One particular thing I have noticed and love about a considerable number of restaurants in Shanghai is their finishing touch with their interior design.
It need not be a place which screams I-am-expensive but the decor and ambiance kind of gives you the I‘m-gonna-burn-a-hole-in-your-pocket feel ! haha.
Look expensive but is actually cheap!?!? WHAT a deal huh?!!?
Roaming around Xintiandi, I stumbled upon a restaurant called TMSK.
I had no clue what its name mean or stood for but the ambiance won my heart over instantly.
And probably the music too.
Eating while “Like a G6″ was blasting in the background was rather fun I have to say! hahahaha.
I took the liberty of finding out what the restaurant’s name stood for when I got home.
TMSK is the acronym for Tou Ming Si Kao which translates roughly to English as ‘Crystal Mind’.
And apparently, the intricate décor of Chinese stain-glass in venue is the work of art of the acclaimed Liuli Gongfang who has been specializing in decorative handicraft for the last 18 years.
Bar section
It is a pretty cool looking place isn’t it??
From where I was seated, if I looked to my right, the place exuded ‘Old Shanghai’ but on my left, the place had a 360 degrees transition to modernity.
For such a cool looking place, the food lived up high enough to the slightly raised expectations due to the atmosphere.
Naturally I said to myself, “Food has to be good rite?? For such a pretty looking place“.
Yummy eggs!
I really can’t remember the name of this dish but it is a dish I recommend if you are a fan of eggs!
The texture and medley of flavours was intriguing!
The egg is hard-boiled and then halved.
The white part is deep-fried leaving the inside soft but the outer part crisp.
Then the yolk is mashed up and blended with some creamy based sauce to give it a lighter and creamier texture
The dish is then topped with a very unusual condiment, fermented black bean!
Who would have thought that it’ll go so well together with the egg!
And to spice things up a little more, they added potato chips to give it a light and crisp crunch!
Yumsssss!!
Bacon & Cheese Baked Eggs with Bread Sticks
I don’t mean to sound blunt but this dish can be skipped!
There was nothing unusual or special about it, sad to say.
It was basically baked eggs with some bacon sprinkled on the top.
Well, just exactly like the name of the dish!
Poached Eggs on a bed of Grated Yam and Mentaiko
Okay, I know it looks like I had some kind of “Egg Party”
But this egg dish was actually a mistake mad by the waiter but he was so kind to give it as a complimentary dish!
It was interesting how their paired a poached egg up with the fish roe!
The creamy yolk had a nice bite to it because of the ‘popping bubble’ texture of the fish roe.
But I didn’t fancy the grated yam. It was a little too slimy texture wise for my liking. The taste was also too flat….and really too slimy, which slightly grossed me out. Sorryyy.
Baked Escargot
The garlic cheese sauce was done the way I liked it.
Creamy and buttery but not overly garlic-y!
And a plus point, the escargots were big and plump!
It was a good version of baked escargots!
Broiled Pork with Honey Mustard Sauce
This dish was my favourite dish of the night!
The pork was so tender and flavourful !
It was similar to the Honey Barbecued Pork aka Char Siew but a less sweet variation.
The honey mustard sauce was still on the sweet note but the mustard gave the dish a spicy twist to it.
Highly recommended!
XO Sauce Fried Rice with Egg, Sausages and Chinese Pork Ham
The fried rice was nothing usual but it was a good version of the dish!
The XO sauce really adds a nice aroma to the dish! And the sausage aka lap cheong and the Chinese Pork Ham aka Spam, gave the rice dish a nice sweet and salty hint!
There is something about fried rice fried in restaurants! It tastes very different from the ones that is home cooked.
Chinese people have a theory that the secret ingredient to a good fried rice dish is the fire from the stove. In restaurants, the fire from the stove is super big and strong so the food is cooked in a much higher heat. Hence it gives the dish “wok mei”. Directly translated, it means that the dish has wok taste.
Carbonara
The Carbonara was enjoyable as well.
Creamy but not in the watery-like-soup consistency that I loathe.
The smoked aroma from the bacon was intense, leaving the pasta flavourful.
But I wished they had a more interesting pasta dish and not just the usual standard Carbonara!
As always, no meal is complete without an injection of sucre to spike the sugar levels in my blood stream! hehe.
I settled for a Tiramisu as it was recommended by the waiter.
It was delightful although I would have preferred it more if it came with some sort of sauce to spice things up a little!
All in all, I found that the food at TMSK was good but I would have much preferred it if a little more thought was put into the recipes to make their food as interesting and intriguing as the look and ambiance of the restaurant. They had safe and non-complicating dishes which works for the general public but it is a tad bit of a waste for such a great looking restaurant to have normal food. But please don’t get me wrong, I enjoyed my meal very much. The dishes may have been towards the simple end but they were good versions of the dish! The next time, I’m back in Shanghai, I will definitely make a round 2 happen! I really want to try their Long Island Tea and cocktails the neat round, I have read many good things!
*Disclaimer note: Opinions expressed are solely based on my personal experience.
Address : Unit 2, Number 11 Beili, Xintiandi Square
Lane 181, Taicang Road
Shanghai
Tel: 021-63262227
Hi, how much did the food cost? I am interested in going there when I visit Shanghai
Hi Ian! Sorry for the late respond! Blog was out on hold for a little while!! I can’t quite remember exactly but I think per dish, it was about RMB 50-60? Very reasonable for the food and the ambiance!! Hv you gone to Sh yet?? I have other places to intro to you if you are interested