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Bo Shanghai
Add: 6/F, Bund 5, 5 Zhongshan Dong Yi Lu
Tel: 5383 3656
Hours: 6:30-11pm
Price: set menu 1500 RMB + 10%, with wine pairing 2200 RMB + 10%
Visited: Oct 2016
Please note that this was an invited tasting arranged by the restaurant.
I haven’t been to Bo Innovation in Hong Kong, but I have heard quite a lot about this much-debated Three Michelin star restaurant and its self-proclaimed “demon chef” Alvin Leung. London-born, Canada-raised Alvin was originally an engineer, and after teaching himself how to cook, he opened Bo Innovation in his 40s and quickly won two Michelin stars (subsequently three stars, and the restaurant is also currently ranked #28 in the World’s 50 Best Restaurants). His brand new Bo Shanghai recently soft-opened, and before it officially launches at the end of this month, let’s go have a sneak peek.
請注意本次為餐廳安排試吃。
沒有吃過香港的 Bo Innovation，不過對這家爭議不斷的米其林三星餐廳和其自稱 “廚魔” 的主廚 Alvin Leung 早有耳聞。倫敦出生、加拿大長大的 Alvin 本是工程師，自學廚藝後在40幾歲時開了自己第一家餐廳 Bo Innovation，並迅速得到了米其林得青睐（目前也名列 “世界最佳50餐廳” 第28位）。最近他在上海外灘五號的 Bo Shanghai 開始試運營，聽說月底要正式開幕，趕在那之前，先來嚐嚐。
Arriving on the 6th floor of Bund Five, I was led through Bistro Daimon (another new concept by Alvin) to the hidden Bo Shanghai. So it does seem like everything needs to be hidden these days…like Tai’an Table (which was recently awarded one Michelin star but had to close due to license issues) or Speak Low (a perpetually packed speakeasy bar by famed Japanese bartender Shingo Gokan). Bo Shanghai has just 26 seats (including 6 at the bar) with a nice view of the bund, though the view really isn’t the focus here…
抵達外灘五號的6樓，先經過 Bistro Daimon，在服務人員的引導下來到藏在牆後的 Bo Shanghai。現在的餐廳（比如剛得米其林一星就被迫關門的泰安門）和酒吧（像是穿過角落的書架方得入內的Speak Low），為何都流行藏起來？Anyway，進入 Bo Shanghai 後發現其實地方很小，位子就26個，夜景挺美的（不過來這裡吃飯，夜景應該不是重點哦…）
The two chefs at Bo Shanghai (DeAille and Simon, the two on the right in the photo below) are both Cantonese who grew up in Toronto, and before arriving in Shanghai they were working with Alvin for over two years in Bo Innovation.
Bo Shanghai 的兩位主廚（下圖右邊二位）是在多倫多長大的香港人，來上海之前在 Bo Innovation 工作了兩年多。女主廚 DeAille 說話非常客氣，有空時會很詳細的分享他們的料理故事。男主廚 Simon 說起話來很活潑，有種天然的喜感（喂，這樣說別人好嗎？）。我坐在吧台前用餐，邊吃邊和他們兩位聊天，學習了不少有趣的事情。
Bo Shanghai’s 10-course tasting menu (1500 RMB + 10%, with wine pairing 2200 RMB + 10%) is inspired by the traditional cuisine from China’s 8 different regions, in fusion with French techniques, and is completely different from the offerings in Hong Kong. To start, here are the amuse bouche: croissant with scallion oil filling, and a Chinese bun with black truffles and comté cheese.
