"Wow... no surprise there..." Was my initial thought when I heard that yet another French restaurant had been opened in Shanghai. Pardon me for my lack of excitement, but I don't think I could count on two hands the number of French restaurants that have opened in the past six months (hmm... sounds a bit like Shanghai's club scene). None-the-less, I love French cuisine, so it's of no bother to me that they are being whipped up like hotcakes; it's merely just a personal observation. With that said, Cafe Montmartre is a recently re-opened French restaurant with its new location on Hai Fang Lu near Xikang Lu, and is another new venue within the New Factories (the restaurant's old location was in the French Concession near the old Xiang Yang Market).

Having never visited the original location, all of my opinions are based on this one visit, and on first impression the interior seemed like any normal restaurant in Shanghai; relatively nice atmosphere with matching d¨¦cor. However, a closer look revealed some more refined details, giving off the feeling of more of a quaint French cafe, opposed to that of just any other restaurant. One interesting thing I noticed was how small of space that the restaurant actually occupied; which for me was a good thing for it fits the usual cozy and homey feel of a French cafe. I also liked the rather original black and white framed photos resembling time periods during the early 1900's hung periodically around the perimeter walls. The rather tastefully strung vines that wrapped around the small bar near the main entrance were also a nice touch. Finally, (and I know this may sound a little silly) I caught eye of the multicolored chalkboard listing all the days specials. You may wonder what's interesting about that, but to me a French cafe, is not a "true" cafe without a multicolored chalkboard.

Dining with two friends for the evening we were all a bit surprised that menu prices were lower than we had expected to pay; which for French Cuisine is often a bit of a rarity.

Wine ranged from 40-60rmb a glass, salads were roughly about 35rmb, many of the main course dishes were well under 100rmb, and the five course dinner was set at 198rmb. After reviewing the menus (and the chalkboard) one of my friends and I decided to settle for the set five course meal of: "French Onion Soup", "Shrimp and Citrus Salad", "Grilled Sea Bass", "Beef Tenderloin", and a very tasty sweet pineapple dish served with vanilla ice-cream, and pieces of dark chocolate. While the third member of the party opted for the "Nice Salad", "Blue Penne" and "Creme Brule", which I was lucky enough to sample all of.

When trying a new French restaurant I often like to use the French Onion Soup and the Cr¨¨me Brule as sort of a measuring stick for taste, but to be honest I found that both of them were just a bit too bland for my liking. However, that did not ruin the experience, for I really enjoyed the "Grilled Sea Bass" and "Beef Tenderloin" both of which were extremely fine cuts, and rich with flavor. Both of the Salads were good starters, but I felt a bit mislead when the "Nice Salad" turned out to be just a regular House Salad. Finally my favorite dishes were defiantly were my friend's "Blue Penne" a creamy blue cheese sauce over a bowl of fresh penne noodles, and at 55rmb it's a rather astonishing deal and the delicious pineapple dish proved to be delightful ending to the meal.

With fair prices and tasty food my friends and I enjoyed the late Saturday night dinner at Cafe Montmartre, and I am sure I will go back for a nice quite date or really relaxed meal in the future.

Cafe Montmartre
Location: Hai Fang Road 537, New factories, near Xikang Road
Tel: 021-54047658