Dec 19th, 2011
jbrad
Joined Feb/11
Posted 2 Reviews
From: Irish
I went there a couple of times recently, here is my review.
I like the timber finish decor, it makes the place feel homely, this feeling is added to by the bookshelves.
The staff are efficient and helpful, and will actually come over to your table when you call them!
The prices I think are reasonable and wouldn't expect any cheaper.
So, we had the quesadillas - standard fare.
The Cajun chicken sandwich is quite tasty, the red beans and rice was good, although by the way the sauce came in a steaming hot cup, i'm guessing straight from the microwave, not freshly made up.
The jambalaya was not great, didn't really like this. We had the pecan pie for dessert which was good.
Yesterday i went for the weekend brunch set. This was 75RMB and I thought that was good value. I got 4 pancakes, hash browns (the fried diced potatoes, bacon and onion type, not the patty type), coffee and a couple of slices of bread. There was a lot of choice available as you choose to mix and match what you get for your 75.
Overall I like the place and think the food is good. BUT, I have to qualify that by saying I don't know much about mexican/texan food and pretty much have only eaten this type of food in Shanghai.
There was another comment about the owner hanging around with a cigar, yea i've seen him, but i don't really mind, like so what. I don't think the cigar is actually lit (or else that would not make for a nice dinning experience!), and at least he doesn't smooch all over you with false friendliness.
In summary, good food, nice decor, efficient staff, reasonable price.
So I will keep up my regular visits of once every week or 2.
Jul 9th, 2011
Weevil60
Joined Jul/11
Posted 1 Reviews
From: American
Have been in Shanghai less tha a month and decided to try this place out for dinner with my wife. First impression was good, deck on front of place was a good sign, with the cooking taking place on grills there. Interior was cool, felt very familar to us.
My wife ordered pork chops with gravy and I had the jambalaya. We both ordered Cokes, which I must say were the coldest I have had in Shanghai yet! That was a good start.
My meal came out after about 20 minutes, which seemed kind of long given the lack of patrons. Afer about 5 more minutes I finally went up to the girl overseeing the bar area to check on the chops, and 'poof' out came my wife's meal!
THe jambalaya was very average, probably how it would have tasted if I had made it myself for the first time. The potatoes in the potato sald were pretty apply, so not so good there. Her pork chops were another story, very tough (think shoe leather) and extremely bland.
Trying to end on a positive note, we had a chocolate chip and an oatmeal raisin cookie. Both were average.
Overall, not sure if we'll go back or not. Maybe we'll give it another try, but for sure will order something else on the menu.
May 19th, 2011
niuyueren
Joined May/11
Posted 2 Reviews
From: New York
I used to hate this place. I thought the owner was kind of an ass (still kind of do) and the food was overpriced/sucked. I cringed when I had to give the place my business but found myself going back at the urging of friends. With the warm weather permitting nice al fresco dining and drinking, the place has grown on me a lot. The food is not gourmet but it is fine, and the casual drinking experience here is pretty darn good.
If for no other reason, it is worth going to Southern Belle the popcorn. It is free with drinks and I think it is probably the best popcorn in Shanghai. Hot and fresh, salty and buttery, but not too much so, and absolutely no sugar whatsoever. It is really satisfying to throw a nice big handful of popcorn into your mouth and encounter a flavor that is much more suited to be washed down with one of their tall mugs of draft Budweiser (buy 1 get 1 free during happy hour, awesome) than the unfortunate sweet surprise one usually encounters here in Shanghai. My biggest gripe about the place is that sometimes the owner, who is always milling about cigar in mouth, cuts you off the popcorn supply to your table if the drinks to popcorn basket ratio dips too low.
The service here tends to be good too. The owner, despite his stinginess with his popcorn, runs a good ship and his wait-staff is attentive. The girls are always easy to find and will help any table, even if it is not her own. They also really win you over when you go to pay your bill, and without even having been asked, reveal to you and your table that they have kept everyones orders separate and hand everyone an individual check. Makes life much easier.
All in all, the place is a relaxing and reliable place to have a few drinks and food in a casual outdoor setting.
Mar 25th, 2011
akamango
Joined Mar/11
Posted 1 Reviews
From: American
Well, I guess I don't have that many positive things to say about this place so let's cut to the chase. Decor is pretty decent, furnished with couple of dartboards, flat screen TV, wall of books on one side, and mirrors on another (so the restaurant seems bigger than it really is). Smoking and non-smoking is only separated by a pillar, so the guy at the next table (on the other side of the pillar) can smoke his lungs out and you can't say hell no.
Food is miserable at best. My husband ordered a Rueben James and I ordered a shrimp gumbo. Shrimp gumbo is served in a oval bowl with a good heap of rice in the middle and gumbo sauce on the side. There was so much more rice than gumbo that after scooping the rice out, I still can't see no gumbo! The rice is Chinese, not the usual gumbo kind. My husband described his Rueben sandwich as "stale, elastic rubber straight out from a vending machine".
Buffalo wings with coleslaw is pathetic. Even hooters have better wings than this place. Wings are spicy and deep fried to the point of almost burnt and that is it. No other flavors, just plain 'burn your tongue off spicy'. Even the simple coleslaw is a sad tale. Bland and too much cream.
Now for the desserts.... we had a brownie and a mid pie. Funny how the mud pie tasted like a brownie with meringue served in a rock hard crust (you could probably use it as a weapon if you got mugged on the streets) and the brownie is like a compressed salty chocolate crumb. Well, the cook is Chinese and perhaps he mistook salt for sugar? This is the first time (and hopefully the last) I have had a salty brownie.
Waitstaff are alright and spoke adequate English.
Overall, I would not mind the prices if the food was decent enough to remind me of home but definitely is way overpriced for some Chinese chef crap.