[Shanghai] elEFANTE (Dinner)(2)

elEFANTE | Dianping
Address: 东湖路20号 – 20 Donghu Lu (徐汇区 Xuhui District)       
Date visited: 2014.09 for dinner
Total bill: Food ~RMB¥800, wine and water ~RMB¥500 for three people
Will return: Likely
What to get:
– Kingfish and coconut ceviche
– Crab salad
– Fish and prawn croquettes
– Seared foie gras
– Callos
– Chocolate volcano
– Milky way creme caramel

Sparkling Water Guy (notoriously named because he only goes to places that serve sparkling water) kept telling me I was “doing elEFANTE wrong” from my last visit and that I basically didn’t order any of the tapas he liked and that I had to go again for a proper elEFANTE experience. Okay, SWG.

I don’t like everything here and with a lot of restaurants, I find that I really have to know what to order that best suits my palate palate. Although my favorite restaurants are ones where majority of the menu is consistent with what I like, some restaurants may taste great the first time and not so great the second time (and vice versa) when different dishes are ordered each time. While I was not keen on the tapas we ordered last time, I finally “did elEFANTE right” this time with a combination of Chef Will’s recommendations and SWG’s must-orders. But do refer to my previous visit for big meat dishes that I liked.

Sparkling water because Sparkling Water Guy graced us with his presence today. Seeing VOSS more as the source of bottled water in restaurants these days.

Sparkling Water Guy in the flesh. A rare sighting.

Bread (Complimentary)

Kingfish and coconut ceviche (RMB¥95) with caramelized sweet potato, coriander, and lime sorbet
Recommend: yes
A chilled citrus and coconut flavored ceviche to start.

House smoked octopus (RMB¥88) with watermelon, jalapeños, chipotle sauce, coriander, avocado salad
Recommend: no
While I like the octopus and potato pairing, the sauce was a bit too sweet. Not a fan.

Crab salad (RMB¥98) with avocado, white mushrooms, lime-basil sorbet
Recommend: yes
Refreshing with a crunch of celery. Mix everything together and spread on toast.

Fish and prawn croquettes (RMB¥70)
Recommend: yes
Croquettes you can grab by the tail like corn dogs with substantial fish and prawn inside.

Seared foie gras (RMB¥98) with apple and ginger tarte tatin, pistachio and five spice jus
Recommend: yes
Can’t go wrong with seared foie gras and a taste of fall with warm apples to pair.

Mini pitas (RMB¥88) with marinated beef, Greek yoghurt, and hummus, served with tabbouleh
Recommend: yes
Bite size mini pitas filled with Mediterranean flavors.

Callos (RMB¥125) with braised tripes Madrid style, chorizo, and morcilla sausages
Recommend: yes
My favorite dish of the night! Super tender intestines, tendons, and meat braised in a thick sauce that is great to dip bread into.

Chocolate volcano (RMB¥75) with berry lava
Recommend: yes
Poke for a gush of warm chocolate and berry lava.

Milky way creme caramel (RMB¥60)
Recommend: yes
Literally tastes like a Milky Way bar in creme caramel form in a jar topped with ice cream.

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