Food -
I-Shanghai serves up Shanghai-style dishes, most notably xiaolongbao. If you're unfamiliar with what that is, let me tell you! Xiaolongbao are these dumpling things that are basically pockets of soup broth with some meat (pork is a popular option) inside. They are best when fist served so make sure you eat them right away. Just beware that they will be piping hot! When you bite into the dumpling the broth will come out giving you a unique eating experience! The most notable place to get xiaolongbao is a place called Din Tai Fung. It's a very famous chain that is pretty pricey. The xiaolongbao at I-Shanghai don't quite match the quality of Din Tai Fung's, but it doesn't match the atmospheric price either. For a nicely priced version of xiaolongbao, these are great.
The rest of the food items here are familiar Chinese dishes that range for all over China. There's fried rice, veggie and meat dishes, as well as a variety of soups. Everything we ordered tasted great - I didn't have any complaints regarding the food at all. It was either what I expected or even better than I thought it would be. The dishes that came out of the kitchen showed a bit more care in how it was prepared - and that comes through in the taste. Each dish also was presented nicely, which is a nice change from some places that just plop the food onto a plate and serve it out to you.
I-Shanghai also serves up dim sum, but I wasn't able to try it on my visit here. I'll have to return and see how the dim sum stacks up to the other places around Sacramento. I'm actually very eager to give this a shot since I was so impressed with the quality of the other menu items that I ordered.
Service/Atmosphere -
It is sooooo easy to miss I-Shanghai if you're walking through Old Sac. It is literally a hole in the wall! When you're on front street, all you see is a door with some Chinese food menus next to it. There is a sign above that indicates that the restaurant is there, but it is oh-so-easy to pass by without seeing it. When you enter, you walk down this narrow stairway until you get to the real entrance to the restaurant. The restaurant is surprisingly big and clean and well decorated. If there was any restaurant to not judge by its 'cover' it would be I-Shanghai. The dining area has a modern Chinese vibe that isn't cheesy like the Chinese restaurants of old.
In terms of service, the waitress was very nice and patient. We came at a very off hour so there were very few people eating at the restaurant with us and the we had her entire attention as we dined. I have heard that service can be quite slow though when the restaurant is at peak operating hours. And that doesn't shock me as the food here is excellent. I can see a lot of folks coming here to eat!
Price -
I found the prices at I-Shanghai to be pretty reasonable. Many of the entrees were around the eight to ten dollar mark - which is very typical of Chinese dishes. Appetizers run around five to seven dollars while the xiaolongbao go from about twelve to fifteen dollars. Keep in mind the that xiaolongbao comes in a big bamboo steamer basket and will be plenty to share - it's definitely not a 'for one' type of dish to get.
Special Tips and Recommendations -
Of course my recommendation for I-Shanghai would be to get the xiaolongbao. Select dishes that you like to eat off the menu and get a basket of xiaolongbao for the table to share and enjoy. I think that's the best way to go. Also, I would make sure to come at a time that is off peak as I hear on peak hours can be a pretty long wait time.
Bottom Line -
I-Shanghai is a gem of a Chinese restaurant in Old Sacramento. It's a surprising place that delivers real Asian flavors and tastes, and is one of the only places in Sac to offer some legit xiaolongbao. This restaurant is definitely worth a visit.
Letter Grade
A
This is what the xiaolongbao looks like.
Beef noodle soup.
Fried rice.
Duck.
Mushrooms over Chinese Greens.
Watch them make the dumplings.
No comments:
Post a Comment