3 New Openings: La Siesta, Just Pocket, Mozzarella e Vino

La Siesta, an Andalusian restaurant bar for tapas and drinks, pita pocket sandwiches at Just Pocket, and cheese and wine concept Mozzarella e Vino.

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Andalusian

La Siesta

📍 600 Shaanxi Bei Lu, near Xinzha Lu 陕西北路600号, 近新闸路
📞  15021705817
🕒 Sun-Thu, 5pm-midnight; Fri-Sat, 4pm-1am; closed Mondays

La Siesta is an Andalusian restaurant and bar on Shaanxi Bei Lu from chef Sergio Moreno, formerly of The Commune Social and Issac Ye, one of the partners at Tres Perros. 

It’s located next to Bambino and bears a similar layout. La Siesta is small and cozy with bar seating on the first floor and tables on the second floor. The décor is minimal with blue Andalusian tiles framed on eggshell white walls.

As for the vibe, it’s similar to that of Tres Perros in how everyone starts the evening seated, and then shortly after being fed, are all standing with a drink in hand.

Andalusia is the southern part of Spain, surrounded by the Mediterranean and Atlantic Seas. The region dates back to the Roman Empire and has a culturally rich heritage, birthing a diverse cuisine with influences from the Romans and Arabs (Moors).

The menu at La Siesta features some adulated favorites of the region, from cold soups to gambas pil pil and Flamenca eggs, which is mighty similar to a shakshuka. Fino wine, tasty tapas, seafood, summer soups, hearty stews, and cold beer.

Berenjenas con Miel (¥36) – Addictive sticks of deep-fried eggplant coated in honey. Light, airy, and not at all greasy, like sweet and savory fries. It’s a popular dish from Córdoba, the capital of Muslim Spain. Highly recommended.

Mejillones al fino con Alcachofas (¥60) – Stewed mussels with sherry fino wine, shaved artichokes, and herbs.

Croquetas de Jamon (¥55/four) – Ham croquettes with truffle mayo.

Tosta de Bacalao (¥60) – Codfish adobo on toast with garlic mayo and arugula.

Ajo Blanco & Boquerones (¥36) – A cold soup made with almonds and garlic topped with anchovies, slivers of green apple and green grapes. Appetizing and summery.

Antequera-Style Salmorejo (¥36) – Salmorejo is a cross between a sauce and a soup, similar to a gazpacho but thicker. Made with a tomato base topped with crispy bits of ham and quail eggs.  

Tomates Aliñaos (¥55) – Marinated tomato salad with confit sardines, quail eggs, and parsley vinaigrette.

Gambas al Pil Pil (¥60) – Andalusian garlic prawns. Plump and bouncy prawns that comes out sizzling in garlic oil. A dish that screams to be paired with bread. Must-order. 

Huevos a la Flamenca (¥58) – Eggs baked in a tomato stew with spicy chunks of chorizo, green peas, and potatoes. Smoky, peppery, and comforting. It’s brunch for dinner.

Albondigas de la Abuela (¥68) – Grandma’s style beef and pork meatballs molded milk-soaked bread served with an almond sauce that’s been fortified with chicken stock. Hearty and comforting.

Flamenquin Cordobés (¥68) – Córdoba style fried pork rolls that have been stuffed with ham and cheese. A crowd pleaser.

Pluma Iberica (¥148) – Iberian pork pluma (a neck-end section of pork loin with incredible texture) crusted in smoky Moroccan spices and cumin seeds, served with buttery mushrooms and roasted peppers. The spices come off a little strong, but I loved it.

Picanha (¥188) with mushrooms and potatoes.

Flan de Coco (¥42) – Palo Cortado sherry wine and coconut custard flan. Yum!

Tarta de Manzana (¥42) – Chef Sergio’s grandmother’s recipe. Apple cake with rosemary. A cross between an apple pie and a focaccia. 

That’s basically the entire menu.

As for drinks, house wine, red or white is ¥38. Jerez fino is ¥55, Estrella Galicia is ¥25 for a small glass (so it stays ice cold and fresh) or ¥30 for a 330ml bottle. Gin and tonics start at ¥55, and there are a couple house cocktails from ¥40.

Aperol con Fino (¥65)

La Siesta is currently in soft opening, dinner only. Lunch will come later on.

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Pita Sandwiches

Just Pocket

📍  227 Yanping Lu, near Kangding Lu 延平路227号, 近康定路
📞 62099902
🕒 Daily, 10am-10pm

Food and drink street Yanping Lu keeps expanding. The latest entry on the strip is Just Pocket, a casual eatery slinging tasty pita pocket sandwiches. 

Just Pocket is founder Lyn’s first venture into F&B. Born and raised in Shanghai, Lyn spent time in the Netherlands for studies, where she noticed sandwiches were popular as a healthy grab-and-go food. But, she remarked, that cold sandwiches don’t cut it for the Chinese audience, and can be seen as “too bready”. Hence, the hot pita sandwich concept was born. 

Located on the quieter end of Yanping Lu, Just Pocket has a modest space with a café vibe. On the menu are five sandwiches, a couple salads, and a requisite steak, among others. The sandwiches are very tasty and portions are perfect for lunch. Venue is dog-friendly.

Australian Grass-Fed Beef (¥68) – Slices of beef cooked medium/medium rare, guacamole, tomato salsa, and shoestring potatoes. Each sandwich comes with a roasted sweet pepper.

Cauliflower & Egg (¥58) – A vegetarian sandwich with egg salad, lightly battered and fried cauliflower dusted with spices, scallion ranch, and pickled grapes. It’s the most unusual combination of things, but it works magically.

Roasted Chicken (¥56) – Hand-shredded roasted chicken with sweet pepper sauce, arugula and pickled cucumber. Juicy and comforting. An everyday sandwich.

Baby Cauliflower Salad (¥58) – It’s not a salad, but rather a whole head of cauliflower that’s been oven-roasted with Turkish spices. Served with feta cheese, grapes, tahini dressing, toasted almonds, and candied cashews. 

For drinks, an Americano is ¥26, fresh juices are ¥45, wine by the glass starts from ¥58.

Grandma’s Hot Apple Orange Juice (¥45) – When you need a boost of vitamin C and something warm, this will do the trick.

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Cheese & Wine

Mozzarella e Vino

📍 No. 101A, Bldg 6, 8 Hengshan Lu, near Wulumuqi Nan Lu 衡山路8号6号楼101A室, 近乌鲁木齐南路
📞  18521361282
🕒 Daily, 10am-11pm

The new Hengshan 8 development, corner of Hengshan and Wulumuqi, is quickly filling up with F&B concepts. One of them is Mozzarella e Vino, a European-style eatery with cheese at the forefront.

Mozzarella e Vino (MeV for short) is all about highlighting their deli counter products, mostly cheese. They even have a mozzarella molding machine from Italy to form their own balls of cheesy, milky goodness. That said, burrata is a signature brunch item, as well as baked camembert.

Free samples!

Apart from buying cheese and cold cuts by weight from the counter, they also do a range of dishes. The menu features usual suspects like roast chicken, steaks, and pastas, and brunch highlights Dutch pancakes and breakfast plates. 

Formaggio and Cold Cuts Board (¥128) – A charcuterie and cheese board of two cheeses and two prosciutto cuts. A large portion is ¥198 for double the amount.

Cream Chicken Dutch Baby Pancake (¥88) – A brunch item that exceeded expectations. Chicken thigh and mushrooms in a creamy sauce poured over eggy Dutch pancakes, crowned with a mini brie. Very comforting and enjoyable.

Coppa Ham Burrata Cheese (¥98) – Milky burrata with coppa ham. Standard and enjoyable. The figs paired well, but I wasn’t a fan of the strawberries.

Modern Chinese Spaghetti (¥88) – The unusual pick of the three pastas; the other two are standards. Parmesan, linguine, braised pork belly, mushrooms, Thai chili, and balsamic vinegar. Spicy, vinegary, savory. It was surprisingly delicious, though would have been better if the pasta wasn’t overcooked. 

Milanese Roasted Chicken (¥198) – Sanhuang Chicken roasted and served with salsa and salsa verde. A pretty basic roasted chicken. 

Overall, the Dutch pancakes were a big win. Good for a chill brunch. Wines by the glass from ¥68, bottles from ¥198. 

MeV also boasts a lovely terrace. The entire Hengshan 8 complex is dog-friendly.

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