A SAD DAY IN SHANGHAI

Last week was a very sad day here as I was saying goodbye to a friend. Moira and her husband Alastair had been two of the first people we met on moving to Shanghai. A lucky chance meeting in a supermarket brought these two wonderful people into our lives.

Sadly their contract is now over and they are headed back to UK.

So last Sunday night we were on our last night out with them in Shanghai. I say in Shanghai, because I hope one day we will meet up again and catch up. It would be hard to think we will never see them again. I know this is going to happen again with other friends. People come and go all the time here, we welcome them, and then we are saying goodbye. However, Moira and Alastair had become good friends, they were Scottish, so there was a natural connection in the beginning. As I got to know Moira it was obvious we liked the same things. We both loved crafts, buying stuff for our homes and of course the shopping trips to the market. She had been here for 5 years so knew all the best haunts. Thankfully I was able to benefit from her knowledge.

Anyway, our last evening together. We were headed to a restaurant we had wanted to try for some time, Mr & Mrs Bund. A pre dinner drink chez Muir, of the bubbly sort, of course, then across the river to the restaurant. On entering I immediately knew why everyone raved about it. There was a great vibe. It was larger than I had thought, it was modern and lively, I knew we would all have a great night here. I was not disappointed.

The menu looked very enticing and choices were going to be difficult. Bread and crackers were brought to the table with the restaurant's signature tuna pate, for us to nibble on while making our choices. The tuna was delicious.

I had to go with the foie gras. It is so seldom you see it on a menu, and I know I will have a lot of people hating me for my choice, but it was delicious. I make no apology for my choice.

Another starter of prawn cocktail was ordered, another foie gras and a smoked salmon completed our starters. All superb. Waiting staff were friendly and attentive but not over fussing. I like that. I hate being interrupted every five minutes to be asked if everything is ok, as my mouth is probably full of food making it very difficult to reply.

Our main courses also proved to be good choices. For me grilled jumbo prawns, for the others a lamb dish, cod baked in a bag and a tomato salad. Served with "skinny" chips it all went down a treat. The delicious wine made everything perfect.

And lastly the desserts. I am not a huge dessert fan but was tempted by a profiterole. A lemon concoction was ordered as was a chocolate fondant. Moira resisted. Such will power.

What can I say but mmm!  All were superb. However Alastair's lemon pudding was the most impressive. It was a whole lemon filled will a lemon mousse and it was all edible. The lemon must have been cooked and scooped out before being filled. I was filled with awe with this beautiful plate. Tasted good too. Thankfully these friends don't mind sharing their food.

So with empty plates and drained glasses it was time to head back across the river, for Moira and Alastair for the last time. 

As we dropped them off and said our goodbyes we were happy we had been lucky enough to have had their company for the last year, but also sad as this was our last night together in Shanghai.

So a big thank you Moira and Alastair for helping us find "our Shanghai" for helping us settle in and for being our friends. We really appreciated it. I hope when we leave we will have left someone with the legacy you left us. 

I wish them lots of luck with their future plans and look forward to seeing them sometime, somewhere. In the meantime we will be returning to Mr & Mrs Bund. A huge thanks to them for a wonderful experience in this Shanghai restaurant. We will not forget it.