Shanghai Restaurant Review: Blue Feaster

By Tongfei Zhang, October 24, 2016

The Place

Located on the corner of Kangding Lu and Shaanxi Bei Lu neighboring Delimuses Cafe and Ozaoza Bistro, Blue Feaster is a newly established casual bistro that’s been going viral on Chinese social media.

With a total of 12 Cordon Bleu Institute trained chefs (yes you read it right, 12), we showed up with high expectations for this unassuming little eatery. Co-founded by owners Harry Han and Xiao Yan, along with several of their classmates from the Institute, Blue Feaster hits the mark somewhere between ‘dessert bar’ and ‘bistro.’

The Food

Offering an extensive menu from pasta to salad, pizza to risotto, Blue Feaster also has our favorite fish ‘n’ chips for RMB88 (attention Brits!) as well as peri peri chicken (RMB58/98 half/whole). Marinated with spices and flame-grilled to golden, the tender and juicy chicken was a just rendition of that at our beloved Nando’s (another Brit thing). The half portion was enough for us, but it’s worth upgrading to get the sweet potato fries instead of regular potato.

Blue Feaster’s soft shell crab burger (RMB88) is said to be the one and only of its kind in town, and it didn’t let us down. A whole tempura battered soft shell crab sits betwixt two soft brioche buns, accompanied by a crunchy marinated coleslaw and mustard sauce. Again, be sure to upgrade to the vastly superior sweet potato fries.

While the savory dishes are tasty, the real reason you should be visiting Blue Feaster are the milkshakes (all RMB52). Huge enough to constitute a full meal, the elaborately stacked shakes are a nod to the Australian sundae-esque creations that took our Instagram feeds by storm last summer.

Perfectly combining the freshness of banana and a unique salty flavor, salted caramel banana is topped with criminal amounts of cream, popcorn, marshmallow and chocolate swirl sticks, with a thick layer of sea salt caramel sauce around the edge of the glass.

Chocolate brownie pretzel and chocolate hazelnut oreo are both super rich, but the latter is a bit sweeter and fused with berry flavor. These are the first Australian-style shakes we’ve seen thus far in Shanghai, and easily worth the expenditure in terms of both money and calories.

Food verdict: 2.5/3

The vibe

Blue Feaster is a relaxed option for dates or low-key catch-ups over dessert and/or shakes. Brunch is also available on weekends between 11am and 3pm. Waiters are reasonably welcoming and helpful, and both drinks and bites arrive quickly. The general vibe is a bit gloomy though, so window seats are recommended for a brighter dining experience.

Vibe verdict: 0.5/1

Value for money

Given its master-level desserts and friendly pricing, Blue Feaster is a great value option for casual dining in the neighborhood. If the location were better, we imagine they’d have a line out the door. This place is definitely worth the journey if you have a sweet tooth that won’t be placated by basic desserts.

Value for Money: 1/1