a sequence of digits. So when you repeat the McDonald's phone number in Chinese, it sounds like you are saying "Wǒ yào chī, wǒ yào chī," or "I want to eat, I want to eat."

glo London Shanghai Giant Lemon Meringues

Whilst living in London, I was introduced to the giant meringues in plain, raspberry, and chocolate piled high at the bakery entrance on the ground floor of Whole Foods on Kensington High Street. The meringues were as large as a small, round bread loaf and hardly colored with a hard, crisp exterior and a soft, sticky interior. Some may consider the meringue flavorless sugar, but the egg whites carry its own subtle flavor should you take the time to look and appreciate it. The way the meringue would melt against the heat of the tongue was wondrous.

Apparently, there are three different types of meringues (and unfortunately I lack the baking knowledge to know which method was used to create the giang meringues): French meringue (hard) with its delicate texture is made by adding sugar in stages to beaten egg whites before being baked or poached, Italian meringue (soft) uses a hot sugar and water syrup at soft-ball stage to "cook" the egg whites while beating making it the most stable type of meringue; and Swiss meringue (hard), which has a firmer texture than French meringue, where the egg whites and sugar are beaten over a double-boiler. The hard meringues are baked at extremely low temperatures to draw out the moisture and not color the meringues. When the temperature is too warm, the sugars will crystalize and color the meringue or the outside of the meringue will set before the inside, creating that hard-on-the-outside-soft-on-the-inside effect.

Baker and Spice's Anfu Lu location started selling chocolate meringues sprinkled with raw, sliced almonds. It would have been nice with a little more variety of flavor, but you could get your giant meringue fix here.

A few months ago, glo London Bakery finally opened on the ground floor of the glo London complex on Wulumuqi Nan Lu. Their meringue selection looked more promising with a giant lemon variety and a chocolate one that was overpowered by thick ribbons of chocolate (the meringue should be tasted as well!). The lemon meringue is decorated with fine shavings of lemon and lime zests, which is also on the inside of the meringue when it is cracked open. There is a hole in the giant meringue when it is split in half. The meringues first had a crisp outside and soft inside with bits of lemon and lime zest adding a nice tartness to the sticky soft interior. Over time and many visits, the meringues have been cooked longer and are slightly browned at the bottom, perhaps to avoid the soft interior for a perfectly hard, giant meringue. Personally, I kind of miss the gooeyness found encased in hard meringue. The lemon meringue is not overpowered by citrus flavors and is light and enjoyable.


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

Reberg Beer - Locally Brewed in Shanghai

If Harry Potter was really drinking butterbeer, the favored drink in the wizarding world of magic, he would be drinking Reberg light. One whiff of the Reberg light beer and the aroma of butter immediately warms your nose. Whoa, butterbeer come to life in the Muggle world. It also has notes of sweet bread (not the meaty kind), hazelnut, caramel, and a hint of butterscotch, though not at all too sweet or sugary. The beer is full in your mouth, but not too filling for your stomach. Reberg is a German-style beer brewed an hour outside the center of Shanghai, China, and comes in a light and dark variety. The beer is kept in a special metal cannister with seal as it has so much carbonation it would blow the top off a regular beer bottle. It does not have a long shelf-life as it is good for only seven days, but is best drank the first three days before it starts to sour a little. Therefore, Reberg would be difficult to find this beer at your local store since stocking it would be difficult. This is quite unfortunate, but it is available at Madison for 38RMB a bottle for both the light and dark variety (both pictured with the use of a friend's camera phone). Since it is brewed locally, it is considerably cheaper than imported craft beers, but not as cheap as Tsing-Tao or Suntory.

J.K. Rowling claimed in a Bon Appetit interview (2002) that she "imagined it to taste like a bit less-sickly butterscotch." Most recipes found online use cream soda, butterscotch, and butter, which seems really rich and too sugary or closer to sickenly sweet. The books also indicate that butterbeer has the power to get house-elves drunk or dependent on and can lower inhibitions of humans, just as the alcohol content in beer is able to.

