Chef Xu Jingye showcases understated elegance of Cantonese cuisine in every dish at 102 House, which, within just one year of its establishment in Shanghai, was awarded two Michelin stars, making a remarkable debut. But Michelin is both pressure and motivation. This year, the spring menu demonstrates even greater stability with precise execution and graceful flavouring.
Yong's cuisine is based on a variety of soups with highlights of charcoal grilling. Chinese flavours, or more specifically Sichuan flavours, are the charming mainstay but techniques like deep-frying and grilling bring a touch of Japanese kaiseki.
Were we in Guangzhou or Chengdu? I almost couldn't tell. Here, I see the meaning of heritage. After a hundred years, Yong has restored this historical building to its natural patina and past glory.
Refer has all the qualities of a top-notch restaurant. With competence and confidence, Chef has insisted on doing a trifold menu that encompasses a vast range of ingredients, but each dish is dealt with utmost care and exquisite technique. The ability to combine perceptions, cooking skills and the art of plating with subtlety and elegance requires meticulous craftsmanship.
Focusing on crafting creative new Huaiyang cuisine, The Hut is known for having insisted on sourcing best quality ingredients and innovating Chinese cuisine with modern western techniques while maintaining the essential charm of oriental cooking styles.
The restaurant came to Shanghai last summer and has undergone two renovations in between, but I have already tried its summer, autumn and winter menus. The seemingly simple dishes are loaded with unpretentious skills and rock-solid knowledge of Chef Xu Jingye, who has made Guangzhou cuisine so purely classic yet elaborately eye-opening.
At the end of last year, I attended a four-hands dinner in Shenzhen teamed up by Chef Miles Pundsack Poe of Ensue and Chef Xu Jingye of 102 House, which totally reminded me of the significance of four-hands in all good ways.
The concept of bistronomy is becoming increasingly popular around the world, and its latest addition in China is the recent opening of NEW WAVE by DA VITTORIO, an Italian restaurant located at UCCA Edge in Shanghai, and headed by former DA VITTORIO Shanghai sous chef Francesco Bonvini.
Now its previous rich Southern French flavours have recently been revamped by the new Executive Chef Ugo Rinaldo, who has embarked on a mission to give a new life to French cuisine through revisiting old favorites with a modern refreshing twist.
After a revisit, I was greatly impressed by chef Yann Klein’s understanding of the Chinese terroir and the use of local ingredients. I stand by my commendations as the whole dining process is just like a progressive symphony, leading you to the spectacular beauty of the moment.
If you want to replenish an exhausted body after a long day, stimulating sensations may not be a cure-all formula. Rather, sometimes a simple meal is all it takes to fix a sunken heart, to soothe the soul and restore the spirit.
