Here you are with another Chinese restaurant I would have never heard of if I was not committed to complete my Michelin scramble in Shanghai. Shang-High restaurant at the Jumeirah Himalayas Hotel was awarded one star in all the three editions of the Shanghai Michelin Guide to date, as they like to remind everywhere (including on the wet towel).
The visit
The first hurdle was making a reservation. First I used the email on their website. No answer after two attempts. Then I called and everything seemed fine. Then I had to make an amendment and I could not find anyone that would understand me on the phone. Eventually I went there in person! Surprise, my original reservation had never been noted on their book. After all of these attempts, finally I had my reservation. I wonder if someone in management is surprised that they do not get more customers.
The second hurdle was to get there (twice actually in my case). The restaurant is located on the 6th floor of the Jumeirah Himalayas Hotel overlooking Shanghai Convention and Exhibition Center in Pudong. Not exactly a place on the radar for most people. The task to reach the destination actually proved easier than expected. They are located next to exit 3 of the Pudong terminus of metro line 7 (that connects with several other lines at Century Park). Just make sure to take the right exit or you will find yourself in a different mall.
From the exit, walk to the hotel lobby (before you start walking along the stone walls) and take the elevator to the 6th floor. It is an architecturally remarkable space. They even have an infinity garden accessible from the 6th floor that sadly was closed at the time of my visit.
I just ordered three dishes. The first was a fish lip soup with soy beans. I was pretty curious about the use of this unusual part of the fish (I believe garoupa). The result was pretty underwhelming in terms of flavor and everything.
The main dish of my dinner was braised beef cheek with black truffles, potatoes and carrots. This was a 200 gram portion. The meat was legit. Really tender cheek meat. The only issue that I had is that there was no trace of truffles.
I also tried their wild vegetables pancakes. Unfortunately the use of the glutinous rice made them almost inedible to my palate, worse than chewing gum.
The check
The check was 307.82 RMB because it originally included a small bottle of Evian water (alone it was 79 RMB). When leaving, it was acknowledged by the staff that there was a misunderstanding and they did not give me the free tap water (that was perfectly alright according to my initial request). So they decided to refund me the price of the bottle of water. This was professional on their part. So all in all, I spent around 229 RMB (32 USD) for the three dishes. Prices were very reasonable. As always, it is difficult to say if my small sampling is representative of all of their dishes. Probably not, but you need to know what you order. I would not go back, I might visit them again only if I had business in the nearby Exhibition Center.
Where in Shanghai:
6/F, Jumeirah Himalayas Hotel Shanghai, 1108 Meihua Lu
In Chinese: 梅花路1108号卓美亚喜玛拉雅酒店6楼.
Bonus: the Jumeirah Hotel has an exhibition space of its own. Check if there is anything interesting on. This was on at the time of my visit:
