froggio

why not buy directly at the wineries in France and then use a consolidator for a single shipment? It would be cheaper. Anyway I have used Santa Fe as a relo company and they did a good job but it didn't involve wines.

smoked salmon has such a strong flavor that it overwhelms just about any wine. I would pair a gently smoked premium quality salmon with a dry Loire white wine, sauvignon blanc or a dry Alsatian riesling. For a heavily smoked commercial fish, vodka would be best.

Great link but so difficult to understand, no wonder the rules seem to be so fuzzy, I can see why a US Customs officer would not be too knowledgeable or motivated... I have travelled often to Europe in the past 2 years each time coming back with lots of food products: cured meats, cheese, dried mushrooms, cans, jars, wine etc. I was under the impression that cured pork meat and mushrooms were not acceptable so I always have the meats and dried mushrrooms vacuum-packed so as not attract the attention of those nosy beagles. I wash the packs in warm soapy water 2 or 3 times to eliminate odors. Customs officers at Newark show a lackadaisical attitude, even when told I had foods in my luggage. I have developed a new technique to circumvent some of those silly US rules governing food imports: i mail myself packages filled with food from Paris to NY. It's cheap, about 10 Euros at the cheapest (slow) rate, if you keep it under just 2 kgs. They were all vacuum-packed and all came through.

coz when you live in China it can be a nice thing to eat once in a while a roasted chicken with fork and knife.

I think JG is the best western restaurant in Shanghai at the moment. Great "modern" food like you would eat in the top NY restaurants. The chef likes to be challenged, don't hesitate to throw a monkey's wrench here and there...

Hi everyone, my two cents: PRC Chinese tend to prefer hard aged cheese, cooked or not, such as Comte (a big favorite), Beaufort etc. Goat cheese and soft strong cheese are not very popular because of pungency. Blue cheese fares a bit better. I am a partner in a cheese import and retail company in Shanghai.

Hi, I also live and work in Shgh. TOTB has 4 restaurants, two of which stand out in my biased opinion: "JG" and "Whampoa Club". The first one is well known in the US and the most profesional kitchen in Shgh. THe second one is a 'nouvelle cuisine' chinese restaurant. Sens on Bund (Pourcel Bros) is another good western restaurant, also on the Bund. In Xin Tian Di you will find T8, a western restaurant with an australian chef. Good but pricey for what you get but always busy. Most restaurants in XTD are overpriced if compared for what one would get in the US for the same amount of money. Apart from these, there are some small independent restaurants such as 239, Shikumen, Mesa, Viva, further down the quality ladder Des Lys, Saleya, La Seine (this last one served me one the worst french meal I ever had) etc. There seems to be a gap to be filled between those two segments, the high end such as JG and the low end such as Saleya. The Shgh restaurant scene is still partly defined by restaurants in hotels. Brand names such as Ritz-Carlton (Palladio), Shangri-La (Jade on 36) etc. were the first to establish a presence in the post-Mao era and are still playing a role in the western dining experience. This will change in the future as chinese standards and expectations rise, free standing restaurants almost always give better food and service quality than large corporate hotel chains' and I would know first hand :-) Feel free to contact me if you need any further info. I opened JG restaurant here in Shgh and know the scene fairly well. Cheers.