Restaurant Blues

After living in NY for so many years I have been spoiled by the endless variety of cuisines available in Gotham. So that was a bit of an adjustment when I came to Shanghai. Not that there aren't any good food here, quite on the contrary food here is quite good. Its just that the good food are of the various styles of Chinese food (Sichuan, Shanghaiese, Cantonese, Northern China etc) which are somewhat unique to each other but are fundamentally similar. In NYC one can enjoy good food from all corners of the world prepared by immigrants from those countries. Therefore authenticity of the food is preserved. Here in Shanghai, many foreign restaurants are owned by the Chinese, therefore authenticity is compromised. These small differences makes me think, " hmm something is just not right with this sushi".

Of course, it makes sense why this is the case. For most people around the world who want to make it big, America is still the big attraction and for immigrants the place to go is NYC. Flat out, there is just more money flowing through the US economy so that attracts some of the best talent and that includes chefs.

Anyway, my biggest disappointment is the dearth of quality Japanese food. There are plenty of mediocre Japanese restaurants, but very few are of the quality that exists in NYC. Most Japanese restaurants in Shanghai are of the buffet variety. Usually 150 RMB (around $20) gets you unlimited amount of freshly prepared food off the menu. This is not the buffet that one is familiar with in the US, you don't go to the buffet table and pick through cooked food under heat lamps. Here, you basically are handed a menu and you order anything off the menu in unlimited quantity. So the food at these places are better than your typical buffet, but it is still mediocre. When you are talking about 150 RMB a person for a meal you are talking about quite an expensive meal for an average person in Shanghai. This is a city where the average salary is in the neighborhood of 3000RMB a month. So imagine you make $36,000 in the States and you have to pay for a $150 meal.

What I miss are places like Seki Sushi, Sushi Yasuda, or Sushi of Gari in NYC. Don't get me thinking about the Tsukiji fish market in Tokyo. That is where I had the best sushi in my life behind a counter in a setting that would make a luncheonette proud.

Pizza is a similar story. I did not think that I would miss pizza when I left NY, but did I ever. And a lot has to do with the fact that the best pizza establishments in Shanghai is Pizza Hut or Papa John's. These are places that one would eat in the States when you can't decide where to eat. A large pie at these places would cost 75-110 RMB depending on the topping. That comes to $10 - $15 - around what you would pay in the States for a large pie. What this means is that these places are somewhat upscale here in China. Overall, the pizza scene in Shanghai is pretty grim. Boy, do I long for places like Grimaldi's in Garden City (haven't been to the original in Brooklyn), Nick's in Forest Hills and heck even the pizzeria by my parent's house.

Sigh, these are some of the things that one must adjust to when you leave a place like NYC.