Our last day visiting Shanghai (our flight back home was the following morning), the dawn was sunny and warm after days and days of grey clouds blocking the sky like a hat which kept the city below in a damp cold, that kind of cold you can feel in your bones.
The sun was here, indeed, but the brightness is hardly neat in Shanghai. A curtain of pollution, like a veil of thin tulle fabric, is always present between your eyes and the view.
We made most of the day: we went all over the antique flea markets, we strolled around the old city… and we also visited again the YU garden (so beautiful, that only one visit is never enough). When you get into the garden, you don’t only feel you are traveling back in time but also immersing yourself in a peaceful dream where the stone and water join together to show you their best reflection.
Already in the afternoon, on our way back to the area near the hotel, we wandered around the streets and ran into more contemporary monuments, this one was impressive (Shanghai Exhibition Center).
However, just a few steps away and out of the blue, we were impressed again but not due to a real monument (well this depends also what you consider as a monument), when we set our eyes on this restaurant facade.
It was the perfect timing to have lunch and there is nothing better to break with a week long diet consisting of dumplings, noodles, fried rice and boiled spinach in Chinese wine, with a good typical Spanish lunch. I love Chinese food but a good Spanish ham has always been my weakness… and in this restaurant there was plenty of it.
When we normally eat out in a restaurant specialized in Spanish cuisine outside of Spain, I only ask please that whatever the restaurant may offer, this is at least half the quality of cuisine than a true Spanish restaurant in Spain would offer. We were pleasantly impressed. This restaurant got a high score. It wasn’t very crowded but there was a flow of guests the entire time we were there and that was around 4pm.
Besides all sort of paellas, its menu offered the most typical selection of dishes based on tapas. Regarding the wine, they had a nice list with detailed descriptions. As follows is what we ordered, I hope it is to your liking:
From left to right on below. To drink, red wine Yllera 2010, tempranillo (La Rioja). Smooth and rich. In Spain this wine is quite affordable; the price on their wine list was reasonable if you think about the high taxes on import goods in China. To eat, spinach salad with Spanish ham and orange. One of the best vegetables and fruits that I ever had in my life, it had been in China. Their colors are bright, their texture super light and its flavor delicious. This combined with high quality Spanish ham sautéed with olive oil, makes this dish a great bit to start. Another two dishes with ham: mushrooms and asparagus. Besides the Spanish ham dishes, we also ordered chicken kebabs (the chicken was so juicy) and stuffed piquillo red peppers (the best I have had for a long time, overstuffed and juicy, perfectly moist). At the table all the time, a bit of Catalan tomato bread.
And for dessert, brownie muffin with vanilla ice cream. I know, I know… this is not very Spanish… but who cannot resist to a good brownie with vanilla ice cream? ;-) BUENISIMO! with Daniel Buenos
The sun was here, indeed, but the brightness is hardly neat in Shanghai. A curtain of pollution, like a veil of thin tulle fabric, is always present between your eyes and the view.
Already in the afternoon, on our way back to the area near the hotel, we wandered around the streets and ran into more contemporary monuments, this one was impressive (Shanghai Exhibition Center).
However, just a few steps away and out of the blue, we were impressed again but not due to a real monument (well this depends also what you consider as a monument), when we set our eyes on this restaurant facade.
It was the perfect timing to have lunch and there is nothing better to break with a week long diet consisting of dumplings, noodles, fried rice and boiled spinach in Chinese wine, with a good typical Spanish lunch. I love Chinese food but a good Spanish ham has always been my weakness… and in this restaurant there was plenty of it.
When we normally eat out in a restaurant specialized in Spanish cuisine outside of Spain, I only ask please that whatever the restaurant may offer, this is at least half the quality of cuisine than a true Spanish restaurant in Spain would offer. We were pleasantly impressed. This restaurant got a high score. It wasn’t very crowded but there was a flow of guests the entire time we were there and that was around 4pm.
Besides all sort of paellas, its menu offered the most typical selection of dishes based on tapas. Regarding the wine, they had a nice list with detailed descriptions. As follows is what we ordered, I hope it is to your liking:And for dessert, brownie muffin with vanilla ice cream. I know, I know… this is not very Spanish… but who cannot resist to a good brownie with vanilla ice cream? ;-) BUENISIMO! with Daniel Buenos
A wonderful post, Daniel, with such beautiful photography. Whenever we've traveled in China, I am always taken a bit aback by the pollution. I feel it in my throat and a kind of metallic taste in my mouth. We are so lucky to have such strong environmental controls in our country.
ReplyDeleteI know what you mean about having your first taste of good western food after a long period of nothing but Asian. Even if it is the best Asian food in the world, still I long for a hunk of cheese and a good bread! You and Mario must have been overjoyed to find a Spanish restaurant with such good food!! I was just in St. Augustine, Florida where we ate a little Spanish restaurant. They served piquillo peppers stuffed with chorizo and ham and some sort of cheese. And they covered with a nut sauce...I think it was almond. So good! I simply must go to Spain one of these days to taste for myself. Maybe you can write a post someday on how you like to stuff these peppers?
Thanks for a wonderful tour, Daniel!
Hi Barbara, thank you! Yes it is amazing the pollution in China and I don't know if the following happened to you some time there: every time we arrived at the hotel at night it felt like we had been into a Chimney!
ReplyDeleteYou've never been in Spain??? If so you have to go.
Visiting Spain is a wonderful experience and I recommend not just visiting Barcelona. I love Barcelona and it is beautiful but I think it doesn't represent 100% a typical Spanish city. I always recommend to visit Madrid and regarding Andalusia, at least Seville. Some people in Spring-Summer-beginning of Fall also visit in Andalusia the Costa del Sol because there you find a little bit of everything: Culture (besides customs and flamenco, there are great historic monuments and art museums) leisure (amazing beaches, restaurants... etc) and even luxury (in Marbella and Puerto Banús you can find a lot of this).
I'm originally from Costa del Sol and exactly from Fuengirola. We have an apartment there that we rent to visitors when we are not there. I don't know if you noticed the add on the right hand side of this blog ;-)
By the way tomorrow I'm going to Costa del Sol for 2 weeks. I will be posting from there also! xxx
We have been to Spain but only Barcelona for a few days before leaving on a cruise. We had wonderful tapas and really enjoyed the amazing architecture and history. I noticed the ad for the apartment which I find most interesting....if we decide to visit Spain, I will have to rent Casa Daniel.
ReplyDeleteWhen I was a small child and lived in Germany, we took a family trip to Spain which coincided with the death of Pope John. The whole country was shut down, my parents remember, and I caught the mumps. So not the most memorable trip.
Have a wonderful trip back home and I look forward to seeing your photos on IG! XXX