/ Reviews / Fusion
Secret Surprise
by Tom Lee
on Friday, June 24, 2011 12:00 AM
Unlike some of Shanghai's venues, including many of the myriad Japanese bars and membership-only eatery Closed Door, Hidden Courtyard is obscured rather than actively concealed, secreted away on the third floor of a building on SiNan Road. Its name calls to mind the siheyuan residences commonly built for the wealthy nobility during the dynastic periods of China, which were structured around a central, communal courtyard.
While a pinch of ostentation is in keeping with the owners' vision, they have tried to avoid making their venture too conventionally Chinese. Replacing the typical imperial red, royal blue dominates the color scheme of the smart furnishings.
Food is self-proclaimed "Chinese fusion", though what this actually translates into is not so much fusion as a flagrant disregard for sticking to the traditional tenets of Chinese cuisine, allowing the kitchen free range in terms of cooking techniques and presentation. The cooks haven't taken this mandate to a mad-scientist level of insanity - excepting, perhaps, the Sliced Fresh Salmon Salad with Potato Chips (RMB48) which, though tasty, is a little bizarre, serving salmon slices with slivers of seaweed and a wasabi-tinged coleslaw atop what appears to be a mini salted Pringle - but they have allowed themselves to escape the confines of the culture. Sweet Beans Mixed with Lotus Root Pieces in Abalone Gravy (RMB38) has all the richness of a savory pie; building on this impression, the crunchy lotus roots and bean pods spill out from a decorative piece of pastry.
Seafood, however, holds the pride of place amongst the dishes. Not skimping on the creativity here either, the chefs serve the aquatic vertebrates in every form imaginable: green grouper is cooked in a hotpot with superior sauce (RMB258), red crabs are steamed with ShaoXing wine (RMB298), and shrimps are mashed and fried with string beans alongside a sweet, sticky, home-made condiment (RMB98). A multiplicity of fish is sourced from China's lakes, rivers and seas to fill five pages of the menu, sampling the country's bounty.
Almost shockingly, Hidden Courtyard is actually very good - and don't let the blandness of this statement undermine the fact that simple truths are sometimes better than elaborate metaphors. Everything just works, from the plush interiors to the quirky inventiveness of the remarkable food.
Don't let its "hidden" nature deter you from uncovering this wonderful new dining delight.
