Located on the 39th floor of Taipei's towering Far Eastern Plaza Hotel, the Shanghai Pavilion not only offers diners some of the best vistas of the sprawling metropolis but also some of the tastiest Shanghai cuisine to be found anywhere in Taiwan. The restaurant might be located in one of Taipei's classiest hotels, but unlike some of the capital's other such establishments it is far from intimidating, attracting a diverse clientele ranging from media and sporting celebrities to ordinary families with children. With its Old World decor and the constant refrains of 1920s Chinese popular music, the restaurant offers diners a slice of old Shanghai in modern Taipei.
Under the guidance of the jovial Chef Yi (易啟水), the kitchen staff of the Shanghai Pavilion have created a menu that, according to the ever-friendly and smiling chef, is as an authentic a reproduction of that found in 1920s Shanghai as is possible in latter day Taipei. And with 35 years' experience in the preparation and creation of authentic Shanghai cooking, Chef Yi should know.
PHOTO: GAVIN PHIPPS, TAIPEI TIMES
The menu is so packed with mouthwatering dishes that a visit to the Pavilion is like the food served therein -- an experience to enjoy and savor.
With everything from crispy jellyfish head (NT$380), drunken chicken (NT$480) and spiced duck tongue (NT$660) to fresh crab in wine sauce (NT$700) and stir-fried shrimps with sweet sauce (NT$660) on offer, even choosing your appetizer can prove somewhat of a daunting task.
And when it comes to main dishes the task becomes an even more daunting one, with traditional favorites such as braised fish with Shanghai salty vegetables (NT$1,800) and braised barramundi cod in brown sauce (N$1,800). These, along with the slightly less expensive steamed Chinese ham in honey sauce with Chinese buns (NT$880), sauteed shredded chicken with snow beans (NT$800) and baked beggar's spring chicken (NT$900), mean that every turn of the page only adds to the ordering conundrum.
Along with the multitude of traditional dishes, Chef Yi also cooks up a selection of more contemporary Shanghai dishes. And while dishes such as the succulent sauteed fillet of beef with gingo fruit (NT$880) would be as alien to 1920s China as fish and chips, the blithe chef's contemporary creations have become some of the joint's most popular dishes.
Although the menu contains various sharks fin dishes, Chef Yi ensures that all of the fins served are caught legally and none are purchased from agents known to be involved in the illegal and bloody trade of finning. Ranging in price from NT$1,300 for a simple yet tasty braised shark fin soup with chicken, to the even more costly double-boiled shark fin soup with bamboo fungus and pumpkin at NT$2,000, sampling the controversial Chines delicacy at the Shanghai Pavilion doesn't come cheap.
Address: Far Eastern Plaza Hotel, 39F, 201, Tunhua S. Rd., Sec. 2, Taipei
(台北市敦化南路二段201號)
Telephone:(02) 2378-8888 ext. 5970
Open: 11:30am to 2:30pm and 6:30pm until 9:30pm daily
Average meal: NT1,000 plus per person.
Details: English menu. Major credit cards accepted
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