A diet date with ice cream

A diet date with ice cream

No one can resist the temptation of ice cream in the summer. Yet many young women dare not eat the refreshing dessert for fear of putting on too much weight. But the options are better now with the emergence of low-fat ice creams, which can satisfy your cravings for ice creams, but can taste a bit bland. Here is a list of ice cream shops where you can find these low-fat ice creams.

Gelato

The Italian ice cream shop Gelato sells low-fat milk ice cream and many foreigners come here for a cool treat . Coconuts flavor is most popular among customers, while hazel is also worth a try.
At Gelato diners can have a taste of each ice cream flavor before deciding which one to buy. And Gelato also posts its information on discounts on a small board hung at its front door.
Location: Aoland International Shopping Center, No. 692, Hankoulu, Huangpu District.

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This IS Restaurant

This IS Restaurant

As the local dining scene burgeons, patterns begin to emerge. Restaurateurs have the option of starting small, luring a targeted group of patrons with their mid-range fare; another option would be to go the whole hog and splash out on a multi-million yuan space in a swanky location with prices to match.
A concept is another tool often employed, sometimes in tandem with the two strategies above. These joints brainstorm for ages and come up with a premise they hope is so irresistible it pulls in the crowds in droves.
IS Restaurant is hoping they have latched on to a winning formula.
Bordering on the ultra-pretentious, the New Factories establishment is decidedly focused on putting the "experience" in "dining experience." Part art concept, part fine-diner, there are moments when it is not exactly apparent what it is trying to be.
There are restaurants that immediately appeal to the visual senses, wowing you as soon as you walk in; sometimes with palatial decor, sometimes with sheer size. IS has gone for the cold, minimalist approach that exudes art-crowd cool.
It is no wonder, as the restaurant is the brainchild of General Manager Weng Yinlan and her husband, who is in the art business. Having started the concept in her native Guilin two years ago, the former advertising executive is confident that the concept will be a hit locally as well. "We do creative, fusion dishes that are appealing to the eye as much as they taste good," she said. "None of our serving ware is mass produced. Besides custom-made plates, we also use a lot of natural products, like pine needles for decorative plating."
"Some things, like acorns, are things that I've picked up myself from the countryside back in Guilin. You could never find stuff like this in Shanghai."
The design lives up to its billing. Words do little justice to the creative use of space on the top floor of this refurbished factory. Dried roots and branches form non-imposing barriers that partition the dining area; the centerpiece is a long, mirrored table with imposing, tall-backed chairs forming booths without being sealed off.
Neo-classical teapots and dings (an ancient Chinese tri-legged vessel) are displayed prominently with the similar furniture. Weng said that plans are afoot to hold art exhibitions and performances in the restaurant.



Whether she realized it or not, she was already right. Each dish was a show in itself albeit with some decidedly over the top. The opening act of mushroom soup came served on different plates for each guest. While the bed of rose petals was sweet, the flaming plate was a bit much. The soup itself was not creamy enough and weak.

The emphasis, however, is on healthier dishes, and the sliced cucumbers with walnuts, caviar and wasabi was delightfully refreshing and a stimulant at the same time. The same went for the simple garden salad.

The tasty pork cordon bleu (48 yuan/US$6.30) was not oily and came with a mild pepper sauce, although the addictive spiced beef served in a bubbling bowl of oil smacked of tenderizer. The steamed chicken dumplings came served hanging from a small tree, making you wonder what the point was. The meat was passable although the portions were just not enough.

Another flaming dish was served, this time seven kinds of fungi in a creamy sauce served in aluminum foil (98 yuan). It was a spectacle really, nearly eclipsing the mushrooms within.

The fried rice dish was somewhat odd. Intended to resurrect a dying recipe, it kind of halted the forward thinking nature of the meal preceding it.

It was great - a simple, rustic flavor - but jarring due to the lack of extravagance.

Dessert was truer to form, with pear slices coated in muesli. An excellent snack, the roughage aids digestion and exactly what was needed to end the meal.

IS is interesting to say the least. There is no denying the cool factor, which is what dining experiences should be about. The food is better than average, and the "show" is constantly updated to keep things fresh.

As it stands, the restaurant is a novel luxury, not intended to merely fill the stomach and satisfy the palate but more to introduce an avant-garde culture and immerse appreciative diners.

IS RestaurantLocation: 4/F, Building 7, 537 Haifang RoadTel: 021-52135399
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Snack and swill

Snack and swill
(City weekend)Updated: 2007-04-09 09:09

For those in the Jianwai area, this new Italian restaurant and wine bar may be the savior you've been looking for.

Sapori adds some much needed refinement and diversity to the strip of restos long dominated by Grandma's Kitchen and Steak & Eggs. Sapori is a mere strip of a restaurant, tastefully and moderately decked in dark woods, with exposed brick and empty wine bottles lining the walls.

A distinctively provincial and homely feeling pervades the place. For starters, the Italian staple bruschetta (RMB15) was a fine mix of diced cherry tomatoes and olive oil on plump un-toasted bread, a perfect compliment to begin sipping one's wine (bottles of Italian wines sell from RMB100-800). For a more substantial appetizer try the degustazione di formaggi (RMB70), a scrumptious platter of artisans cheese accompanied by honey and jams. It's a little unusual for mainstay western palates, but worth a walk on the wild side: It's divine. If snacking with your wine is not enough, try the penne del padrino (RMB60), short pasta served with tomato sauce, eggplant and mozzarella cheese: It's particularly sublime. From here contemplate a stroll around Ritan park to clear your head and savour your brief sojourn to Italy.

Perfect For: sipping vino with friends Address: No.11 Xiushui Nanlu

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A cuppa invasion

A cuppa invasion
By Harold Kok (City Weekend)Updated: 2007-04-06 09:17

Costa Coffee, a British coffee chain run by hospitality giant Whitbread, has landed in Shanghai. The new outlet sprawls across the mezzanine level, where an inviting cakes and sandwiches display is prominently placed in the center of the store's semi-circular layout.
Costa has the perfect location, but its food and coffee, however, are less than flawless. The mocha frescato (RMB 28-35) suffered from a slightly sour aftertaste. The chocolate truffle (RMB 15) was dry and flaky, although the lemon cheesecake (RMB 19) was tart and satisfying. In addition, Costa offers a number of hot panini and focaccia sandwiches, wraps, muffins, pastries and baked goods. Starbucks should still be worried, because Costa's parent company has deep pockets and plans to become ubiquitous in China.
The chain opened its first outlet in December, but it has plans for 300 Costas across the country in the next few years. Perfect For: an afternoon of catching up.

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