Food & Drink news: New Constellation opening this week

Bar Constellation Exclusive, the Julu Lu outpost of quality cocktail bar Constellation's empire, only opened in August of last year, but closed in April due to issues with the government concerning the use of the building. It didn't take long for owner Kin-san to find himself a new location however, and the new Bar Constellation Exclusive is set to open this Saturday (6 August) on Fenyang Lu, in the old Mogoo Cafe space. As ever, expect lots of dark wood panelling and quality whiskies.

Right next door, a new club and watering hole is going in where bar of disrepute Three Sisters used to be. Mirror Club, which comes with the tag line 'reflect yourself', is going into soft opening as of this Friday with free-flow from 10pm-midnight (although it's currently not clear what will be flowing). The club will be looking to pick up some after hours business too; it's open until 6am.

A little way south, there's a new oyster place open on Yongkang Lu in the space that used to house Hungry Lung's Kitchen before they moved to the Jiashan Lu end of the bar strip. Entitled Six Degrees, it's been opened by an oyster importer and the plan is to offer 11 different types of oyster, mostly from France (starting at 518RMB by the half dozen). In addition, there are slightly overpriced appetisers such as Iberico ham (78RMB) and tuna and avocado salad (98RMB), plus mains including a better value roasted spring chicken (78RMB) and tasty sea urchin risotto (198RMB).

Shooting for a similar clientele, 'brasserie and bar' Boil & Broil is up and running in the Hubin Dao Shopping Mall beside Xintiandi. There's a French accent to everything on the menu here, with a bouillabaisse of mussels, shrimp, clams and cod for 168RMB (meant to be shared among two), braised Angus short ribs in a Burgundy jus (188RMB) and a creme brulee (58RMB) among the dishes available. There's also a decent drinks list, with cocktails from 65RMB and wines by the glass from 58RMB. Bear in mind that there's a pesky 10 percent service charge on top of those prices though.

In important ice cream news, excellent Jingan sweet treat spot CinnaSwirl have introduced a cinnamon roll and frosting ice cream at their Yuyuan Lu store (pictured right). It's only available for a limited time, so we suggest you get on it while you can - it's all kinds of delicious.

Speaking of deliciousness, if you're still mourning the passing of Pirata (we are) you'll want to get to Egg's upcoming Chef's Table Residency with former Pirata head honcho Ling Huang. Running from Thursday 11-Saturday 13 August, the residency will be showcasing her new Cuban and Central American concept Latin Woo (which is still to find a permanent home) with 88RMB sandwich and cocktail combos. We can't wait.

Meanwhile, over on Jianguo Xi Lu just past the junction with Jiashan Lu, slow food proponent VIA has been replaced by a new spot entitled Opposite. Now being operated by Justin & Hu, also behind Justin & Hu Studio on Huaihai Zhong Lu, Opposite is serving a broad range of Western dishes with a few Asian touches thrown in.

Saveur, the new cafe from Cuivre chef Michael Wendling that we mentioned last month, is now open at Plaza 66. On the menu there are dishes such as Thai-style chicken satay with egg noodles (58RMB), Vietnamese spring rolls with poached shrimp (58RMB) and sandwiches including a pastrami Reuben (78RMB). Lunch sets including half a daily salad, half a sandwich and a soft drink are available for 58RMB and if you add another 10RMB to that you'll get a cookie as well.

And if you missed it in our Best of the week blog, Southern Barbarian is celebrating ten years in the game with a bunch of cut-price deals this week. You can get 30 percent off their delicious chicken wings, fried goats cheese, toothpick beef (pictured) and potato pancakes along with all their other dishes all week, plus they're offering half-priced Yunnanese mushrooms and buy-one-get-one-free on certain beers. It's a landmark well worth celebrating.