stumbling upon the good life – savoring food, discovering wine, and exploring places
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Amazing Hunan food and among the best spareribs in Shanghai
It seems like often when we go to Shanghai we tend to gravitate to high-end Western dining. While certainly I never get bored of sky high Bund dining and glamorous cocktails, on this particular evening I had a hankering for something a bit more local. So when my friend Joerg who has been in Shanghai for about 5 years offered to show me his favourite spareribs in town, I said “let’s go!” [keep reading…]
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Watch the game, meet friends and hang out at Blur Frog
(Photos by Joanna)
From the folks who brought you Kabb comes Blue Frog bar and grill. Another super chill place to hang out with friends, watch the game on the big screen, meet up for happy hour after work, etc. while enjoying classic American comfort food. I visited the South Maoming location (their first and original location) near the French Concession and got myself a dose of home in Shanghai. [keep reading…]
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Say hello to my new favourite restaurant in Shanghai!
(Photos by Joanna)
I had been meaning to try Mr. & Mrs. Bund for a while. It’s close to the Westin Hotel where I always stay when in Shanghai. It has a bit of buzz. And the chef was the notable Paul Pairet from former fame at Jade on 36 (which has suffered since he left). Well, if I had known what I know now, I would have been beating a path to its door much, much sooner. I am not sure what I like more – the inventive French food with Asian flourishes, the sexy yet chill vibe or innovative serve-yourself wine bar? I suppose it’s all this and more that led to a recent roaring good time on my last trip to Shanghai. Say hello to my new fave in Shanghai, Mr. & Mrs. Bund (my favorite is still Stiller’s 
Paul ). [keep reading…]
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My favourite places to go for massage when in Shanghai
Massage has been a part of my self care ritual for years now. And as much as I travel and sit on planes, it’s not infrequently that I am suffering from some sort of neck pain or other such traveler’s ailment. When I am in Shanghai, I prefer to go to Green Massage or Dragonfly Massage to work this out with a traditional Chinese acupressure massage. [keep reading…]
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Faux designer bags, jewelry, clothes and more
On West Nanjing Road, the side of Nanjing with the more local stores, lies 580 West Nanjing Road. An emporium for fake bag, jewelry, clothing and more. Here you will find everything from Louis Vuitton, Chanel and Marc Jacobs bags and wallets….to Tiffany sterling silver…to Paul Smith men’s clothing and accessories…Burberry trenches and scarves….to North Face parkas. The selection is constantly changing but one thing stays the same, this is the most comprehensive assortment of top quality faux designer goods in Shanghai.
And 580 Nanjing Road might be one of the only places in Shanghai where English is comfortably spoken owing to the throngs of foreign visitors that come through its doors. So shop comfortably and don’t forget to bargain hard….never accept the first price and only pay what you think is reasonable. When all else fails, be prepared to walk away and you may find that the shopkeeper will come after you with his best price.
Happy shopping
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A wonderful way to spend a weekend afternoon in Shanghai
I love a lazy weekend afternoon in Shanghai. Unlike Singapore where the steamy weather often forces me into taxi cabs with air con, in Shanghai I love to spend the day walking the city and exploring various neighborhoods. One favourite for whiling away a Sunday is Tianzi Fang at Taikang Lu, on the southern border of the French Concession. Being a former NYer this area reminds me a lot of Soho in NYC – its cobblestone streets are lined with coffee shops, wine bars, brunch places, art galleries, unique jewelry stores, gift shops, clothing boutiques, handicraft centers, shoe stores, and more.
The shikumen style of Tianzi Fang at Taikang Lu takes you back to the old China of the early 1900’s. These charming little shikumen townhouses have been converted into shops. And in Tianzi Fang there is a twisted tangle of quirky stores where you can get lost for the day, wandering in and out of shops and stopping for a tea or coffee every now and again.
While each shop and gallery are distinct and unique, I have a few favourites and notables to share with you. [keep reading…]
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Spend an afternoon strolling Shanghai while taking in the bizarre and bazaars
I miss antique markets and flea markets. I suppose it is mostly a Western thing – you see them in Paris, London, New York, Los Angeles. My personal favourite being a NYer was the Chelsea Weekend Flea Market. These are the kind of places where you can find old kitschy items, vintage jewellery and clothing, mismatched china and objets d’art at bargain basement prices. Some of it is crap and some of it is cool, and that’s the fun…hunting through the crap to find that the precious needle in a haystack. These don’t really exist in Asia – except in China. Why is that? Well the market concept is alive and healthy as evidenced by the famous Chatuchak Bangkok market and others. But I have observed that most cultures in Asia simply aren’t interested in old things. In developing countries in Asia it seems they put more emphasis on the new than the old. I suppose it makes sense, but it is also a little sad. Most of the Asian art and antique dealers dealers are…gasp….Western. I went to a so called “flea market in Singapore” and it was a whole bunch of people selling new, locally designed clothing. Want to give your old clothing away to a vintage store in Thailand or Singapore? Well, you cannot because they aren’t any. But in China there is still a modicum of respect for the old and certainly an appetite for the new, and this is reflected in the vibrant market scene that abounds in Shanghai. [keep reading…]
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American Comfort Food in the Historic Xintiandi District
It’s been a while since I have seen the words “bar and grill” attached to a restaurant name. It took me a while to realize why it sounded both so odd and yet so familiar. And then I remembered…”bar and grill” are typical American-style restaurants. The kind you never see in Asia. Japanese have their izakayas, Singaporeans have their food courts, the French have their bistros… and Americans? Well, we have “bar and grills.” You almost don’t have to look at a menu at a bar and grill of you are an American, you know what it means – it means a full bar menu plus steaks, burgers, probably a grilled fish or two, a hearty soup, some entrée style salads (for some reason always including a Caesar salad), a grilled chicken dish, etc, etc… And this is why Kabb in Shanghai felt so familiar, a true bar and grill in the American sense. [keep reading…]
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A gem of an Izakaya in Shanghai’s central Jing’an District
After a trip to Japan, we became totally addicted to Japanese food, amiyaki, teppanyaki, yakitori, sushi…. you name it. I think the reason why I like it so much is that most Japanese food is thoughtful and intentional with the of goal of culinary perfection in mind – whether it be a simple bowl of rice or an elaborate multi-course meal. What I mean by thoughtful and intentional can be best observed in the details, like never a drop more sauce than one needs, or perfectly balanced plate presentation, or sushi apprentices who can spend up to 2 years just forming the rice before they even get to look at a fish. So when a friend in Shanghai offered to take us to an authentic izakaya named Makoto, we were out the door before you could say “sake.” [keep reading…]
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Unlimited dim sum at this stylish art-deco Shanghai gem
Paul and I are hopelessly addicted to dim sum. For me it started when I lived in New York. My half Chinese cousin and I used to head down to Chinatown on Sundays where she schooled me on the leisurely lunchtime tradition of rolling food carts filled with dumplings and tasty bites and Yum Cha (drinking tea). For Paul dim sum really clicked when he lived in Thailand and visited the South where a local friend introduced him to a dim sum street stall – thereafter it became a breakfast ritual in Bangkok. And part of the fun of living in Asia is the easy access to traditional dim sum. As it turns out there are many styles, although it originated in Southern China in the Cantonese style in local teahouses where they served snacks with the tea. Today it is a weekend tradition from Bangkok and Singapore to Hong Kong and Shanghai, usually focused around the family reconnecting over a lunchtime meal. And when in Shanghai, one can indulge in this tradition where dim sum is served in the stylish, Chinese art deco environs of Lynn Modern Shanghai Cuisine near Nanjing Lu. [keep reading…]
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