Reberg. www.rebergbeer.com

Gran Melia's Acqua Pizza and Beer Promotion

Acqua Italian Restaurant's Pizza Salami and Pizza Proscuitto e Funghi
Acqua Italian Restaurant at the Gran Melia Shanghai in Pudong has an unlimited pizza and draught Tiger beer promotion for 88RMB or 101RMB after a 15% service charge on Fridays from 18:00-22:30 (until September 1, as advertised on CityWeekend). Restaurants in luxury hotels in Asia have a reputation of particularly good fare. Unfortunately, this was not the case at Acqua. The service was impeccable, however. The host promptly escorted us to our table and beer was immediately served. During the entire stay, the beer level in each glass never went below the halfway point as the draught Tiger was stealthily poured so as not to interrupt the conversation. The Tiger beer kept flowing until the restaurant ran out of beer an hour before the promotion ended. Other tables were also wondering why the restaurant was not supplied enough beer to last the duration of the promotion. The host informed us that beer was being brought from the 30th floor, but it was only bottles of Tsing Tao beer, which were poured into our empty glasses. The selected pizzas for the promotion were: margherita, salami (sausage), vegetariano (black olives with red and yellow peppers), prosciutto e funghi, and marinara (shrimp and tuna). The crust of the pizza was not super thin, but had great blackened blisters on its underside. The toppings were horrendous. The pizzas looked and tasted like meat or no meat in yellow, red, and brown, regardless of the variety chosen. Intead of pork sausage, it appeared to be pieces of pork. Pizza prosciutto e funghi was the best one, but in place of paper-thin slivers of prosciutto were thick slices of ham. The upside is the pizzas were not greasy and the kitchen obliged requests for tobasco, Chinese chili sauce, balsamic vinegar (in the form of a sweet, thick balsamic reduction), and dried oregano or basically anything to add complexity to an otherwise flat-tasting pizza. After drinking all the beer in the restaurant does the pizza start to really taste good. The only worthy part of this promotion is the unlimited Tiger draught beer (while supplies last). Maybe the regular menu at Acqua Italian Restaurant at Gran Melia Shanghai is inversely better as the pizza was poor?

Acqua. Gran Melia Shanghai, 2/F, 1288 Lujiazui Huan Lu (near Dongyuan Lu). 陆家嘴环路1288号2楼 (近东园路), Shanghai, China. Tel: 86 (021) 3867 8888. www.gran-melia-shanghai.com

McFlurry International - China 4

It appears that in honor of Kung Fu Panda 2, McDonald's in China (that is Màidāngláo, 麦当劳) is featuring the special Red Bean McFlurry. If you want a direct translation it is more "Red Bean Taste (hóngdòu kǒuwèi, 红豆口味)," which is a more accurate description of how this McFlurry (麦旋风, mài xuànfēng) is flavored. Perhaps this is an allusion to the red panda, which is a distant relative to the giant panda featured in the film. The server at the counter informs us that buying two McFlurrys is a better deal at 15RMB instead of one at 10RMB.

To make the hóngdòu kǒuwèi mài xuànfēng or 红豆口味麦旋风, red bean flavor syrup and Oreo pieces are mixed in with the vanilla soft-serve ice cream. The red bean flavor is not at all strong and is perhaps over-sweetened. One customer thought the McFlurry tasted like artificial strawberry instead of red bean, a belief furthered by the pink hue the ice cream took on. The McDonald's version of "red bean taste" could be described as a light, musky berry flavor. Only at the bottom of the cup were one or two actual red beans found to provide authenticity. More real red beans mixed in would make this version of the McFlurry slightly more appealing.

Lòushì Tāngbāoguǎn 陋室汤包馆

Everyone has their local xiǎolóngbāo 小笼包 or tāngbāo 汤包 spot, granted some are better than others and you may travel farther for a better soup dumpling (like Jia Jia Tang Bao, for example). Lòushì Tāngbāoguǎn 陋室汤包馆 (lòushì 陋室 meaning "common room" and tāngbāoguǎn 汤包馆 for "soup dumpling shop/shack") serves the vicinity around Nanchang Lu between Shaanxi Nan Lu and Xiangyang Lu.

Xiǎolóngbāo 小笼包 ("soup dumpling") versus tāngbāo 汤包 ("soup bun") - what is the difference? The Chowhound boards noted that tāngbāo has a greater emphasis on the soup than the meat, but otherwise, they are generally the same thing. After speaking with a few Shanghainese, the consensus is the larger soup dumplings you can eat with a straw should be referred to as "tāngbāo," but otherwise they are all the same. Xiǎolóngbāo 小笼包 is the same as tāngbāo 汤包 depending on what you feel like calling it. These juicy little parcels are not exclusive to Shanghai though because other areas, like Suzhou, have their own version of the soup dumpling. Hence, the characters at the bottom of the Lòushì Tāngbāoguǎn 陋室汤包馆 sign saying "Nánjīng tè sè xiǎochī 南京特色小吃" or "Nanjing special quality/kind snack."


The menu only has three versions of soup dumpling: Lòushì tāngbāo 陋室汤包 (their speciality or simply just pork soup dumplings); xièfěn 蟹粉 or crab meal (and pork); and xiārén 虾仁 or shrimp meat. Being an afternoon snack, the house specialty or pork and the crab and pork soup dumplings were ordered. There were still some pork soup dumplings in the steamers at the entrance, which came out first. The crab and pork ones took about 10 minutes to steam to perfection. The pork tāngbāo was quite soupy and the wrapper was a bit thick on top where it was pinched together. It tasted a tad oily and not freshly made, but was still satisfying. The crab and pork tāngbāo was really savory with bits of crab meat and plenty of soup inside the dumpling. The crab flavor was not overwhelming and the meat inside the dumpling held together. The wrapper had a similar issue at being a bit too thick at the top, but by rolling it over a little and biting a little hole at the side gives you that first hot soup.



Left to right from top: Lòushì tāngbāo 陋室汤包, the inside of the pork soup dumpling, xièfěn tāngbāo 蟹粉汤包, inside of the crab and pork soup dumpling, steamers outside
Lòushì Tāngbāoguǎn is not a particularly fancy place, but the crab and pork soup dumplings are great and the dumplings are definitely not lacking on the soup.

