Along with considering the whole pig as gastronomic fair-game, the Spanish and Chinese have historical similarities. One is in their approach to scenery, as demonstrated in Las Médulas where the locals washed an entire mountain range down the river in order to access a handful or two of gold.


Tucked down one of Jing’an Villas’ excruciatingly quaint alleys, Vale has been serving up Italian food under the radar for a while now. We went along to find that if you can stay awake long enough for the food to arrive, their simple menu has a lot to offer. Just don’t order a pizza.


Every once in a while in Shanghai we’re surprised by a restaurant. It comes out of the haze when we least expect it with a new cuisine or approach. Käfer does that and goes one step further, combining a formidable water-level view with inventive modern German cuisine and fantastically attentive service. And it’s in Pudong.


Normally when the funfair rolls into town you can hear the music at night, savor wafts of toffee apples on the breeze and see the Ferris wheel towering over the treetops on the town common.