South Beauty

Originated in Beijing South Beauty became very popular and now has branches in Shanghai and Hong Kong. We enjoyed its food in Beijing but then everything in Beijing tastes good (we think it's the cold weather). Anyhow we were somewhat excited when we finally got to try it the first time since we moved here.

We started off with some chili chicken ding. It was exceptionally nice! The sauce was tangy with a subtle sweet flavour but at the same time it had an undertone of spiciness. Very complex indeed. The cut of the chicken was perfect: lean and boneless. Two thumbs up!

The beef in chili oil didn't look too bad except for the large pile of garlic on top. It was very spicy but it hadn't got the Sichuan numbing sensation it should have. The one in Xin Ji Shi is infinitely better.

Deep fried ribs in chili and garlic. The batter was excellently flavoured with, you guessed it, chili and garlic. It was again very spicy but it was irresistible. Unfortunately the ribs were soooooooo fatty it didn't have much meat left by the time we picked all the fat off. And because I picked them up with my fingers my eyeballs totally suffered when I had to take my lenses off when I got home. Ouch!

Stir-fried string beans. They were OK.

Ma Po tofu. Again very spicy and garlicky but tasty enough.

Yangzhou fried rice. Lame but edible. The ingredients were just not up to par: micro shrimps, cheap ham, frozen peas; and the consistency was too wet. I didn't care much though as I needed it to cool my burning mouth down.

Dinner for 2 with tea came to RMB300. I think we would go back to Xin Ji Shi next time even though it's slightly more pricy.

South Beauty (many branches in Shanghai)

5/F Times Square, 93 Huai Hai Middle Rd. (near Pu An Rd.), Shanghai. Tel: 6391-0100