While her partnership with Kevin's was 'too cold', and her string of semi-private dining rooms was 'too hot', Alyssa Han, the Goldilocks of Shanghai restaurateurs, might have finally found a porridge that's 'just right'.

The edgy atmosphere of the Melting Pot lends Thai Foodstation that certain 'in the know' quality which made her in-home restaurants legendary. That said, the food still looks and tastes the same, which is to say, home-style. The pad thai (RMB 40) was predictable but satisfying; the duck in red curry (RMB 45), however, was overly fatty.

Still, the service and ambiance is quirky but pleasant, and it seems that the Melting Pot and Thai Foodstation do make for a perfect pairing: each strengthens the other, and together they create a cool, off-beat and laid-back destination at which we could easily become regulars.

Melting Pot and Thai Foodstation
Location: 288 Taikang Lu, by Ruijin Lu
Tel: 021-64662522
Open: Daily 11am-2pm; 6-10pm.
Cost for two excluding drinks: RMB 155