Bund Shanghai
Butter Corn Pancake
Salted Egg Yolk with Pumpkin
Soup Dumpling
Pork and Crab Soup Dumpling
Walnut Shrimp
Braised Pork Belly in Brown Sauce
Flavor Chicken
Shanghai Rice Pudding
Located in a tall building on Decatur Boulevard, just a stone’s throw from the sprawl of Spring Mountain, Bund Shanghai is considered by some to be one of the city’s best places for authentic regional Chinese cuisine, and although prices trend a touch higher than several competitors, so too did quality of the experience as a party of three sat down to sample a mere fragment of the extensive picture-menu.
Admittedly a bit tucked away, and as such perhaps not as popular as it could be with more prominent placement and a menu more attuned to the “cheap eats” crowd, it was just after 6 o’clock on a Saturday that the dining room sat 95% empty and although both front of house and kitchen proved quite leisurely the light IheartRadio soundtrack and conversation help pass the time until plates began to arrive, a menu in three courses just as requested with the total bill just shy of $150 after tax and gratuity.
Passing up novelties like bullfrog, duck heads, and items described only in Chinese characters from the menu’s final page, it was with a quartet of appetizers that the meal kicked off, and although a personal favorite of fried pumpkin in egg yolk was a bit bland despite the pudding-soft texture beneath crisp tempura, the ‘buttered corn pancake’ was definitely something worth seeking out, the texture somewhat akin to a funnel cake with a sprinkling of sugar acting to enhance each kernel’s intrinsic sweetness.
Not one to pass on XLB, especially in a city where good soup dumplings prove quite a challenge to find, Bund certainly ups the game by offering hand-made versions as opposed to the frozen ones offered elsewhere, but varying quality none the less presents a bit of a conundrum, some skins too thick while others are dainty and delicate, the more expensive crab and pork version a bit more meat than was anticipated while the traditional style was briny and bursting with broth.
Acknowledging that higher prices are mostly justified by ingredients, an MSG-Free kitchen, and portion sizes intended to be shared it was with a trio of entrees that the meal marched on and although the chopped “flavor chicken” was a bit too bony to be enjoyed fully both the (misspelled) braised pork and tail-on jumbo shrimp were textbook renditions of classics, the former tender without tasting “fatty” while the later was thankfully more creamy than sweet with the exception of candied walnuts.
Assuredly stuffed, but at least wanting to taste one of Bund’s more esoteric desserts, a large bowl of Shanghai Rice Pudding was selected with oyster forks proving a rather unique utensil with which to indulge and with the sticky rice forming a dome over pureed taro in a generous pool of honey the flavors of coconut and chrysanthemum rose high on the palate while texture was added by red beans and almonds, both.
THREE STARS: Assuredly ‘finer’ dining than many spots on Spring Mountain, with large portions helping to justify the menu’s higher prices, Bund Shanghai proves a good choice for competent Chinese classics with plenty of intrigue remaining in items better suited to those possessing more adventurous palates.
RECOMMENDED: Walnut Shrimp, Braised Pork Belly in Brown Sauce, Butter Corn Pancake.
AVOID: Flavor Chicken, 1/3 of the XLB.
TIP: Cold tea refills are not free, each glass $2.00, while hot tea is.
WHAT THE STARS MEAN: 5 World Class, 4 Excellent, 3 Good, 2 Fair, 1 Poor
