The Shanghainese have a reputation among their compatriots for snootiness, but when it comes to food, it’s others who have the superiority complex. “Shanghainese food is just too sweet,” is the usual refrain. At its best, however, Shanghainese cooking, a blend of influences from Hangzhou, Suzhou, Ningbo and other places, can be superb, and there’s no better place to try it than at Fu 1088, which opened in 2007 and continues to amaze with the quality of its cooking and its period charm.
A modernized three-story Victorian manor on the corners of Zhenning and Yuyuan Road houses one of the best Shanghainese inspired restaurants that the city has to offer. Seventeen rooms of this renovated mansion have been turned into dining areas that can accommodate two to twelve guests per sitting room. The mahogany walls, 20th century furniture, Spanish-tiled floors, chandeliers and the classical piano artist playing soothing melodies in the hall way creates a highly sophisticated ambiance. With a minimum cover charge of ¥ 300 per person, most, if not all aristocrats in Shanghai, as well as expats and business executives frequently dine at this lavish restaurant. Traditional Shanghainese food featured on the FU 1088 menu include the drunken chicken, tea smoked eggs, smoked fish, braised pork rib and many more mouth watering dishes. The fillet of cod baked in wine sauce and the deep fried wild king prawn with a wasabi and mayonnaise dip are also popular dishes. The soup made of home-made sheets of bean curd braised in a golden broth served with mushroom and greens and shrimp is just heavenly. If you are in the mood to indulge the senses, come to Fu 1088 to treat yourself to the very best in Shanghainese cuisine.
