Sugared & Spiced

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Jean Georges

Add: 4/F, Three on the Bund, 17 Guangdong Lu, near Zhongshan Dong Yi Lu
.             广东路17号, 外滩三号4楼, 近中山东一路
Tel: 6321 7733
Hours: [Lunch] 11:30am~2:30pm, [Dinner] 6pm~11pm
Website: www.threeonthebund.com
Price: [Lunch] 218 RMB + 10%, [Dinner] 500~700 RMB/person

Please note that this is an arranged tasting.

With a likable menu featuring Jean-Georges Vongerichten’s classic lineup and a spectacular vista of the illuminated Lujiazui right outside the window, it’s no wonder that Jean Georges remains one of the most highly regarded restaurants in Shanghai after so many years of opening. But…

Jean Georges

…but I really shouldn’t have eaten so much that evening. 15 dishes, that’s how many dishes I tasted that evening, and that doesn’t even include the amuse bouche and complimentary chocolates and marshmallows at the end. It’s not so much the quantity that troubled me – I’m quite proud of my stomach space – but the thought of having to describe so many dishes in one post became so daunting that in retrospect, I wish I hadn’t stole food off each and every one of my companions’ plates.

View out the window

Booze

Table setting

But what is done is done. Let’s take a look what flowed through our table.

Breads, delicious as always

Amuse Bouche

My 7-course Jean Georges Menu (998 RMB + 10%) began elegantly with Egg Caviar, a signature dish that graces the cover of Jean-Georges’ “Simple to Spectacular” cookbook. A fluffy, lightly scrambled egg topped with whipped cream and a generous dollop of caviar, this was one of my top three favorite dishes of the evening.

Egg Caviar

Egg Caviar

Sea Scallops with Caramelized Cauliflower, Caper-Raisin Emulsion

Young Garlic Soup with Thyme, Sauteed Frog Legs

Turbot, Chateau Chalon Sauce, Tomato and Zucchini

Lobster Tartine, Lemongrass, Fenugreek Broth, Pea Shoot

Out of the rest of the prie fixe menu, I was especially charmed by the Broiled Squab, Onion Compote, Sauteed Foie Gras, Corn Pancake. The combination of tender squab and creamy foie gras was quite irresistible. 

Broiled Squab, Onion Compote, Sauteed Foie Gras, Corn Pancake

Fruit Dessert Tasting

Fruit Dessert Tasting

Now on to my two dinner companions’ dishes. They each picked a Prie Fixe Menu (598 RMB + 10%), which included 3 savory dishes plus a dessert. First came the Chilled Crab Salad, Market Vegetable and Flower Vinaigrette, another one of my favorite dishes of the evening. It was a beautiful creation with fresh vegetables and flower petals (my shabby picture really doesn’t do it justice), and what’s interesting was that the chef added cumin to the dish, spicing it up to something slightly exotic and thoroughly addicting.

Chilled Crab Salad, Market Vegetable and Flower Vinaigrette

Charred Corn Ravioli, Tomato Salad and Basil Fondue

Steamed Cod, Spiced Jade Emulsion and Celtuce is one of those dishes with a sublimely heady fragrance that had me wrapped up in a haze of anticipation and appetite even before anything even hits the tongue. Yum.

Steamed Cod, Spiced Jade Emulsion and Celtuce

Sauteed Foie Gras, Black Olive, Lychee and Brioche

Australian Wagyu Beef Sirloin, Marble Score 6 (+248 RMB)

Caramelized Beef Tenderloin with Carrots and Miso – Mustard

Carrots Three Way

Raspberry Lychee Trifle

Jean-Georges Chocolate Cake with Vanilla Ice-Cream was, in a word, decadent. Having tasted molten cakes from no less than two dozens of restaurants, I was surprised to be so satisfied with the Jean Georges rendition. But I really shouldn’t be, considering that Jean-Georges Voncherichten himself supposedly was the inventor of this immensely popular dessert.

Jean-Georges Chocolate Cake, Vanilla Ice Cream

Jean-Georges Chocolate Cake, Vanilla Ice Cream

Lastly there was a chocolate platter with flavors like earl grey, passion fruit, vanilla, lemon…

Chocolate Plate

Earl Grey Chocolate

To be completely truthful, I didn’t expect to and wasn’t blown away by all the dishes I sampled this evening. The ones I highlighted are those that were especially impressive for me personally, many of them being transplants from the original Jean Georges in New York (which has an impressive 3 Michelin stars standing). To see my previous visits to Jean Georges, click here for brunch and here for the Jean-Georges Vongerichten cooking demo.

The kitchen