I choose Morton’s for my birthday every year, and this year was no exception. However, since I went on a weekend this time, the weekday lunch set menu wasn’t available. The prices are actually about the same, except the lunch set includes a complimentary salad or soup. Due to the pandemic, the once-bustling restaurant had only a few scattered tables of guests. Moreover, it’s not located in a mall but in a standalone building; without the air conditioning running, the place felt not only deserted but also cold… After sitting for a while, my hands and feet were freezing, and I could only warm up by drinking hot water.
Although I celebrate my birthday here every year, this was the first time I made a reservation in advance. They placed balloons on the table, printed an A4-sized menu with a personalized message (though the regular menu is A3), offered a complimentary dessert, and took a photo to print out (but the printer was broken; they said they would mail it to me, but it’s been a week and I still haven’t received it).
Upon seating, they proactively provided resealable bags for storing masks, which was a nice touch.
The pre-meal bread was as delicious as ever—freshly baked, warm onion bread paired with homemade butter. So satisfying.
Pan-seared scallops: the scallops weren’t very large. After being seared on both sides, they were served with pine nuts and raisins, which added texture, but the quality of the scallops themselves was just average and nothing particularly special.
Devil Shrimp: shrimp wrapped in bacon. Although the shrimp weren’t huge, the meat was good—plump and bouncy. Even though they came with jalapeños, they weren’t overly spicy and were quite tasty.
The steak standards remain high. Seared quickly at high heat to lock in the juices, resulting in a crispy exterior and tender interior. That kind of intense heat is hard to achieve with home cooking.
The steak didn’t come with mashed potatoes, so we ordered a side separately. It was rich and creamy.
The burger with fries was a bit mediocre. It felt like a step down from previous visits, though it was still satisfying enough.
The complimentary cake at the end was something else—absolutely loaded with peanut butter and cloyingly sweet.
gaga is a trendy spot originally from Shenzhen, and its first Shanghai location is here at Changning Raffles City. Occupying an entire old house, it’s much larger than Morton’s, yet the prices are quite reasonable. The ambiance is lovely, focusing mainly on afternoon tea and light meals. However, the food is indeed just average, though it serves well as a place to sit back and relax.
The chicken wings were slightly over-seasoned, and the meat wasn’t great—a bit tough.
Signature Fruit Tea: sweet and sour, pretty good, and served in a huge cup.
The guava juice was delicious—I was totally fooled by it! I bought a fresh guava afterwards only to find it incredibly sour and hard…
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