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Italian eatery offering something different
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Leafy Sinan Road has lots of spirit. Fabrizio Pizzioli chose a charming spot along the road and turned it into an intimate, 30-seat restaurant offering cuisine from Trieste, Italy.
Dr. Fab has a highly personalized vibe with a vintage sensibility to the decor. This includes custom-made sewing machine tables, Art Deco chairs and wood panels from old Shanghai doors. It’s the brainchild of Trieste natives Pizzioli and chef Andrea Canciani.
The space is reminiscent of someone’s dining room, with an open kitchen. Unlike other Italian restaurants where the kitchen has to pump out lots of pastas and pizzas, Canciani has made an effort to do something different.
“The peculiarity of our city Trieste is that it is an Italian city on the Adriatic Sea that was the main port of the Austrian Empire for over 400 years. Also as the door to the Balkan world, the population is mixed and so is the cuisine,” Pizzioli said. “Alongside Italian staples like gnocchi and prosciutto, we also have stewed meat that is more Austrian. However, the city’s location on the Adriatic Sea makes it a destination for seafood lovers.”
The only downside at Dr. Fab is that the team needs to give up a lot of authentic Trieste recipes due to the lack of ingredients in Shanghai. Through distributors they import salmon from Norway, Atlantic Ocean cod, and mussels from France.
“With the limited resources of seafood, we select the recipes that are more demanding on the cooking or the processing rather than on the ingredients ready to be served,” he said. “So we do all the preparations according to the original ways we do back home, such as smoking, salting, marinating and drying the fish.”
Dr. Fab provides a small menu with only five antipasti (appetizer) and five mains. They change the menu every six weeks to offer something new or seasonal although a few signature dishes remain.
Dr. Fab’s fish cold cuts (128 yuan, US$20.1) includes tuna fish bacon, tuna fish tartar, home-smoked salmon and salmon tartar with Laphroaig whisky. The house made tuna fish bacon is highly recommended. The chef cures the tuna with salt, sugar, pepper, and a mix of herbs. The thin slices of tuna bacon are full of a smoked-fish aroma that makes you keep reaching for more.
Inspired by the typical southern Italian recipe parmigiana, the fish parmigiana (138 yuan) is a refreshing variation using fried halibut fillet layered with fried aubergine, fresh tomato sauce and Parmesan cheese. Baked in the oven and topped with Parmesan, the acidity of the tomato sauce contrasts the sweetness of the fried eggplants — a special dish indeed.
The spinach gnocchi (128 yuan) is another comforting main course. This rich dish is cooked with butter and sage. The tuna bacon topping gives a smoked salty taste, pairing surprisingly well with the relatively heavy creamy base.
Dr. Fab mainly serves wines from the Trieste region.
“Nearby we have Collio, which is said to be the best area for white wines in Italy. So especially for the whites we focus on this area with seven different varieties like Robolla Gialla, Malvasia Istriana, and Tocai,” Pizzioli said.
As for the reds, they select the delicate ones they won’t overpower the sophisticated taste of the fish.
“Despite the fact that for me it’s a must to have white and only white wine with seafood, for red wine lovers a Teroldego Toteliano from the Dolomites pairs well with our lasagna.”
Dr. Fab
Tel: 6312-8290
Address: 48 Sinan Rd
Average check: 250 yuan
Opening hours: 6:30pm-11pm (Tuesday to Sunday), 12am-3pm (weekend brunch)
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