Bo Shanghai 的菜色將來自于中國八大菜系的靈感與法國料理做了結合，呈現的是和香港店完全不同的創意。目前只有一個10道菜的套餐，價格 1500 RMB + 10%（配酒套餐 2200 RMB + 10%)。從開胃的 amuse bouche 和面包就已經能嚐到主廚們的融合概念，比如這個放了蔥油的可頌，以及加了黑松露和法國的 comté 芝士的中式花卷。
This “egg yolk” is one of Alvin’s signature creations, a “molecular xiaolongbao”. The skin is made from seaweed extractions, wrapping a soup that tastes exactly like xiaolongbao, adorned with a piece of vinegared ginger. As it bursts in the mouth, the soup is released…a sensation.
這個看起來像蛋黃的開胃小點，是 Alvin 經典創作之一的 “分子小籠包”。海藻制成的薄皮裹著高湯，上面點綴著一片用醋泡過的薑，放入嘴裡後輕壓便破裂，釋放出鮮味十足的小籠包風味。妙。
The second amuse bouche is Shanghainese kaofu, dotted with cheese, caramelized onions, and red wine sauce. French onion soup?
第二道開胃小點是烤麸，上面白色的部份是芝士，搭配了焦糖洋蔥醬以及紅酒醬。
After the amuse bouche, Hunan. Hunan is known for its spicy cuisine, so even though the base of this dish is la ronce oyster from France, it was paired with pickled chili pepper jelly and garlic chili pepper ice, then drizzled with a bit of rice vinegar, lemon juice, and cilantro oil. Not to worry – it is not nearly as spicy as traditional Hunan cuisine, and the spiciness complements instead of overwhelms the natural sweetness from the oyster.
開胃小點之後，Bo Shanghai 的套餐從 “湖南” 開始。湖南人吃辣，所以雖然這道菜以法國 la ronce 生蚝做基底，卻搭配了泡椒果凍和蒜蓉辣椒冰兩種辣味，並用米醋、檸檬汁、香菜油做提味。這道菜的辣是微辣，不像傳統湘菜那般強烈，並不會將生蚝本身的風味蓋過去。
2nd course: Zhejiang. Taking Hangzhou’s famous “Longjing Shrimp” as inspiration, the chefs combined Japanese Botan shrimps, slow-cooked egg, sturgeon caviar from Heilongjiang, Long Jing tea oil and tea powder, crustacean bisque, and some winter bamboo shoots to add textural contrast. One of my favorites of the evening.
第二道：浙江。主廚們以杭州名菜龍井蝦仁爲靈感，用日本牡丹蝦搭配慢煮溫泉蛋、黑龍江鲟龍魚籽、龍井茶油和茶粉、龍蝦高湯、再以冬筍丁增加口感上的層次，非常迷人。
3rd course: Sichuan. Inspired by another Chinese classic called ” 夫妻肺片”, the dish pairs duck liver with braised duck tongue and kidney confit. What made this dish especially interesting was the addition of provencal lavender jelly, dotted with some green Sichuan pepper sauce and soy bean powder. In terms of flavor, this was by far the most complicated dish of the evening, but was somehow intriguing and not at all unpleasant for me. No idea how the chefs came up with this combo though…
第三道：四川。這到菜的靈感來自于夫妻肺片，用法式鴨肝搭配鹵鴨舌頭和油封鴨腎，最妙的是還鋪了一層普羅旺斯薰衣草凍，再點綴了一些綠花椒香草醬以及幹燥黃豆粉。以味道來說，這道菜是整晚最複雜的一道 － 薰衣草＋鴨肝和鹵味這個組合實在令人意想不到，卻也莫名的和諧，我個人非常喜歡，真不知主廚們是如何想到這個點子的。
4th course: Jiangsu. Eel tempura, barley and water chestnut sauteed in smoked-butter, termite mushroom, ginger foam. The fried coating was too thick for me, but the sauteed water chestnut and barley was a hit.
第四道：江蘇。酥炸鳗魚佐紅燒醬汁，下面是煙熏牛油炒過的薏米馬蹄、幾朵雞枞菇、再淋上嫩姜泡沫。個人覺得酥炸的面衣略厚了些，煙熏牛油薏米馬蹄我倒是非常愛，一粒不剩的吃幹淨。
5th course: Anhui. Frog leg, Yunnan ham cream, matsutake mushroom, powdered Espelette pepper, mandarin peel. The matsutake mushroom was amazing, otherwise not a memorable dish.
