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Please note, Shanghai Blues is now closed. Time Out Food & Drink editors, March 2016.
From the moment you walk in, through the clubby dark foyer and electric-blue cocktail bar into a dining room that blends candle-lit Shanghai teahouse and hip cocktail bar, Shanghai Blues looks like a class act. Soon after we arrived, however, things went awry: wrong orders, long waits, dropped bottles, and spilt drinks. Our steamed har gau prawn dumplings never arrived. In spite of the flaky service, the food can be very good, and dishes such as steamed sea bass with Shanghai spice and chilli were beautifully cooked – and even beautifully filleted at the table without mishap. The dim sum shows more imagination than most, particularly a delicate, juicy scallop dumpling in green (spinach juice) pastry. For those prepared to go beyond the knee-jerk British order of crispy shredded duck, the barbecued pipa (banjo) duck, served with fingers of steamed white bread, is a lacquered, action-packed treat. Wines are pricey, and puds are very modish, à la warm green-tea pancakes and edgy dessert cocktails. Smooth out the service, and Shanghai Blues could be the class act it promises to be.