Here's a kind of amazing all-you-can-eat seafood deal this month
Photograph: Cat Nelson
In a stroke of fairly weird but great news, The Peninsula Shanghai has launched an all-you-can-eat seafood dinner deal in its lobby dining area. The concept of 'all you can eat' – and the gluttony and total loss of any social graces and humanity (eg crowds literally attacking seafood buffets) it generally brings about – doesn't really seem to vibe with the classy character of The Peninsula and its usual promotions. And yet, they're going for it.
Priced at 368RMB per person on weekdays (Sundays through Thursdays) and 398RMB on weekends (Friday and Saturday), the dinner deal at The Peninsula's lobby comes out to 429RMB (weekdays) and 464RMB (weekends) after the standard 16.6 percent hotel surcharge. Kids under 12 are half price. It's more expensive but competitive with Wan Dao's highly rated seafood buffet, which is priced 380RMB per person, and you're getting very high-quality seafood in Peninsula surrounds (hello, Lobby jazz band) and top-tier service. Also of note is that the dishes are made-to-order and delivered to the table so you don't need to suffer the indignity of a buffet.
For eats, there's a variety of raw and cooked seafood options. Think oysters, smoked salmon, poached snow king crab and shrimp and a sashimi platter (salmon, sweet shrimp, hamachi, marinated conch and Atlantic clams). There are baked oysters with an XO Hollandaise sauce, teriyaki eel and all kinds of market seafood like scallops, sea bass and lobster that the kitchen will prepare however you want (grilled, roasted or steamed). For carbs and starches, you can crush plates of fried seafood rice, stir-fried vermicelli with clams or fish and chips.
In absolute terms, you wouldn't file this under cheap eats, but if you're looking to eat as much excellent seafood as your heart could desire, then this is one to bookmark. It's on until September 30.
📍The Peninsula, 32 Zhongshan Dong Yi Lu, near Beijing Dong Lu.