Bar Sifón
What: A fanciful bar with Chef Franki’s
culinary gems.
Where: 532 Fuxing Zhong Lu, near Ruijin Lu.
Tel: 5352 1361. Web: www.samfaina.com.cn
Why: For extravagant food and drinks at reasonable prices.
Bar Sifón is set below Samfaina, the restaurant and gastrobar by head chef and restaurateur Francesc Fernández Almodóvar, better known as Franki. Sticking close to Franki’s Spanish roots, Bar Sifón not only offers fantastic cocktails, mixers, house pours and beer, but also conveniently provides bites to soak up the alcohol with indulgently good snacks. Slightly bigger than traditional Spanish tapas, these bites would not be out of place at a bar in trendy Barcelona. The continental theme is carried on through the modern décor with one wall brimming with treasures including a selection of the bar’s namesake, old fashion sifóns lovingly transported back from Spain, an old fashioned gramophone, radio and video recorder along with a host of European posters. The other walls are covered in a collage of bright, fun prints including an English gentleman in a top hat, dancing sifóns and multiple reproductions of Hokusai’s, The Great Wave of Kanagawa; all suggesting the playful nature of a bar that doesn’t take itself too seriously and which caters to those looking for a good time.
We were surprised by the low drink prices for such an upmarket establishment. We were also happy to see the small diagrams depicting the type of glass you will receive your tipple in. This makes it possible to choose a drink according to how thirsty you are or, for the ingenious ones amongst us, enabling patrons to calculate how much bang for their buck they will get with each cocktail. We chose new bar manager Michael Liu’s signature cocktail, Angel’s Delight (RMB 58), a light pink cocktail with a girly mix of gin, Grand Marnier, grenadine and cream which was served in a martini glass; a glutinously sweet treat. Our next poison was a Pamplemousse (RMB 60) with Ketel One Vodka, Aperol and grapefruit juice, again served in a martini glass; the light, slightly bitter cocktail is perfect for the eagerly anticipated summer months.
The audacious bites, as to be expected from Franki, consist of a wide variety of bar snacks and light meals ranging from a humble cheese platter (RMB 128) to the more daring ox fillet sashimi (RMB 98). We settled for pulpo a la gallega, Galician Octopus (RMB 118). The thinly sliced octopus was cooked to perfection and beautifully tender whilst the boiled potatoes, which were stacked beneath the meat, were covered in a generous amount of olive oil and crunchy rock salt.
We also selected marinated foie gras (RMB 98), which was deliciously decadent and served warm with a thick, rich sauce.
Bar Sifón is open for lunch between 11:30am and 2:30pm, and dinner from 6pm until last orders at 10:30pm. From 15 March, an afternoon tea selection will also be available. It is the perfect bar to while away an afternoon or evening with good company and, potentially, even better food and drinks.
