Sabor Shanghai is offering some of the best value fine dining in the city right now. The new, broadly Spanish restaurant conceived of by Chef Diego Guerrero has taken over the space formerly inhabited by La Pedrerabehind the Waldorf Astoria on Sichuan Zhong Lu. Where La Pedrera was a fairly dull eatery, Sabor is anything but - dishes are fun, genuinely unique and exceptionally tasty. Better yet, they're also relatively affordable.
The restaurant is still in soft opening, but they insist that even when they go 'grand open' they'll still be offering set menus only (at dinner at least), starting from 300RMB for eight dishes and rising to 500RMB for 14 dishes. That doesn't include drinks, but it's still a bargain for the culinary creations they're serving here.
Guerrero helped Madrid's El Club Allard to two Michelin stars before opening his own DSTAgE restaurant, which promptly picked up a Michelin star as well. He's not going to be at the pass here every day of course, but the quality coming out of the kitchen so far in Shanghai is impressive, and while his first venture here may have come a little late for inclusion in the first Shanghai Michelin Guide, we wouldn't bet against it making its way in eventually.
The set menus at Sabor change daily depending on what ingredients are available. For the most part though, they're steering clear of filling their parade of dishes with super expensive ingredients and items - you're unlikely to get caviar followed by lobster followed by wagyu fillet for example.
But that's not to say you won't see some fine dining staples along the way. Our early favourites include openers such as the pair pictured here; on the left is a combination of creamy foie gras that bursts out from a wafer thin duck skin pastry, and on the right is a wonderfully light bite of eel blended beautifully with an almond paste.
As the dishes increase in size, you might be served sardines with pancetta or juicy, tender cutlets of kingfish that have been cooked in a rich tomato broth rendering them melt-in-the-mouth soft or slices of beef wrapped in a layer of crushed olives and topped off with a squid ink-dyed black crisp of potato.
Throughout, the plating is interesting without being overly fussy; petals abound and dishes come atop carved pieces of wood or on specially designed miniature grills, but they're nevertheless accessible. The fancy presentation reaches its zenith with the desserts, of which there are usually two - what appears to be a hen's egg sitting atop a small nest, followed by a dish of what purports to be cloves of garlic. We shan't spoil the surprise by telling you what they're actually made of just now, but they're more than just Instagram or Moments-friendly fodder - they're a delicious way to round off an outstanding meal.
Given how easy it is to burn through 300RMB a head on a fairly average dinner in this city, Sabor represents great value - especially in such close proximity to The Bund. If you want to check it out, you'll find the full details below - they can be a bit funny about walk-ins while they're in soft opening, so bookings are recommended.
Sabor is at 33 Sichuan Zhong Lu, near Guangdong Lu, Huangpu district