"American" Dining in Shanghai

It might seem like blasphemy to even discuss dining plans for Shanghai that do not take advantage of every single opportunity to eat from the broad array of Chinese regional cuisines available there. However, in the course of doing business, one may be craving a taste of home - New York Pizza anyone? New York Style Steak and Burger? What about Tacos, Chicagoans?


Untitled by Josephine2004, on Flickr


Untitled by Josephine2004, on Flickr


Untitled by Josephine2004, on Flickr

So, Americans, what exactly is a taste of home? According to Jennifer 8 Lee, the most requested taste of home among Americans serving in the armed forces could be General Tso's Chicken. This dish, she has conclusively proven, no chef in China has ever heard of. I remember my father saying that, growing up in the Midwest, he had never heard of pizza (though he had eaten Chinese-American food) until he attended college in Boston. So, it is a little clunky and a lot inaccurate to talk about American food in general, as if that is one canon. That is why I use quotes around the word "American" in the title of this post. Still, expats seem to have clear ideas about foods they miss most. One longtime Shanghai resident I know missed excellent chocolates, which are very expensive there. Another missed "cheap Mexican food." For me, I am pretty sure it would be deli food, unless I were somewhere that hamburgers had not yet penetrated. Is there such a place on earth?

My memories of American food in 1970's France are of some pretty poor fare - TGIF style mall fare and McDonald's, relieved by the ice cream at Le Drugstore. Luckily, present-day Shanghai offers some excellent chefs inspired by American cooking, and it would be a shame to miss them entirely, wouldn't it? The places mentioned below were all recommended by expat friends and colleagues.

NAPA WINE BAR AND CAFE

Last March we ate at three of these. Napa Wine Bar and Cafe is a California wine country cuisine-inspired restaurant (not really a wine bar, IMO) with an elegant, quiet interior in a renovated old lane house that sits off a little alleyway near the main concert venue in Shanghai. (Reviews complained that it was hard to find.) We had a carefully prepared meal of pristine fish that screamed technique and quality ingredients, but nevertheless was somewhat unexciting. The setting is romantic and the wine list is deep. I took no pictures there - sometimes I just don't feel like it.

MADISON

Madison is the creation of Austin Hu, a former sous-chef at Gramercy Tavern (NYC). Since August, 2012, Madison has a new location in a loft-style space, which seems to get positive comments on the expat blog/magazine City Weekend. (We visited the old location; though stylish, it had a kind of confusing entrance arrangement.) It's clear that Madison is a favorite of local expats for its American classics leaning to comfort food. We opted for a weeknight prix-fixe all-you-can-eat menu on the recommendation of an expat colleague who raved about the meal. The menu covered a lot of greatest hits that might be hard to find elsewhere in Shanghai: Shrimp Cocktail, Onion rings, Caesar salad, Cobb Salad, Mac & Cheese, Creamed Spinach, and Beef tenderloin with Bearnaise sauce. Chef Hu makes a point of sourcing the very best local ingredients. The Chinese Wagyu was on par with the best beef I have had anywhere. I would happily try the popular Sunday brunch if I were a homesick student or lonely visitor with a big appetite.

The room (old location) was comfortable and the tables well-spaced. This bodes well for the new-and-improved room, I think:


Untitled by Josephine2004, on Flickr

The Caesar - no skimping on the Parmagiana:


Untitled by Josephine2004, on Flickr

The Beef Tenderloin:


Untitled by Josephine2004, on Flickr

GOGA


GOGA Restaurant Exterior Shanghai by Josephine2004, on Flickr

My favorite of the American dining options does not bill itself as American. Chef Brad Turley, a native of San Francisco, named his restaurant for the GOlden GAtebridge. He also does not describe his cuisine as "fusion" or "Pacific Rim" or "Asian-inspired." What is his solution to the categorization problem? He terms his food "Cosmopolitan Cuisine" and I like the idea very much. Here is what we ate:

Torched Tuna Tataki Miso Soy Mustard and Furikake- fantastic:


Tuna Tataki at Goga by Josephine2004, on Flickr

Miso Broiled Black Cod with Shrimp Shiitake Salsa, Edamame Jus and Truffle Kabayaki:


Miso Broiled Black Cod @ GOGA by Josephine2004, on Flickr

An Off-Menu Pork Belly with Pork Rillettes was recommended by friends:


Pork Belly at Goga by Josephine2004, on Flickr

Duck Confit Salad with Mixed Greens, Walnuts and Ginger-Beet-Merlot Dressing - reminiscent of
Beijing Duck somehow:


