LOCATION: at Grand Central Hotel Shanghai (Click on LOCATION to go to full City Weekend Listing)

CITY WEEKEND GOURMET WEEK MENU

available april 16-23

PRICE: TBA

TIMES: TBA

GOURMET WEEK EDITORIAL REVIEW

THE CENTRAL HOTEL (Wang Bao He) has a history of 200 years in Shanghai. Its latest incarnation is a seven-year old tower near People's Square. The Bao Yue Xuan restaurant on the seventh floor features amber-colored glass chandeliers, golden candelabras and a floral carpet of golds, greens and pinks.

Executive Chef Lam Yin Fat from Hong Kong moved to Shanghai almost 13 years ago, but he still remains devoted to traditional Cantonese classics. He starts us off with a mixed char siu platter; the big hearty chunks of roast duck, chicken and red glazed pork are rich and warming.

Next is a precious dish: braised shark's fin and fresh crab meat in brown sauce. The mild broth is stocked with generous amounts of the prized ingredients. Following (and each dish comes out in perfect rapid succession the moment the last bite is polished off) is XO sauce on tender butterflied shrimp with asparagus. The sauce sings with an ocean briny-ness from dried scallop, while strips of intense dried ham lend a wonderful salt pork flavor, the dish is rounded out beautifully with tiny hints of chili and scallion.

Marble Goby (Sun Ke Fish, a fresh water fish from South East Asia) has a delightful crispy outer layer and moist white flesh inside. It is blanketed with slivers of ginger, scallion and red chili and lying in a bath of fragrant soy sauce and oil.

A bowl of soothing milky broth with dried scallop, golden needle mushrooms and clear noodles is light with clear flavors from the excellent fish stock. Meanwhile a dim sum treat of shrimp dumpling bursts with fresh, plump shrimp; it is one of the best xiajiao I've had in Shanghai.

The finale is Chef Lam's unique fried rice: I love the surprising crunch of flying fish roe and the chunks of fresh scallop meat. We end our meal in full agreement that Bao Yue Xuan excels at the classical flavors of traditional Cantonese cooking.