Mosto Gusto

Posted by Gingerblossom at 8:09 AM

Wednesday, February 11, 2009


I had lunch the day before at Mosto. Lunch was with my ex-boss who's just about eaten at every new restaurant in Beijing. Really. If you read Chinese, you can check out his blog for places to eat in Beijing and Shanghai. 

Anyway, Mosto was the first place that came to mind for lunch and thankfully, he hasn't been there so it's like a new adventure. I haven't eaten at Mostos before but for some strange reason, the name got stuck in my head after I saw it.  

I love the casual feel about the restaurant. As I sat in there, I almost couldn't tell I was in China. (er... maybe the predominantly expat diners created that impression) Decor was simple - white walls, bits of stainless steel and beautiful wood floor stained in black.  

There was a huge lunch crowd. Maybe because they have a lunch set menu. 2 courses at 70MRB and 3 courses at 85RMB.  The portions were of a good size - not too heavy for lunch but enough fuel for the rest of the day.  The set menu offers choice between starters, 3 mains and 2 desserts. I had the Arugula Salad with Gorgonzola cheese. There wasn't all that much dressing but since I like it that way, it was just nice for me. My main was a Porcine Risotto with some kind of broth. That was yummy! Came served with a thin slice of grilled ( I think) Parmesan cheese on top. The broth helped make the risotto easier to finish. Otherwise I've always found Risotto too heavy a dish to finish alone. 

My dining partner had a different salad that had artichoke hearts and some mango flavored dressing.  His main was the panfried salmon which he pronounced to be very delicious. it was served with a side of potatoes.  
We both had dessert. I didn't think much of my chocolate mousse with pistachios. It was... mousse.  The other dessert was vanilla ice-cream with chocolate shavings. I think it was just so so.
Would I come back? Definitely. But probably for the 2 course set lunch only. The dinner prices are a bit steep at about 150RMB and above for a main course. I'll leave that for a very special occasion. 

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