第五道：安徽。蛙腿、雲南火腿奶油醬、香煎松茸、法國紅辣椒粉、橙皮油。除了松茸很美味以外，印象不深的一道菜。
6th course: Shandong. When in Shangdong, one must eat sea cucumber. The chefs paired this with Italian langoustine moussline, sliced horseradish and celeriac, sauce Nantua (a crayfish-based sauce traditionally used in French cuisine with quenelle de brochet), and millet seaweed crisp. The reason behind using millet is because this was the first currency back in the days, even Confucius (who is from Shandong, by the way) used this to collect tuition from his pupils. I’m not a fan of sea cucumber and I don’t find it particularly appetizing even with all the pairings, but the concept is cool.
第六道：山東。到了山東果然要吃海參，主廚們用其搭配了意大利小螯蝦慕斯、 辣根和西芹根絲、法國的 sauce Nantua（一種小龍蝦奶油醬汁，在法餐裏一般用于搭配 quenelle 魚丸子），以及小米紫菜餅。選擇使用小米是因爲這個谷物是最早的貨幣，比如孔子當年都是用小米收學費的（順便一提，孔子是山東人，也是這道菜的聯系之一）。這道菜我不特別喜歡，本身對海參就沒什麽興趣，也不認爲加了螯蝦慕斯和米餅後有讓我更喜歡它，雖然概念還是有趣的…
Next was a palate cleanser in the form of a “dragon ball” – sugarcane ginger cream flash frozen using liquid nitrogen.
下一道菜之前先來了一個清口腔的 “龍珠”，是放入液態氮中極速冷凍的甘蔗姜茶慕斯。直接用手拿放入嘴裏，入口後即可化成液體，又是一個妙。
The chef preparing our next dish…
DeAille 在用自動轉盤裝飾我們下一道料理。
7th course: Fujian. Medium rare wagyu with Fujian red rice wine sauce, vinegared pearl onions, lychee puree, triple-cooked potato, and powdered crab roe. Delicious, and beautiful colors, too!
第七道：福建。三分熟的和牛佐福建紅曲米酒醬、醋泡藠頭、荔枝果茸、酥炸土豆、以及蟹子粉。剛才 DeAille 用自動轉盤擠在盤子底部的就是荔枝果茸，自然的甜味和藠頭的酸味搭配和牛，非常好。而且這道菜的顔色好美喲，少女心小爆發。
8th course: Guangdong. The carb of choice is zongzi, with salted duck yolk as done traditionally, but the fatty pork was substituted with ham, then paired with duck bone sauce, truffle, and truffle oil. The zongzi was cooked in a mushroom soup, resulting in a darker color and richer flavor.
第八道：廣東。 主食選擇的是粽子、裏面很傳統的加了鹹鴨蛋、不過肥肉以火腿取代、再搭配鴨骨醬汁、松露、和松露油。煮粽子時用的是香菇湯，所以顔色較深，風味也特別濃郁。
9th course: (and we are back in) Hunan. This dessert is a play on oranges – orange blossom panna cotta, orange sorbet, blood orange puree, shaved orange peel, and lastly drizzled with almond ice-cream. I, love, this, dessert. The panna cotta texture was perfect, the orange blossom flavor strong but not overwhelming, and all the other forms of oranges added freshness and flavors…the almond ice-cream for me was the hit, rendering the dessert rounder and complex. I definitely would’ve loved a second serving of this.
