With more and more sets of hungry eyes turning to the culinary market in this Paris of the East, Shanghai's seen no shortage of incoming French fine dining establishments helmed by renowned chefs of Michelin-starred restaurants from around the globe. But will they join the list of the city's Michelin-worthy? We'll see, but in the meantime, here are three that should be on your radar.
le Comptoir de Pierre Gagnaire
Rosemary-spiced leg of lamb. Photo credit: Jacques Gavard
With 13 restaurants under his name and an impressive 17 Michelin stars between them, world-renowned chef Pierre Gagnaire makes his Mainland culinary debut with le Comptoir de Pierre Gagnaire, an upscale but relaxed French brasserie located in the newly opened Capella Shanghai urban villa resort in the Former French Concession. His new concept is ‘an echo to the 1930s’ — an eatery that the chef wants to be ‘joyful, comfortable and easily accessible’ and by no means an ‘exclusive’ dining establishment. Famed as one of the world’s greatest chefs, Gagnaire’s 50-year career has seen him open award-winning restaurants all over the world, making le Comptoir one of the most exciting fine dining openings of 2017.
le Comptoir de Pierre Gagnaire Capella Shanghai, 480 Jianguo Xi Lu, near Yueyang Lu (5466 6688).
seul&SEUL
Led by Chef Johnny Jiang of André Chiang’s high-concept, two Michelin-starred Restaurant André in Singapore, seul&SEUL offers ‘no menu’ multi-course meals of French and European fare fused with Asian touches. The restaurant dedicates itself to the tagline ‘tiny, humble, changeable’, with the goal and promise of attention to the smallest details, excellent service, and continuous innovation in the kitchen, respectively. This, alongside the-no menu concept, means that every visit to seul&SEUL should essentially see a new range of visually stunning small plates, which you can pair with the bar’s bespoke cocktails.
seul&SEUL Third Floor, Taikoo Hui, Room N301, 288 Shimen Yi Lu, near Weihai Lu (5299 9889).
AKMÉ
From Chef Akrame Benallal of one Michelin-starred restaurant Akrame Paris, AKMÉ presents thoughtful contemporary French cuisine with artistic flair. Located in the classically European 55 by The Group space in the Former French Concession, Benallal’s first restaurant in China offers four-, six- and eight-course set menus composed of creative signature dishes. On an interesting and unusual note, aspects of both the space and the cuisine strongly reflect the chef’s connection and fascination with the colour black, from which comes his slow-roasted pineapple with vanilla ice cream, a dessert permeated through and through with smoky black edible charcoal.
AKMÉ First Floor, 55 by The Group, 55 Wulumuqi Nan Lu, near Hengshan Lu (6428 9799).
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