With over 70 chains dotted around Malaysia, and expansions in Singapore, India and the US since 2005, Papparich made its first foray into the Middle Kingdom in 2013, and have offer their latest menu of Malaysian classics at Shanghai’s West Bund.
Located at the Touch Mall by Xuhui Binjiang Riverside, the place is marked by several green umbrella-shaded outdoor seats. A busy and sizeable open kitchen sits opposite the front door, above which are racks of jams and sauces, with bags of house-made white coffee and ‘Hainan special bread’ (RMB35 each) on sale at the front counter. Furnished with sleek white walls, blond wood furniture and industrial-style lamps hanging above, the spacious modern restaurant is anything but exotic – as is the majority of the food.
A reflection of diversified nationalities, Malaysian food is a fusion of Chinese and Indonesian with additional Southeast Asian flavors. In PappaRich, however, the emphasis seems to be on the northern side of the relationship - you sometimes feel like you’re dining in a Chinese restaurant.
Sambal eggplant (RMB28, above) is a combination of fried eggplants, cowpeas and peppers. Salty and spicy, but with no pungent sambal flavor, the dish looks and tastes very much like the traditional Northeastern Chinese dish di san xian 地三鲜. Hainanese chicken rice (RMB48) fared no better. Along with options of chili and soy sauces, the white poached chicken is tender, but the rice sadly devoid of the delicate, fragrant flavor you can find at superior vendors of this classic dish. It might make a good option for business set lunch.
Curry chicken laksa (RMB38, above) proved to be a disappointment if you’ve had laksa abroad. Big pieces of chicken swim in a milky curry soup along with cowpeas, eggplants, fried tofu, bean sprouts, as well as loads of rice noodles. Not spicy enough for our taste, it was lacking in any real curry kick.
Very decent, however, was the papa bun (RMB10). Crispy on bite and buttery within, it comes with a luscious coffee scent. Coconut milk pudding (RMB18, below) in a rich coconut fragrance is especially creamy and satisfying, perfect for a sweet tooth.
PappaRich may claim to offer Malaysian specials (which is indeed the case at other branches of this chain around Asia), but the dishes at this Chinese outlet pander to commonly held ideas about so-called ‘local tastes.’ It doesn’t cut it for us - people know the difference between good and bad food, regardless of whether they’re local or expats.
Price: RMB100/pp
Who’s going: Local families, office workers on lunch break
Good for: Casual lunch and dinner.
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