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The Weekly Eater Nadine Kam |
Shanghai Bistro tries
reinventing Chinese
cuisineTHERE ARE multiple levels of hot and not intended to enlighten those who, unsure of their predilections, or trying to avoid ridicule, are most comfortable following the crowd, whether that means wearing the "right" dress, carrying the "right" dog, drinking the "right" wine or driving the "right" car.
All of these are subject to sudden change, which can have a person looking like a pretzel stretched out on a Twister game, but twist and bend they will to keep up or at least avoid falling behind.
On a much larger scale, cities' popularity also ebb and wane, and when it comes to China it's clear Shanghai rules.
Far from the glittering, modern cityscape of the Far East, Hawaii is poised to witness the effect of Shanghai's sheen on the next generation of Hawaii restaurants. Where once Chinatown's restaurants labored to ally themselves with Hong Kong style, I'm sure that in a few years we'll be able to cite the opening of Shanghai Bistro as a defining moment on the local dining scene.
Of course you can't reinvent a city without reinventing its cuisine and that poses quite a dilemma. How does one go about improving on thousands of years of tradition? I don't know if it's possible, but Shanghai Bistro is giving it a shot, borrowing from Hawaii's Pacific Rim bag of tricks.
President Li May Tang, left, and executive chef Chih-Chieh Chang display house specialties at Shanghai Bistro. At center is the deep fried whole sea bass with a golden seafood treasure bag at left.
THE RESTAURANT is dressed in teak, from floor to beams and tables, and guests are treated to little luxuries of beaded napkin rings, chopstick rests and soothing bells wrapped around chopsticks. It's one of the most beautiful restaurants on Oahu.
Great care has been taken in presentation throughout, and for the handful of readers who care about such things, the restroom is fully automatic so you can flush, wash and summon a paper towel with a wave of your hand.
The menu reminded me of Jackie's Kitchen, with its Chinese-themed roster of appetizers and entrees running about $16 to $18.
Shanghai Bistro shows off its Chinese heritage with pot stickers ($4) combining pork, shrimp, cabbage and ginger, and crab meat in a taro basket ($4), but isn't afraid to explore other territories via Vietnamese-style sugarcane shrimp ($6), crab cakes ($7), and various sushi rolls. Of course, this being a Chinese restaurant, they can't resist deep-frying a tuna roll ($4), though I didn't find the cooked ahi as enjoyable as the raw stuff.
Unless you love carbs, don't bother with the Rainbow Bistro Potato ($4), which a tablemate chose. If I had read the menu more thoroughly I would have skipped this order of taro, Okinawan sweet potato and regular potato fries.
I was disappointed when the teapot soup ($7) arrived because the menu showed a giant clear glass teapot which I assumed was the soup, which actually arrived in a tiny single-serve ceramic pot. Dried scallops and shrimp amid pieces of chicken, pork, celery and ginger gave the soup an extra briny wallop that non-seafood lovers at the table found unpleasant. If you don't like seafood, don't bother showing up.
The flaming satay tenderloin steak was excellent, the flame encircling the dish thanks to a ring of salt and rum, although at $18, the small stack of cubed steak seemed meager.
I jumped at the chance to try dry, stir-fried Dungeness crab ($20), recalling a dry curried crab I tried in Hong Kong, that I enjoyed so much I returned for more, but alas, I became ill after catching a bug off the city's sweaty vibe or moist public hand railings, so was unable to taste it that second time.
So I had some high expectations for Shanghai Bistro's version, which possessed the zing of chili powder, but was more sweet than savory due to a generous layer of shredded coconut. I prefer savory flavors, but I imagine a lot of people will fall in love with this dish. Traditionalists should probably stick with the Maine lobster ($28) in black pepper and butter sauce.
There is also kung pao chicken ($13), roast pork ($17) and a specialty of white shrimp ($11) stir-fried in butter, garlic, salt, pepper and beer, but I had to try the crispy whole sea bass ($23), which, though simply deep-fried, was the best dish, served with an array of aioli, soy and sweet chili sauces, plus all-spice and sesame salt.
Dessert is generally a no-brainer, but here, simpler is better. Jasmine tea "pudding" was a perfumy jelly. A dessert of red dates and mochi ("moki" according to our waiter) proved dangerously sticky to the point where people might look forward to seeing their dentists afterward. Stick with the almond tofu.
No one says change is easy, but progress can't happen without a lot of experimentation, so I have to commend them for this opening volley.
Discovery Bay, 1778 Ala Moana Boulevard / 955-8668 Shanghai Bistro
Hours: 11:30 a.m. to 10:30 p.m. daily
Food 
Service Ambience Value Cost: About $30 to $60 for two without drinks
See some past restaurant reviews in the Columnists section.
Nadine Kam's restaurant reviews are conducted anonymously and paid for by the Star-Bulletin. Star ratings are based on comparisons of similar restaurants:
To recommend a restaurant, write: The Weekly Eater, P.O. Box 3080, Honolulu, Hawaii 96802. Or send e-mail to nkam@starbulletin.com
excellent; very good, exceeds expectations; average; below average.
