3 New Menus: O'Mills, Stone Brewing, Tomatito

What’s new at three solid restaurants in Shanghai. O’Mills one-ups their brunch spread with a dinner menu, craft beer bar Stone Brewing adds more pubgrub, and Spanish tapas mainstay Tomatito reopens in a mall.

O’Mills Bakery & Bistro

Avocado Toast (¥58)

O’Mills is popular for its all-day brunch, freshly baked breads, and desserts. It’s also the only bakery in Shanghai that mills its own flour in-house. They've tacked on “Bistro” to its name, extending opening hours to midnight in lieu of the newly added dinner menu.

Cakes at O'Mills

Dinner dishes remain true to their ethos of using quality ingredients and excellently baked goods. These are represented in the form of fully loaded tartines and equally laden sourdough pizzas. Pizzas start from ¥88 (margarita).

Beef Tartine (¥34) – Thinly sliced roast beef with spicy sauce, argula, parmesan

Avocado Tartine (¥48) – guacamole with buffalo mozzarella, roasted cherry tomatoes

Tuna Tartine (¥46) – Lightly seared yellowfin tuna with tonnato sauce

Pizzas

There aren’t really any “mains”. There are, however, some satisfying bowls like cubed steak casserole and fried Brussels sprouts to go with those pizzas.

Others include bites like truffle French fries and cold cuts platters, which work in synergy with the simple drinks list of conventional cocktails (from ¥65), wines, and beers (from ¥28).

Steak Cube Casserole (¥78) – Cubed beef tenderloin with pan-seared white button ushrooms, potato, bacon, and beef gravy.

Brussels Sprouts (¥36) – Fried with bacon and balsamic reduction.

Mussels (¥58) – Mussels in a tomato based sauce of basil, garlic, and green olives

Truffle French Fries (¥30)

Prosciutto Platter (¥108) – Parma ham, salami, bresaola, coppa

You’re probably more familiar with O’Mills’ daytime vibes—bright, airy, and bustling. Evenings are more subdued with candlelit tables. It’s a big draw for neighboring residents looking for a bite before heading home from work.

That said, the buy-one-get-one house wine (¥48/glass) happy hour is every Sunday to Thursday from 6-9pm.

O'Mills (Yongjia Lu)
View the listing here.

---

Stone Brewing

Address: 1107 Yuyuan Lu, near Fenggang Lu 愚园路1107号, 近凤冈路
Tel: 62262510
Hours: Sun-Wed 11:30am-midnight, Thu-Sat 11:30am-2am
Book now with Chope

(Image provided)

California brewery Stone Brewing opened its Shanghai taproom in July 2018 to much fanfare and to the delight of hopheads. The craft beer gastrobar is cavernous and has a lovely terrace in the back—it's good for al fresco, large groups, and is family-friendly.

(Image provided)

The food here is contemporary American pubgrub, of which most have a West Coast influence. Usual suspects like tacos, ribs, burgers, and sandwiches are all the allure at Stone. Simply put, those items go very well with beer.

Pandering to a wider audience who seek to have a full sit-down dinner are commendable appetizers like the crab and tuna stack and entrées like the Hot & Crunchy Tilapia.

Crab & Ahi Tuna Stack (¥138) – Rice cake, crab, avocado, ahi tuna, tobiko and microgreens. Mango-ginger and barbecue eel sauce for extra flavor.

Sticky Ribs (¥98) – Soy, ginger, and garlic glazed pork ribs. Will order again.

Bleucy Lucy Burger (¥98) – Wagyu beef patty stuffed with Gorgonzola cheese topped with Dijon mustard, arugula, and red onion jam. This is legit.

Hot Pastrami Reuben (¥98) – Shaved beef pastrami with Emmental cheese, sauerkraut and Thousand Island dressing on sourdough-rye bread.

San Diego Fish Tacos (¥88) - Three flour tacos of grilled halibut, shredded red cabbage, pico de gallo tomato salsa, Monterrey Jack cheese, and spicy dressing.

Hot & Crunchy Tilapia (¥118) – Breaded and pan-fried fillet served with broccoli, toasted almost, roasted potatoes, mango-chili sauce, and pineapple-mango salsa.

Socal Superfood Salad (¥78) - Greens, avocado, sweet potato, quinoa, spicy nuts, and a bunch of other stuff.

Yellowfin Ahi Poke “Nachos” (¥78) – Wonton crisps, marinated cucumbers, scallions, wakame seaweed salad, Sriracha mayo, avocado cream. These are just OK.

Warm Chocolate Brownie with vanilla ice cream (¥88)

It’s better than average bar food. Some I’d consider great. (See: the burger.) The crab and tuna stack is tasty, but I balk at the price. I'd rather the tilapia.

People go for the beers, and these dishes provide the fodder for maximum boozing.

Still wish they had fries. Let's see how long this peer pressure will take to bear fruit.

---

Tomatito

Like many other restaurants irked by besetting foreclosures and the unfounded reclamation of properties, Tomatito has opted for a more secure location albeit less captivating surroundings.

Following the Zhangyuan exodus, the Spanish tapas mainstay has chosen to roost in Infinitus Mall. The expansive terrace overlooking the green of Xintiandi’s Taipingqiao Park compensates for its mall locale.

They've added to menu more Spanish bites. What’s new is that they’re open for lunch daily—gotta serve that working crowd. The brunch deal of ¥158 for four dishes and a dessert still remains.

Highlights include the Spinach Croquetas (¥58). Those are excellent. I could eat them any day. They’re crispy on the outside and have a center of molten spinach and manchego puree with pine nuts and raisins.

Sesame cracker with avocado and watermelon salsa (¥50/four). Two fingers, one bite.

Explosiones de atun (¥68/four) – Tuna, wasabi cream, seaweed and crispy rice.

Spinach croquetas (¥58/four)

Creamy mix of spinach, cheese, nuts, and raisins

Jamon de Bellota Iberico (¥328/50g), comes with toasted bread and tomato spread. For when you're feeling fancy.

Another must-order is the fresh mussels (¥128) in a white wine and cream sauce fortified with garlic, herbs, and chili. You really don’t want to waste the luscious sauce. I would go for as many bread baskets it would take to sop it all up.

Fresh mussels

Of course, you’ll feel obligated to get one of the paellas. The mixed seafood dry paella (¥268) is delicious, but it doesn’t feel like a great value dish compared to the mussels. The portion is a modest three-way split. It’s half seafood—mussels, clams, prawns, and baby squid, cuttlefish, and octopus, which correlates to the price—and half rice cooked in seafood stock. Healthy helping of aioli and fresh lemon to mix together.

Flavor-wise, I can’t complain. Though, Tomatito can feel pricey—some dishes carry a little sticker shock. I would most certainly return for the mussels and the spinach croquetas, and for the brunch.

Tomatito Shanghai
View the listing here.