Duck Confit Salad at Goga by Josephine2004, on Flickr

Black Pepper Matsutake Mushroom with Orricchiette, Parmagiano and Herbed Porcini Cream-deeply complex, and I could have sworn that taleggio was in there somewhere, but apparently not:


Orrechiette @ GOGA by Josephine2004, on Flickr

Adobo Braised Beef Cheeks with Horseradish Whipped Potatoes, Caramelized Bok Choy and Manila Adobo Jus- big, beefy and satisfying:


Adobo-Braised Beef Cheeks @ GOGA by Josephine2004, on Flickr

We over-ordered, though the charming and helpful front-of-house man tried to warn us. We didn't care. The flavors were big and umami layered. A memorable, outstanding meal. Superlatives apply. Friends had recently celebrated a milestone birthday there; GOGA is their favorite place in Shanghai. They had also explained that there are two seatings nightly, and that it is a cash-only operation.

Both Brad Turley and Austin Hu seem to have captured the hearts of their fans through their friendliness. Indeed Turley was approachable and engaging when we visited. (Hu was off the night we dined at Madison.) Since GOGA place is very tiny (some cry "cramped") it would seem odd if he were a frosty fellow, which, thankfully, he is not.


Brad Turley, GOGA Shanghai by Josephine2004, on Flickr

This past year, we had cocktails while waiting for our late seating at GOGA in a French Concession Mansion that was once home to the Soong family, which has an interesting place in 20th century history.

Maybe this year we will check out Hai by GOGA, the new 7th floor offshoot for cocktails and a view of the French Concession with small bites from Turley, downstairs. And if we get really homesick, some of his off-menu hamburgers!

Napa Wine Bar & Kitchen
1-2/F, Wine Residence 57 Jiangyin Lu
江阴路57号1-2楼
People's Square Area
near Huangpi Bei Lu
近黄陂北路
Phone:6318-0057
http://www.napawinebarandkitchen.com
6pm-12am


Madison
Bldg. 2, 3 Fenyang Lu
汾阳路3号2号楼
Huaihai Zhong Lu
Directions: near Huaihai Zhong Lu
近淮海中路
Phone:6437-0136
Tue-Fri 11am-10:30pm, Sat-Sun 11am-10:30pm


GOGA
1 Yueyang Lu
岳阳路1号
Former French Concession
Directions:near Dongping Lu
近东平路
Phone:6431-9700
Opening Hours:
5:30pm-1am, kitchen closes at 10:30pm


Hai by GOGA
7/F, 1 Yueyang Lu
岳阳路1号7楼
Former French Concession
near Dongping Lu
近东平路
Phone: 3461-7893
http://www.facebook.com/hai.goga
Mon-Sat 5pm-12am

Sasha's
11 Dongping Lu
东平路11号
Category:
Former French Concession
near Hengshan Lu, Metro Line 1 Changshu Lu Station
近衡山路, 地铁1号线常熟路地铁站
Name in Chinese:
萨莎
Phone: 6474-6628
http://www.sashas-shanghai.com
11am-2am

mygod, the chickie actually ate that NY pizza. I left her alone for 1 night in freaking shanghai and she found that atrocity on her own. She said something about jonsing for American food after 3 weeks eating nothing but Asian food. Pregnant brains can really eff you up.

TonyC wrote:mygod, the chickie actually ate that NY pizza. I left her alone for 1 night in freaking shanghai and she found that atrocity on her own. She said something about jonsing for American food after 3 weeks eating nothing but Asian food. Pregnant brains can really eff you up.

I know.

Josephine wrote:I was about 7 months pregnant, attempting to take a nap upstairs one day in late summer, when I was roused from my reverie by the smell of cigarette smoke. I was puzzled, since I was alone in the house. When it persisted, I investigated, only to find that the offending smoke came from my neighbor, who was taking a cigarette break from mowing his lawn-- across the street!

Later that summer, we were having our kitchen-family room gutted and renovated. There was not a lick of food in the place, but I began to smell garlic every time I entered the room. Since I was bothered on a daily basis by strong smells in the environment, I began to think that this smell was just an illusion that reflected my over-sensitive pregnant state. But one day I decided to find out whether I was in fact imagining this. I focused on the corner of the kitchen that seemed the source of the garlic smell and dismantled the cabinet in that corner. On the floor, in back of a series of drawers, was an errant bulb of garlic, growing a green shoot about 4 inches long! What a relief.

Have pity on a pregnant woman. She could probably smell the pizza across town.