With its exclusive location on the Bund, promises of sweeping views of the Pudong skyline, and gourmet food, my expectations for lunch at Shook! were high. Shook! describes itself as a concept local restaurant that started in Kuala Lumpur; it serves a fusion of eastern and western cuisines in an open kitchen setting. The restaurant sits perched atop the Art Peace Hotel and has a panoramic rooftop terrace which is the perfect place to enjoy lunch on a rare sunny day in Shanghai.We were greeted at the entrance by the disappointing fact that the terrace isn’t open for lunch, however, we were compensated by being seated in a small cozy corner with the type of views we had expected. The set lunch menu was enticing; it included a mixture of eastern and western dishes.Appetizer:Simply called “A tasting of carrots”- Raw|Fried|Frozen. The appetizer was alluring and comedic at the same time. It was an impressive display of carrots prepared three different ways.Raw – a raw carrotFried – a shredded carrot pancakeFrozen – carrot ice cream

Overall, the appetizer was impressive and showed the chef’s skills in making many combinations out of something as simple as a carrot. Unfortunately, this creativity was not extended to the main course. Main Course:Grilled five-spice chicken seemed like a solid and safe choice, but we were expecting a display of culinary creativity after the “tasting of carrots.” I was left feeling very disappointed; the dish was white rice with chicken marinated with pepper. I wouldn’t even call it marinated since the chicken was so thick that there was just a thin layer of flavoring and the rest of the chicken was dry and bland. The rice was just plain white rice – I expected much more from a restaurant of this caliber. Let me reword the meal’s description as Bland Dry Chicken with Rice. The only hope left for exciting my taste buds was in the dessert.

Dessert:The summer peach upside down cake delivered. The cake was beautifully laid out, was fresh and delicious. The bourbon infusion was a surprising kick to a simple dish; however, it will give you flashbacks to the regrets of the night before. Caution: don’t eat when hungover. It wasn’t enough to save the lunch entirely though.

In the end, the official second place winner of Restaurant Week left my stomach full but my taste buds unimpressed.This article was written by Abel Hegyes. Send an email to [email protected] to get in touch.Photo Credit: Abel Hegyes