New & Noted: Samfaina Resto & Gastrobar By Franki

Samfaina’s menu doesn’t look like any other Spanish restaurants’ in the city. There’s not a single tapas dish, or even paella. Instead, you’ll find inspired plates of specialty tartars, desserts dreamed up from childhood memories and a heck of a lot of Iberico ham. The team of young F&B pros running the joint have been cherry-picked from Shanghai’s top Mediterranean restaurants. They know exactly what they’re doing, and it looks (and tastes) like they had a lot of fun doing it. In addition to the sleek and stylish restaurant, the high ceilings shelter two drinking establishments. Tucked away off the dining room, La Bodega is a chilly wine cellar stocked with bottles designed to pair perfectly with the food. Downstairs is Bar Sifon, where a Barcelona-imported mixologist is pouring fresh takes on classic cocktails like the Manhattan (RMB 70) aged in a Jerez sherry barrel. With a picture window opening up on to the street level, the soft lighting and fashionable clientele vaults the bar right into Shanghai’s see-and-be-seen category.

 

In the kitchen is Chef Franki, formerly of El Patio, who draws on his classical French training and Catalonian heritage to whip up “unexpected” salads and soups “with a twist”, alongside market fresh catches sourced daily from an early morning trip to the markets. Degustation menus (starting at RMB 380 for six courses) are the best way to eat your way through his creative repertoire – and in a nice touch Samfaina is donating a portion of the profits from each multi-course meal to charity.

 

Creamed corn topped with a fat oyster and ribbon of Joselito Iberico ham (RMB 78) then drizzled with olive oil was a confusingly delicious combination of sweet, brine and salt and was an indication of the exceptional meal tocome. The bowl was all but licked clean before the cold tomato soup (RMB 98) arrived. This refreshing appetizer forgoes the peppers and garlic of traditional gazpacho, substituting them for elegant Boston lobster claws and smooth avocado ice cream for a taste of decadence. 

 

The unctuous slice of pork feet terrine (RMB 168) repeated the same feat, offering us familiar flavours with exotic additions that took the dish to a whole different level. Melting into a bed of silky mashed potatoes and light pork gravy, the fatty meatloaf was delicious on its own, but it was the smoky grilled octopus on top that made it one of our favourite dishes of the meal.

 

If we weren’t already converts by the time dessert arrived, the green apple and white chocolate pudding (RMB 38 a la carte) would have made believers of us all. Topped with diced black olives, it was as bewildering as it was delicious. We’ll be back just for another spoonful of that.

 

It feels like a new Spanish restaurant pops up weekly in this town, and – to be honest – it was getting to be a bit too much, but this meal proved that we haven’t seen it all from the Iberian Peninsula. Samfaina manages to set itself apart from the other offerings around town without an ounce of kitsch or quirk. The food is young, but soulful – and just downright delicious.