Back in 1999, M on the Bund was one of the very first fine dining venues to open up in modern day Shanghai. Today the restaurant is still attracting lots of people thanks to its combination of good food and appealing dining area.

The person behind this is Michelle Garnaut, an Australian restaurateur who previously had M at the Fringe in Hong Kong and today still has another restaurant, in Beijing, called Capital M.

At the helm of the kitchen in Shanghai is Executive Chef Hamish Pollitt. Ever since the restaurant first opened Executive Chef Pollitt has been serving predominantly European food with some Aussie accents and Middle Eastern influences.

Some of his signature dishes include the crispy suckling pig with colcannon, the salt encased leg of lamb and the cannelloni filled with scallops and scampi. A notable dessert is the traditional M’s Pavlova with fresh fruit. At over ten centimetres high, this dessert looks too impressive at first but is actually very light in texture. The meringue underneath is notably light, making it look harder to digest than it really is. Many other dishes are tailored for a more Chinese dining audience by making them shared platters, regardless if they are desserts or Persian starters.

M on the Bund does not have a set menu but there is plenty of choice for every course of the meal. Guests are welcome any day of the week for both lunch and dinner and on weekends there is a separate brunch menu. Similarly, those with sweet cravings during the day can come for afternoon tea on the weekend.

The restaurant interior resembles some old style grandeur through the use of velvet chairs and carpet floors. In the corner of the dining room there is a more modern styled bar and outside there is a beautiful terrace which offers one of the best views on the Shanghai Pudong skyline thanks to the restaurant’s central location along the Bund.

All in all, M on the Bund is a very decent pick to go out for dining. It does not offer the most technically advanced food but it does provide high quality dining in an upscale surrounding. It is the perfect place for people who visit Shanghai for the first time as well as for locals who are after some high-end comfort food.

Written by Sebastiaan