We left Manila on a morning flight. I do not remember when I last saw our city on a Sunday morning, having the habit of downing one too many martinis and merlots every Saturday night. It was quite surreal and everything appeared soft and hazy.
We arrived at Pudong airport mid-afternoon. With large and dark sunglasses covering even larger eye bags, my two companions and I entered the Jin Mao Tower, a building housing the Grand Hyatt from the 54th to the 87th floor thereby making it the tallest hotel in the world. We were whisked off to the 54th floor for check-in by elevators that seem to be entirely done in gold. We then set off for an even higher altitude to our assigned rooms. Ravenous from not eating my airline meal (I asked for fish and received something that had the texture of tire rubber) – I frantically flipped through the room service menu and ordered a very comforting bowl of hot noodles with shanghai spring rolls.
Our concierge recommended a classic Shanghainese resto called Meilongzhen for dinner. This is where I saw the long-spouted tea pitchers (at least 30 inches by my calculations) handled so dexterously by the servers. The dining room resembled much of the interiors featured in the movie, Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon. I actually wished Zhang Zi Yi’s character was at my command so I could ask her to break the neck of this extremely loud man at the next table. My attention was soon diverted to the food that came swiftly from the kitchen. We started on delicately seasoned sautéed fresh white shrimps with texture so slippery that I had great difficulty eating them with my chopsticks. The highlight among the main courses was the stewed duck served in a ceramic pot – extremely tender and savory.
Our second day saw us at 1221 for lunch, another Shanghainese restaurant. My guidebook said the interiors were chic but as I entered, I thought they were quite cheap! Oh well, the sliced eel stir-fried in chili and the bean curd with black mushrooms somewhat made up for it. After lunch, we headed for the silk market located at a narrow road in the old part of the city. We were overwhelmed by the long row of hole-in-the-wall shops that brimmed with beautiful silk patterns. Satisfied with my purchases, I could not wait till I could get home to have them transformed into "fight!" outfits.
A Shanghai-based Filipino friend hosted dinner that evening. It was held at an Asian restaurant named Face located in a sprawling courtyard that housed other tres chic night haunts. The building it occupied housed two concepts on two separate floors; downstairs was for Indian and upstairs for Thai – the latter was where we chose to dine. A large garuda (Indonesian bird god) led us to a very cozy atmosphere where grand sculptures from the different regions of Asia dominated the dark wood interiors. We also passed through private rooms reminiscent of old opium dens in Saigon. Seated at our long dinner table, we started on spicy beef and vegetable salad followed by crab cakes, fresh spring rolls and prawn kebabs. Dessert was sweet glutinous pandan rice cakes. Craving for a very dry martini, we walked next door to a very stark bar called Colours. One had to enter the place through a portal made almost entirely of glass illuminated by lights that changed into different colors. My architect travel mate was extremely impressed by the singularity of the whole structure.
A painful hangover the following morning was promptly remedied by a huge cup of coffee and a cold shower. Soon enough, I was ready to go antique-hunting in the Yu gardens, a popular tourist center that houses many markets. We were forewarned that the Shanghainese merchants would laugh at us if we did not at least ask for a 50-percent discount on their goods. I was certain they felt exactly the opposite after my bargaining-adept friend brought down the price of a large bronze incense vase to a fourth of the original price.
We decided to take a break from our string of Asian dining that evening by going to The Door, a continental restaurant that was almost like a replica of the Buddha bar in Paris. I’ve honestly had much better mushroom veloute and duck ravioli but the comfort room was definitely worth the visit.
Our final day in Shanghai had us doing last-minute purchases and the pasalubong obligations at the hawker markets. Quite a surprising sight was a swanky Starbucks outfitted with chandeliers and plush Edwardian chairs! It was the coffee empire’s chicest outlet that I’d ever seen.
The most decadent dinner I’ve had in recent years came later that evening: an eight-course dinner almost made entirely of hairy crabs – a freshwater variety with a bristly exterior extremely popular in this region of China. The meal started with what became my most favorite dish of the whole trip: drunken crab – raw and marinated in a mild vinegar and alcohol. The latter courses included a thick soup made of crab fat and a stew generously covered with a layer of crab roe. We all agreed that it wouldn’t be a surprise to find an ambulance parked right around the corner on standby for guests who may experience cardiovascular attacks. Death by crabs? You bet!
Nearing midnight, we made our last stop for the evening at The Bund, a grand riverside strip where Shanghai’s colonial past is still very evident. Art Deco is the predominant architectural style among the imposing buildings. It’s a clear contrast over the glass and steel towers located on the other side of the river. We had a couple of drinks at M on the Bund, Michelle Garnault’s export from her M on the Fringe, now a dining institution in Central Hong Kong. The 7th floor resto-bar features 1930s orientalia furnishings among plush seats and streamlined tables.
On an unstoppable martini roll, we went back to The Grand Hyatt to challenge our acrophobia by setting out to the 87th floor for the hotel’s bar lounge. Reward came in the form of what I think Utopia should be: A perfect dry Grey Goose martini with three large green olives and a grandiose sight of an extraordinary city while lounging among the clouds.