[Shanghai 上海] Chez Maurice

Categories shanghai
[Shanghai 上海] Chez Maurice

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Chez Maurice

Add: 2F, 50 Tai’an Road, near Xingguo Road
Tel: 62299668
Hours: 5:30-10:30pm (closed on Tue)
Price: 350-400RMB/person
Visited: Feb 2016

It’s been 5 months since I moved back from Paris, and it’s about time that I start missing sipping wine and snacking on charcuterie boards. It just so happens that Chez Maurice opened last month, and rumor has it that it’s a casual French bistro with excellent charcuterie – just what I have in mind – so I gathered a few friends for a taste of it.

去年 10 月從巴黎回上海後，都還沒吃過幾次法國菜。可能是離開亞洲一陣子了吧？滿腦子都是中餐、日料、泰國菜等等，雖然上海法式餐館也不少，就沒想到要去。不過一晃眼五個月過去了，最近開始懷念起在巴黎小館子裏和三兩好友喝酒吃 charcuterie 的日子，正好上個月 Chez Maurice 開幕了，聽說風格就是輕松的法式小餐館，便和朋友相約去嚐了嚐。

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The location is a 4-story house on Tai’an Road, right above Heyday the jazz bar. Chez Maurice The Grill is on the second floor, and there’s also a Chez Maurice Wine Bar on the third floor plus a Japanese sake bar on the fourth, all by the same owner.

Chez Maurice 位于泰安路 50 號的四層樓洋房裏，我去的是二樓的 Chez Maurice The Grill，老板還在三樓開了 Chez Maurice Wine Bar & Charcuterie，以及四樓的 Revive 日式酒吧。三樓四樓還沒試過，Chez Maurice The Grill 倒是前後去了兩次，今天先分享下在這裏的晚餐。

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The menu is short and succinct – just one page. The charcuterie craft here was taught by Monsieur Maurice, a French grandpa whose family has been in the meat business for generations, and apparently he’s in Shanghai every few months to check up on the bistro named after himself. I first tried Le Foie Gras au Torchon (78 RMB), duck liver with Port wine blackberry sauce and country bread. Excellent, just like what you would get in Paris.

菜單，不啰嗦的只有一頁 － 是我喜歡的長短。聽說這裏的 charcuterie（餐廳很直接很貼切的翻譯爲 “殺豬菜”）是由一位法國老先生 Maurice 手把手教出來的。首先點了份 Le Foie Gras au Torchon（78元）鴨肝、搭配波特酒黑莓果醬和鄉村面包，是巴黎餐館的水准，非常令人滿意。順便一提，”torchon” 是廚房裏用的布，這道菜的做法是將鵝或鴨肝用布包好放入水中煮，所以成品是圓柱狀切出的圓片。

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[Shanghai] La Maison du Macaron

Categories shanghai
[Shanghai] La Maison du Macaron

La Maison du Macaron (venue closed)

Add: 966 Changle Road, near Wulumuqi Road 长乐路966号, 近乌鲁木齐路
Tel: 6209 4060
Hours: 10am-7:00pm (closed on Mondays)
Price: [macaron] 7 RMB [tart] 18 RMB [drinks] 15~20 RMB
Visited: May 2011

La Maison du Macaron is a small French patisserie on the Changle Rd/Wulumuqi Rd intersection, and is so far the only shop in town that specializes in macarons. The owner is a Shanghainese local who holds a diploma of pastry arts from Le Cordon Bleu in Paris, and her macarons – while not in the same rank as those exquisite creations at Pierre Hermé – are priced at only 7 RMB a piece and really not too shabby.

We tried salted caramel, passion fruit, and lemon (7 RMB each). All were quite good, but salted caramel seemed to be the winner. I’d be interested in going back to try pistachio, chocolate, or any new flavor that happens to be in store that day.

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[Shanghai] Maison Pourcel

Categories restaurant
[Shanghai] Maison Pourcel

Maison Pourcel

Add: 8/F, 35 Shanxi Nan Lu, near Changle Lu / 陕西南路35号8楼, 近长乐路
Tel: 6215 8777
Hours: [La Table] 5:30-10:30pm [Studio Bar] 11:30am-11pm
Website: www.maisonpourcel.com
Price: [La Table] 700 RMB+/person [Studio Bar] 300 RMB/person
Visited: May 2011

Please note that this was an arranged tasting.

Jacques and Laurent Pourcel’s newest venture, Maison Pourcel in Shanghai, is a sleek, starkly elegant restaurant with spectacular vista of the French Concession. The setting is luxurious, the service is smooth, but there is one major problem with this place, and that is deciding what to eat. When faced with a choice between “compressed lobster and vegetable terrine with duck ham and mango” and “duck liver and cepes ravioli with puree of baby pumpkin and foamy porcini mushroom soup”, ordering can take a very, very long time.

But before I get started on the food, let’s talk about the twins and their newest venue choice. After launching the 3 Michelin starred Le Jardin des Sens back in France at the age of 24, the Pourcel twins have since expanded their culinary empire to Bangkok, Tokyo, Casablanca, Geneva, Marrakech, Algiers and Dubai. For the recent opening in Shanghai, they chose the historical Red House, which was home to the most celebrated Western restaurant back in the 1930s. The refurbished dining room is delightful during the day with ample natural light, and equally charming after dark with sparkling French Concession as its backdrop.

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[Shanghai] Dakota

Categories restaurant
[Shanghai] Dakota

Dakota

Add: 30 Donghu Lu, near Xinle Lu / 东湖路30号, 近新乐路
Tel:  5403 8906
Hours: [Mon-Sat] 11:00am-midnight [Sun] 11am-6pm
Price: [Brunch] 100 RMB/person, [Dinner] 200 RMB/person
Visited: Nov 2010

2014 update: venue closed.

An American bistro located on Donghu Lu close to Sushi Oyama and El Willy. Lunch and dinner seem a bit overpriced, but come here for a comfortable brunch featuring classic items such eggs Benedict, Belgian waffles, omelettes, Croque Madame, seafood chowder, and the likes. It’s simple, and it’s good. The wood-paneled and black leather chair interior is not my usual favorite vibe for brunch, but to occasionally diverge from the typical ‘sunny patio brunch’ path is not so horrible either.

Other than the items mentioned above, you’ll also see shrimp and grits, brisket hash, frittata, egg salad tartine, apple crepes, etc. If you come with a big group, there are some big plates to share as well: “roast leg of lamb served with bone marrow butter, salad, and duck fat frites”, and the “bone-in ribeye served with frisée salad, duck fat roasted potatoes, and béarnaise”.

We started with the Seafood Chowder in Sourdough Bread Bowl (50 RMB), which was thick and creamy with chunks of salmon and other seafood. The sourdough bread bowl was crispy on the outside and chewy on the inside. A good start.

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