33 Yongjia Road near Maoming Nan Road
Shanghai
TEL: 86 21 5465 5993
My buddy Jimmy from Beijing drove 18 hours to Shanghai. Greg suggested to us to check out Bar Constellation for an after dinner drink. Looking from the outside, it already screams out how posh this place is. This is yet another old mansion that turned into a nice bar lounge in Shanghai.
The inside is nice, wooden panels, large bay windows and swirling staircases gave you the vibe of a luxury living room of some old mansion. The whole place is also very dimly lit. Behind the short bar, there is a large display of their huge liquor collection. The waiters are also neatly dressed with the classic white shirts, black pants, bow ties and vests. They seated us downstairs at the back where there is a couch and a few chairs.
Looking at the drinks list, I will have to say it has the largest scotch collection I have seen in China so far. It ain't cheap, however, with prices starting about 100RMB an ounce. If you are craving for a Lagaluvin or an Oban in Shanghai, this place got what you want. There is also a large collection of whites and reds to select from. A few people ordered the house red, which is a Chilean Santa Rita, which is decent for a modest 50RMB.
In a place like this, especially with waiters dressed like they know what they are doing. I usually order my favorite martini, which is a Tanqueray 10 martini stirred with a twist. I said this a few times to make sure the waiter understood what I meant and everything seemed to be fine. A few minutes later, he came back with a martini with an olive. Usually I am not super picky, but for a fine setting liked this, and the price that I was paying, I expected a bit more. Greg decided to grab this drink and so we tried again; this time, we told them specifically how to make it in details. A few minutes later, the drink came, Tanqueray 10 martini stirred with a twist. Good, but with a closer look, there is a bonus olive in there along with the twist. I guess the bartenders there had it ingrained in their heads that a Martini MUST have an olive in it, or else it's not a martini at all. Anyhow, exhausted of explaining and complaining, I picked out the olive and downed the drink.
A few of us also ordered a few scotch for tasting. Make sure you use words like "NO ICE" instead of "Neat" to avoid confusion. There is also an upstairs with couches for private conversations away from the crowd, and no photography is allowed, so I wasn't able to take more photos. The music volume can be turned down slightly to accommodate conversation without shouting.
To sum up, Bar Constellation is a decent place to hang out when you feel like spoiling yourself with expensive drinks. A great collection of Scotches is also there whenever you have the craving for it. I would suggest, however, to stay away from the mixed drinks and stick with poured drinks, like scotches, wine or beer.
A few photos:
No comments:
Post a Comment