第九道：（又回到了）湖南。 這道甜點做了橙子的各種變化：橙花奶酪、橙子雪酪、血橙果泥、現刨橙皮屑、最後撒上用北杏和南杏做成的杏仁冰。我，好，愛，這道甜點！奶酪的口感柔軟微糯的完美，橙花的香味清新不過重，雪酪、果泥、和橙皮屑增添了清爽和香氣，最後撒上的杏仁冰更豐富圓潤了這道甜點的風味。吃完後還想再來一碗。
10th course: opéra. The chefs brought us to France after a tour of China, ending the meal on a classically French dessert. The version at Bo Shanghai uses 70% dark chocolate from Valrhona, and interestingly it was sprayed with Long Jin Fang (Chinese liquor) at the table using a dainty little perfume bottle.
第十道：opéra。遊曆了中國這麽多地方，沒想到套餐的最後一道到了法國。這款經典的 opéra 歌劇院蛋糕用了70％的法芙娜黑巧克力，最特別的一點是在上桌時服務人員會用精致的香水瓶爲蛋糕輕輕地噴上水井坊酒。微微的酒味讓巧克力的風味更加深邃，的確有畫龍點睛的效果（而且這個香水瓶好可愛喲我喜歡）。
This plate is custom-made for this dessert. Do you see the demon in the center holding up the piece of cake?
看見這個特別定制的青花瓷盤中間，有廚魔本人用雙爪撐著這塊蛋糕嗎？
Also worth mentioning is that Bo Shanghai’s opera cake has a lot more layers than the typical opera cake we find in France, and each layer – whether its the Joconde sponge, the chocolate ganache, or the butter cream – is very thin and generally very neatly assembled. Bravo.
另外值得一提的是，Bo Shanghai 的歌劇院蛋糕層次比一般在法國吃到的要多了不少，而且每一層 － 不論是杏仁海綿蛋糕、巧克力甘那許、還是奶油霜 － 都非常薄而且做的算是挺均勻的了，想必費時費工。
Petits fours to finish: osmanthus flower madeleine (though I tasted acidity instead of osmanthus flavor), hawthorne berry cream puffs, and goat cheese honey macarons (so good, give me a dozen of these).
最後的 petits fours 餐後小點：桂花瑪德蓮（不過爲何吃到酸味卻沒有桂花味？）、山楂泡芙（山楂餡對我來說有點水，不過皮很脆，泡芙應該是現灌的）、山羊芝士蜂蜜馬卡龍（好好吃，再給我一打）。
Ended the meal with a cup of Pu’er tea…
以一壺暖暖的普洱茶收尾。
The meal took over three hours (a la francais), but the dishes were interesting so it really went by quite fast. DeAille mentioned that it took around a year to conceptualize the menu and the actual execution and adjusting took about 4 months. Each dish has its unique, well thought-out story, bravo to the chefs for their research and experimentation. Perhaps like Bo Innovation in Hong Kong, Bo Shanghai will be a restaurant of much debate once it opens – if you have a palate for interesting flavors and techniques, do give it a try.
這頓飯吃了三個多小時（法國人的節奏？），但菜品非常有趣，並不會讓人不耐煩或感到無聊。DeAille 說從一開始的構思到現在大約一年時間，其中真正將所有菜品做出來並微調花了四個月左右。加上 amuse bouche，petits fours 等總共十幾道菜色，樣樣都有自己豐富的故事，讓人不禁佩服主廚們對每個地方的食材和文化所做的研究。不過其實喜歡 Bo Shanghai 不僅是因爲菜色創新，而是因爲創新後仍然美味（而不像有些餐廳做菜貪圖與衆不同，卻忘了還要好吃這個重點）。和香港的 Bo Innovation 一樣，Bo Shanghai 在正式開幕後應該也會是充滿爭議性的一家餐廳 － 若你有個喜歡嘗鮮的嘴巴，不妨來試試。
Bo Shanghai
地址：上海市廣東路20號外灘五號6樓
電話：5383 3656
營業時間：6:30-11pm
價位：套餐1500 RMB + 10%，配酒套餐2200 RMB + 10%
造訪日期：2016年10月
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