Went for a dinner with a business client tonight. The place was not packed but quite a few tables being occupied. After drinks at the bar we got guided to our table. The menu is real 'old school' style with stuff like prawn cocktail and Oyster Rockefeller. We had the famous steaks. Meat was OK, cooking and temperature soso, side dishes mediocre. Overall with a price tag of 600 to 800 RMB for a steak plus sides, beverages and service charge be prepared to pay per head at least about 1500 RMB. Very good service and a nice setting. Would I come back? If someone would invite me maybe. On my own pocket for sure not. This place is way too expensive.

Morton's is amazing--you can honestly depend on the reviews to judge how great this place is. The service is top notch, the food is top notch both in terms of quality and portions...I didn't find one thing wrong with Morton's while dining there.

I've been to Morton's happy hour a couple of times. Their free steak sandwiches speak a lot about the restaurant--if they're giving away these amazingly delicious free steak bits away, imagine how good their menu must be. I wasn't wrong.

I took my boyfriend there for his birthday this past weekend and was not disappointed. There probably weren't a lot of people there because it was the holiday weekend (Sunday) and so we were seated right away. The hostess asked us where we wanted to sit and stood patiently as we weighed our options. Note: make sure to specify whether you want smoking or non-smoking. I think they would normally ask but, because there weren't that many people, the hostess may have forgotten. Anyway, 1/2 way through our meal, I realized that we were in the smoking section. However, because the place is so well ventilated, this was not an issue at all...or maybe it's because we were both suffering from cold symptoms. Either way, it wasn't that big of an issue.

The wine list, as noted, is extremely extensive. I didn't even bother looking at it, partly because I have no idea about wine, partly because the bottle prices are pretty pricey.

The menu is not big, which I always find a positive. I heard somewhere that, if a menu is big, then the food probably isn't going to be that good or fresh because there's no way a kitchen can keep everything freshly stocked or do a good job juggling so many different dishes.

We decided on the following: 1/2 dozen oysters to start, double filet mignon to share (I believe it was about 350g), grilled asparagus and hashed potatoes for 2 as our sides. My boyfriend also ordered a bourbon manhattan and a glass of wine with dinner.

Before the whole ordering process, pretty much as we sat down, a waitress brought a fresh-out-of-the-oven round loaf of onion bread and butter. It was so freaking good! I ate about 1/2 of it as we were looking at the menu. It could probably feed a small village.

1. Oysters: from Australia and came with lots of horseradish, cocktail sauce, crackers and tabasco. They were pretty good considering Morton's doesn't exactly bring to mind seafood. The cocktail sauce was awesome.

2. Steak: Asked for rare, got rare. It was perfectly cooked on the outside, a layer of cooked beef and the rest was bloodly red but it wasn't so much that you got blood all over your plate...maybe a bit. It came with a buttery sauce, which was tasty and a waitress immediately replaced it when she noticed we were getting low. So juicy! I'm glad we split it because it was probably the biggest filet I've ever seen. Great portion for a great price (something like RMB598?). Definitely good to share.

3. Asparagus: I have never had asparagus that was cooked liked this. It was perfect from the top to the stalk. You could easily cut it with a knife and it was crunchy but not undercooked. I don't know how they did it. It came with balsamic vinegrette kind of sprinkled on top--just the right amount.

4. Potato hash for 2: Probably my favorite dish other than the steak. It wasn't too flat and was golden brown on the outside. Inside, the potato could almost be described as creamy...starchy goodness is what it was. After it was brought out, the waitress came with a choice of butter, sour cream, and (real) bacon pieces. We chose the sour cream (lots, which the waitress chuckled at and globbed it on) and bacon. We also got some ketchup. SO GOOOOD!!!!!

5. Drinks: I don't like bourbon so when I really dislike it, it must mean it's good. I HATED the Bourbon Manhattan my boyfriend ordered, so it must be a damn good drink. Didn't have any of the wine but they brought it out immediately as the steak arrived.

Dessert--before our main course arrived, the waitress asked me whose birthday it was (I had mentioned it coming in). I noted it was my boyfriend's and she said that they prepare a free dessert for the birthday person. I think there was a choice between creme brulee or something but I chose the chocolate lava cake, which I believe they're known for.

After the waitress cleared off the table of our main meal, including scraping the table cloth of bread crumbs, the staff came out with the cake and sang happy birthday to my boyfriend. A waitress even took our photo. Later, she came out and gave us a print out of the photo, complete with a nice cardboard Morton's frame, signed by the staff who had sang to us. It was a great touch.

Now, on to dessert: I had some of the ice cream and it was real vanilla bean. I didn't have any of the cake but it looked great and he said it tasted awesome.

I have to gush about the service--the waitresses understood pretty much everything we said in English, and most importantly caught things that were said softly, and were always at attention but not in the smothering way waiters/waitresses are at other western restaurants. They stood back and were alert but didn't constantly come over to the table. It almost felt like home.

The portions were AMERICAN (God, I love being American sometimes) and there's no doubt about that.

Although the bill might be pricey, it's totally worth going to Morton's at least once if you're living in Shanghai.