Continuing the Shanghai Michelin Guide Scramble, this time I visited Seventh Son. It was a Saturday for lunch, so the fact that the establishment is famous for their dim sum was very fitting. Seventh Son is a chain of Cantonese restaurants that originated from Hong Kong and they have branches also in Japan and in Beijing and Shenzhen. In Shanghai they have two locations and only the one at the Kerry Centre (in Jingan) gained a Michelin star (the other is located inside the Shanghri-la in Pudong).
The visit
I had made a reservation with a phone call (the website did not work when I tried, now seems fine). I arrived punctual like a Swiss watch at 11.30 and my name was not on their reservation list. But no worries, they still had space for me. It is a large dining room, but it did fill quickly as expected on a weekend.
Reading the three or four menus I was handed required its fair share of time. They have an impressive array of options. In the end I ordered mostly from their dim sum menu. After completing my order the waiter commented that I must have not been hungry… that I found very funny since I ordered a ton of food. But I soon noticed that other guests would order even more and then take the left over at home. Not my modus operandi.
I first got the stir-fried turnip cakes. Six pieces. All delicious (I could not imagine turnip could be so good).
Then I got a dim sum classic like the shrimp dumplings. Good, but not particularly impressive.
The spring rolls (recommended by the waiter) were remarkable. I have eaten them dozens of times, but never with such a thin and crispy pastry.
Finally I had one of their most popular dishes, the crispy fried chicken (half). The skin was similar to the one that you usually get with the suckling and very tasty. Unfortunately, not sure why, but in the end there was not much meat.
The check
The bill came at 492.80 CNY (70 USD). This is high-end Cantonese cuisine and you can expect this price point for dim sum. If you start ordering abalone and bird’s nest dishes of course the bill will be much higher.
I certainly enjoyed to try some high-end dim sum. I am not an expert, but I could taste the difference with cheaper versions that I had elsewhere. I would recommend going in a group and trying several dim sum dishes.
Where in Shanghai:
1515 NanJing West Road, Jing’An, Jing’An Kerry Centre 2F
For reservation and more information check their website.