/ Reviews / French
A French Renaissance
by Zach Etkind
on Friday, November 11, 2011 12:00 AM
On the corner of Xiangyang Bei Rd and Julu Rd in the French Concession, recently opened restaurant Brasserie La Fourchette hopes to provide an authentic yet accessible culinary experience that will appeal to expat and Chinese patrons alike. The restaurant is managed by Shanghai dining industry veteran Franck Krynen while Peter Gong, the French-trained, Shanghainese chef from Kathleen's 5, runs the kitchen. When asked about the concept for La Fourchette, manager Franck explained how brasserie was loosely translated as a people's café, which is exactly what he is trying to create with this restaurant. He wants the restaurant to avoid coming off as too ‘French' so it appeals not only to the Francophone community, but to all the diverse groups that call Shanghai home.
To help achieve this goal, La Fourchette effectively combines four dining environments into one venue. The front café area is the ideal place to people watch while sipping a coffee or meet up with friends for an after-dinner Pastis. The partitioned-off Chef's Table caters to smaller upscale events such as business meetings or private wine tastings while the long wooden bar is the perfect place to enjoy reasonably-priced wine or beer while watching the latest football match. The main attraction of La Fourchette, however, is the dimly lit and sparsely decorated dining area located towards the back of the establishment.
The menu offers mainly French and fusion dishes that utilize a variety of preparations from the French cannon. For starters, we were recommended the Millefeuille of Snail Ragout (RMB55) and the Creppinette of Crab Meat and Fish (RMB70). As crabs are now in season in China, the creppinette was extremely fresh and delicate in both taste and preparation. While the millefeuille is usually a dessert dish, the crispy pastry paired well with the tomato-based ragout and chunky bites of snail. The main course offered a Crispy Suckling Pig with Choucroute and Charcutiere sauce (RMB150), which was a welcome hearty and Asian addition to a menu dominated by lighter French fare. However, despite a fancy name, the charcutiere sauce was unexpectedly dominated by a quite generic tomato paste. We also tried the night's special, King Fish with Crab Meat in Walnut Crust (RMB150). As with the starter, the extremely fresh crabmeat overshadowed the rather less-than-flavorful fish.
With an assortment of dining atmospheres to choose from, and a rather eclectic menu, Brasserie La Fourchette has the potential to appeal to many different patrons and become the people's café it strives to be.