Lòushì Tāngbāoguǎn 陋室汤包馆. 601 Nanchang Lu (by Xiangyang Lu), Shanghai, People's Republic of China

Xindalu China Kitchen Dim Sum Special

Xindalu China Kitchen Restaurant at Hyatt on the Bund was having a dim sum promotion for 180RMB (plus 15% service charge) for a steady stream of these small dishes for lunch. Only tea or juice was included with the deal, which ended on June 16 after running daily during lunch hours for about two weeks. So, sorry in advance if you were expecting to go and take advantage of this promotion. The 180RMB price tag may be daunting for some, especially with cheaper all-you-can-eat dim sum deals being offered in Shanghai, but Xindalu has made a reputation for itself as a fine dining experience in an upscale hotel. Most know of Xindalu for the way its Peking duck that is cooked in a special wood oven or so the Hyatt website claims. The flavor of Xindalu's Peking duck is supposed to rival or best that of the popular chain, Quanjude. The dim sum promotion allows diners to sample another region of China for a fine dining lunch experience, though you could surely supplement the meal with other items off the menu. The menu for the dim sum lunch was not particularly extensive, most likely to maintain control of the quality of the dishes, some of which may have been created specially for this promotion. Upon arrival, diners are given a pen to check off which dishes or how many of them they want on a paper menu. If you want to order more, the server will bring out another of the same menu where you can re-order your favorites. Of course, we tried as much as a pair possibly could.


The restaurant is located on the ground floor of Hyatt on the Bund and adjacent to the lobby with no significant views to admire, though you could easily see who is rolling up the main driveway of the hotel. (Check out Vue bar upstairs). The main dining area is dark with the seats by the window reserved for smoking. The kitchen is open although partitioned with glass that fogs up from steam giving diners access to the action while waiting for dishes to be served.




From top, left to right: Pan-fried turnip cake, Barbecue pork puff-pastry with sesame, Fried goose liver taro dumplings, inside of goose liver dumplings, Steamed shrimp dumplings, Steamed scallop vegetable dumplings, Fried mango rice paper roll, Fried mushroom bean curd skin roll
The plates came out as quickly as the order was put in and there was barely enough room for our individual pots of tea and towers of steamers. The fried goose liver taro dumplings were particularly decadent, savory, and heavy despite the lightness of its fried interior. The fried mushroom bean curd skin roll was crispy, light, and not at all oily. The puff pastry around the barbecue pork was more densely packed than light imparting a solid crust than flaky exterior. The small filling was slightly sweet.




From top, left to right: Steamed chiu chow dumplings, Baked Barbecue Pork Buns, Mini baked chicken meat pies, Steamed beef balls with bean curd sheet, Steamed traditional Cantonese sponge cake, Fried custard glutinous dumplings, Steamed Sesame Buns, Black sesame interior of sesame buns
The baked dim sum items had a very dense crust encasing the moist, salty, and savory meat in the center. There were a few items on the steamed and fried section of the menu that were more sweet than savory: steamed traditional Cantonese sponge cake, fried custard glutinous dumplings, and the steamed buns filled with black sesame. The latter of the two were more memorable for a tongue conditioned by Western sweets.

Clockwise from bottom left: Sweetened sago cream with mango and pomelo, Red bean soup, Almond tea with egg white, Chilled mango pudding (with condensed milk), Baked sago pudding with chestnut paste
Xindalu does particularly well with its dessert (and sweet items as mentioned above) without being sugary. The sweetened sago with mango and bits of pomelo was light and fresh. The red bean soup was cool and subtly sweet. The almond tea with egg white could almost be sipped straight from the bowl and was as light as it looked. The chilled mango pudding apparently came with condensed milk, but it was better used on the baked sago pudding with chestnut paste that was served warm. The meal ended nicely with this touch of sweetness.


The dim sum lunch was extremely filling with a very attentive staff, but classic dim sum dishes like the pork ribs were missing from the selection. Given the limited selection, each dish was on average good for what it was, but still the dim sum at Ye Shanghai is preferred. It was nice to try the dim sum at Xindalu just for the experience. However, I am more inclined to return to sample that wonderful smelling Peking duck. The way that the server would clean the carcass precisely with his skilled hand releasing the aroma of the duck meat was enough to get your appetite going again.

One fun fact: The concierge at Hyatt on the Bund advised me that although they do not valet bicycles nor have a proper bike parking area, they will gladly escort you and your bike to the place where staff park their bicycles, electric bikes, electric scooters, and motos. Just make sure that your bike is not one that is particularly valuable as you are parking at your own risk.

Xindalu. Hyatt on the Bund, 199 Huangpu Road, Shanghai 200080, China. 上海外滩茂悦大酒店 中国上海黄浦路199号 邮政编码：200080. Hours: Lunch 11:30 – 14:30, Dinner 17:30 – 22:30. Reservations: + 86 21 6393 1234 * 6318.