Dining in Elegant Destruction at Table No. 1
A couple of weeks ago, I was invited to try Table No. 1 at the boutique Waterhouse Hotel in the (far, far removed from my usual area) Cool Docks. I'll begin by saying the food was very good on the whole, though the basil sorbet was perhaps a tad too innovative for my taste.
The highlights? The vegetable chips with vinegar foam were amazing, as was the Tuna tar-tar. The sole was excellent (beautiful fish, firm, succulent and not from the Huangpu), and sat upon a bed of fantastic squid-ink risotto.
On the down side, I found the Beijing duck to be weak and innocuous, and not beijing duck-y at all. It reminded me of HK roast duck, and I felt it was the weak point compared to the other offerings.
Service is good- attentive but not oppressive. Price point? Not bad, for the quality of food and preparation. Expect to pay about 3-400RMB per person, without drinks, and if you're a big eater be aware that portion sizes tend to be on the smaller side. A few pricing quibbles- 65RMB for a coffee or tea is a bit silly, especially considering a 15% service charge.
Now, to the real heart of my dilemma regarding Table No. 1- the decor. The whole hotel is done in a sort of post industrial chic, with carefully rusted panels, raw beams and exposed cement. That's OK, I guess, if you're into that sort of thing. I did object to is the long, bench-like communal tables. If you aren't at a table for two, you're stuck on a bench with God-knows-who.
I really don't like that, and while I'll accept it at my local xiaolongbao joint, it totally clashes with my expectations from that quality of restaurant.
My other issue was with the spirit of the reverse-gentrified decor, which evokes something between a contemporary art gallery bombed by a very fashionable revolutionary group and the walled off, desolate neighborhoods sacrificed to the juggernaut of 'Better City, Better Life'. It's an interesting look, but I don't know if it's an appropriate one. I wouldn't go as far to say 'soulless', but there is a certain feeling of misplaced irony, of a cheap joke made at the expense of those least able to defend themselves.
Anyway, go give it a try, make up your own mind. It's worth checking out.
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I agree about the food (basil sorbet notwithstanding) but the decor jarred with me. I'd probably have been less sensitive to it if the dining room had been arranged differently- those long tables really aren't something I'd voluntarily sit at. In another area, in another city, I could get into the industrial thing, but in that area at this time I felt it was a little off.
i loved the decor of this place. the food was really good too, but the decor was top hole. It was a real change in a city of private rooms and gaudiness fountains to eat in an industrial space.