The Place
When you think of Plaza 66, names that immediately come to mind are like Louis Vuitton, Dior and Chanel. But recently, another French export has set up shop inside the luxury shopping complex – Chef Michael Wendling.
Unlike his renowned full-scale restaurants Cuivre and T for Thai, Saveur is a much smaller deli on the third floor of the mall that serves sandwiches, salads and pastries and seats only about 20 people inside the shop, plus another 20 in a cordoned area of the mall just outside the shop.
The Food
Shanghai’s sandwich game is getting much stronger these days, with chefs like Austin Hu (Madison Kitchen), Brad Turley (Market 101) and Ling Huang (Latin Woo) all trading in plates and bowls for bread as edible vehicles to deliver gourmet fillings within.
Wendling too has had previous success putting out carb-licious food (his burgers at CU2+ are among the best in town) so we had high hopes for homeruns with each of Saveur’s sandwiches (they aren’t cheap either, RMB58-78 each). There are a few big hitters, but some less impressive sandwiches too.
Let’s start with the positives. The ‘el Cubano’ (RMB68) was the favorite of everything we tried. There was a nice conversation happening between the Swiss cheese, mustard, pickles, all of which flowed cheerfully around the star attractions – ham and luxurious layers of porchetta.
The classic Croque Monsieur (RMB68) also impressed with slices of Emmental cheese that mingled well with the sourdough and slow-cooked ham. 
Less harmonious was the ‘Super Beef’ (RMB78). While it sounded good on paper, we found the roast beef to be under-seasoned and overpowered by the Brie, while the promised age mustard dressing and onion confit were less pronounced than the unnecessarily strong presence of lettuce and tomato.
In the salad department, the Middle Eastern-inspired braised lamb shoulder, couscous and arugula number (RMB68) won our hearts on a hot summer day – the mint and yogurt dressing added a refreshing touch that tied everything together nicely.
The chicken satay, egg noodle with julienned vegetables option (RMB58) could potentially be part of the T for Thai menu, but we weren’t fans of the dressing – which tasted almost like a Thousand Island dressing and didn’t quite work with the Asian-inspired theme elsewhere in the salad.
Food Verdict: 2/3
The Vibe
Given its menu and concept, Saveur strikes as more of a grab-and-go type of place, with communal tables and counter tables that are best for solo diners.
Over three visits (twice on weekdays and once on a Saturday), we’ve noticed that Saveur is mainly frequented by those who work in the office towers attached to the complex. After all, sandwiches and salads aren’t really things that you want to travel too far for.
Vibe Verdict: 0.5/1
Value for Money
Forking out RMB60-80 per sandwich or salad probably isn’t something that many entry-level white collar workers can afford on a daily basis, so Saveur has rolled our a special lunch set menu where RMB58 can get you a half portion of daily salad, a half portion of sandwich plus a soft drink. Add RMB10 and you can take a cookie home as well. That’s similar to what you pay at places like Wagas. There’s also an afternoon tea set with finger sandwiches and pastries (RMB198 for two people), but is the hallway of a shopping mall the best place to enjoy a proper high tea?
Value for Money: 0.5/1
Total Verdict: 3/5
Price: RMB58-198
Who’s going: local and expat office workers
Good for: sandwiches, quick lunches, snacks, salads, patisserie
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