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on Wednesday, June 08, 2005 - 06:16 PM AST - 5099 Reads
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By Michelle
After a lovely summer weekend day, I headed to Zapatas on Hengshan Road at sunset for drinks and dinner. Everyone knows Zapatas as one of Shanghai’s most fun (most insane?) party bars. I wanted to try them for dinner, and sat outside on the patio to enjoy the evening breeze. The most challenging part of dinner at Zapatas is also the easiest – choosing which night to go With different themed special promotions every night of the week, going to Zapatas on any night means a guarantee of enticing drink specials, food promotions, and great music.
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We began, of course, with a house margarita. My frozen mango margarita was perfect – hardly sweetened, deliciously fruity, and packing a nice punch at the bottom of the glass. The strawberry margarita was significantly sweeter, so be sure to ask your date what she prefers JP
For starters, we had the Jalapeno Peppers (deep fried peppers stuffed with cheese), and a cold ceviche seafood salad cocktail. Although I’m sure many people will find the Peppers just right, they certainly were spicy, which helped make the above-mentioned margaritas disappear quickly (guys, paying attention?). The ceviche salad was also a good counter to the spicy heat, with the fresh avocados absorbing some of the fire.
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As main courses, we tried the beef enchiladas and the June/July special fish tacos. The enchiladas were just right, filled with chunks of tender tasty beef, not the “mystery meat” mush I find in some other “Mexican” food in town. We weren’t as transported by the fish tacos: the deep-fried batter needed plenty of fresh salsa to come to life. The standard supporting cast of refried beans and rice, however, was excellent. The beans tasted just right, covered in melted cheese. The rice was tasty and just the right texture.
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To my surprise, however, the best part of the entire experience was the service. From the moment of the warm greeting on our arrival, we received outstanding attentive and friendly service. Ice water came as soon as we asked for it, and was magically refilled each time the Jalapeno Peppers demanded it. The food itself arrived within minutes of ordering, and every additional request (more salsa, more candles for the table) was fulfilled immediately with a smile.
As we walked out the door just before 9 pm on Sunday evening, Zapatas was full of Chinese girls learning salsa moves for that evening’s main event. If I weren’t so deliciously full…
Zapatas for dinner? Si, baby, Si!
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