After only 9 months since its grand opening in October 2009, Cristal Restaurant & Bar has been voted Best Mediterranean Restaurant in Shanghai by readers of City Weekend Magazine and First Runner-up in Best Dessert and Newcomer of the Year categories.
Open throughout the day, Cristal offers breakfast, lunch, dinner, brunch and tapas. The restaurant and barconveys a strong Mediterranean theme through the use of light, earthy colors and natural materials. Covering an area of 460 square meters, it has a total seating capacity of 86. Characterized by a spacious terrace that offers a bird-view of Nanjing Rd (W) Commercial Street, it has floor-to-ceiling windows that can be removed so that the restaurant can be completely open to the outdoor terrace. Other than the main dining room that is adjacent to a swimming pool, there are four other rooms that can cater to a group of 30 down to an intimate dinner for 2 persons.
General Manager and Executive Chef Alexandre Molina, is originally a native from Nice, an ancient town on the French Riviera (Cote d’Azur). He grew up in the midst of Mediterranean scents and tastes and he developed an early passion for cuisine through watching his mother and Spanish grandmother cooking French and Spanish specialties. Typical ingredients of Nice gastronomy like olive oil, anchovies, fresh vegetables andaromatic herbs still hold a fundamental role in his recipes. Of great importance in influencing his style of cuisine were his two formative years of working and training with international culinary Maestro Alain Ducasse, in the 3 Michelin starred Louis XV Restaurant,Hotel de Paris, Monte Carlo.
Cristal’s cuisine is based on the Mediterranean diet, known all around the world to be tasty, yet healthy andbalanced. Special emphasis is placed on the use of fresh, seasonal ingredients and light condiments. The recipes, that draw their origin especially from France, Italy, Spain and Greek, but also from North Africa and Middle East, range between more traditional to innovative ones. They incorporate also touches from Asiatic cuisine.
At Cristal, the signature dish isSpanish Fideo - a mixed seafood dish. The recipe is directly passed down from Alexandre’s grandmother. A lot of restaurant diners order this dish as it has been described as being “simply awesome” by many people including a food reviewer and also the fact that nowhere else in Shanghai can you find this dish.Cristal sells about ten “Fideo” daily.
Cristal’s cuisine has been very popularwith the western community in Shanghai, as well as the Asian community. To be user-friendly, its menu has three different languages – English, Chinese and Japanese.
The Cristal cuisine is alsocomplemented by an excellent wine list that includes both a selection of boutique wines and an assortment of widely acclaimed wines. Besides the wine list, each dish on Cristal’s menu has a wine pairing recommendation. More surprisingly, both full glass and tasting glass are available for guests to try.
Address:
4F, 175 Taixing Rd (near Wujiang Rd)
Tel : : 61361388
Cristal operation hours are as follows:
Lunch: Monday-Friday 11:30 am to 2:30 pm
Dinner: Monday-Sunday 6.00 pm to 10:30 pm
Brunch: Saturday-Sunday 11.00 am to 3.00 pm
Tapas and drinks: Monday-Sunday 5.00 pm to 11.00 pm
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