Shanghai Brunch Review: Cuivre

By Betty Richardson

Welcome to Brunch Review! A column where we talk about restaurants that serve food at, you guessed, brunch time. And believe, you need to know about Cuivre's, because it is a steal and also it is delicious.

Brunch at Cuivre comes in at RMB198 for any three courses, including tea, coffee, a smoothie or fresh juice. Or, be contrary and order à la carte. Cooked by French chef Michael Wendling, this brunch marries Gallic elements with comfort food, serving up foie gras, eggs Benedict, grilled sandwiches, salads and French toast.
Let's talk about the French toast first. It is brilliant, and in our opinion as good as the much-lauded one at Mr & Mrs Bund (they are both delicious). Cuivre's is made using a big slice of brioche dipped in egg mixture and fried face-down in sugar until the outside is a crispy, crunchy caramel and not unlike a Krispy Kreme. It's served with a light crème Anglaise for dipping.

Another reason why this French toast is fantastic is because it's RMB38 on its own.

With all those precious kuai you've saved, splash out and get Cuivre's also fabulous foie gras au torchon (add RMB58) It makes sense to order this if you're doing the three course set, because it's RMB148 on its own.
How is foie gras a brunch food? They serve it with bacon jam, ok? As if you needed an extra reason.

Everyone knows how to make scrambled eggs, but Cuivre does their oeuf brouillé in a fancy à la minute (cooked in a minute, RMB68) with spicy sausage on top and white toast. It's literally as if fancy French chefs are cooking you breakfast.
Boiled eggs and soldiers (RMB68) bring us right back to our childhood. Cuivre's are done perfectly runny, and served with a tiny stack of 'soldiers' (sliced toast) with a layer of butter and wafer thin ham on them.
Egg yolk and ham and butter and toast is a magical combination, why didn't the British didn't think of this first?
We've had Cuivre's 'La Truffe' (RMB68) breakfast sandwich before, and are happy to say it's still straight bossin'. Inside is melted Brie, coppa (dry-cured Italian ham) and arugula. It's light on truffle, but if you love Brie you won't really care.
The only thing we didn't really dig was the salade de lardons (RMB68). Though packed with emmenthal cheese, meat and crumbled egg, it's outshone by Cuivre's other dishes.
Three courses from this menu was enough to fill us up, but the restaurant also gives each table complimentary toasted baguettes with jam, butter, and honey. Nice touch.
Brunch recommended? Definitely yes. These guys care about serving you a good quality brunch, demonstrated by the fact that Chef Wendling is still cheffing away for brunch service after doing Cuivre's Friday night dinner. You don't see that at every restaurant serving brunch.

Go for the three course deal if you're hungry, or go à la carte if you're thrifty. Either way, you win.

Price: RMB70-198+ per person
Who's going: lots of expats, a few locals, families, French-speakers
Good for: French food, Bloody Marys, brunch, dinner

Cuivre, 1502 Huaihai Zhong Lu by Wulumuqi Lu

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