Introducing Nebula Shanghai, a Spanish fine dining destination, now open in Changning with an inaugural menu of global influences and a tribute to one of molecular cuisine’s most famous dishes.
Nebula Shanghai
The Space
Nebula Shanghai is located on the second floor of CPARK, a new complex in Changning district.
The restaurant’s design mirrors its modern cuisine. Dominated by black tones and orb-shaped lights, the space evokes the imagery of galaxies and nebulae.
It features an eight-seat chef’s table, six dining tables for up to four guests each, and two private rooms, each accommodating eight diners.
Chef Jonatan Rubio
Nebula is helmed by Chef Jonatan Rubio, a La Rioja native with 15 years of culinary expertise.
Rubio, who honed his craft under celebrity chef Carolina Sánchez at Michelin-starred IKARO in Spain and led the kitchen at Ecuador’s acclaimed KRIOLLO, brings a worldly perspective to his creations.
His culinary influences also includes Japanese, Italian, French, and Nepalese, and a passion for the science behind molecular gastronomy. The restaurant showcases a menu that marries Spanish cuisine with Ecuadorian and Asian flavors, and borrows ideas and ingredients from Chinese cuisine.
What is Molecular Gastronomy?
Molecular gastronomy, popularized by chefs like the Adrià brothers, is more science than anything, going beyond traditional cooking methods by applying techniques that often times require an actual lab. (Nebula has one in the basement.) What it strives to achieve is to manipulate food’s original form, and to transform or fuse it to create something new.
These days, the designation carries a negative connotation within the industry, much like the word “fusion.” However, techniques that can be categorized as molecular cooking are employed in most fine dining restaurants — foam (emulsifying), spheres, liquid nitrogen, and even low-temperature cooking (sous vide).
Nebula is owning its classification, an endeavor to portray a positive light on molecular techniques by utilizing them in every dish on the menu.
Menu #1 at Nebula
The 12-course chef-driven tasting menu, priced at ¥1,288 per person (plus 10% service charge), is a nod to the pioneering spirit of Spanish fine dining, plated in the artistic stylings of the genre.
The journey begins with Crystal Bread, a famous dish in the category of molecular cuisine and a tribute to the Adrià brothers. It features transparent kudzu starch bread filled with chicken sweetbreads stewed in La Rioja red wine, chestnut cream, and shaved Yunnan black truffle. The bread is unbelievably crispy and light and the filling savory and flavorful. It’s a playful start. I can’t speak for those who’ve had the original, but as a first-timer trying this, it’s pretty impressive.
Next is the Squid Ravioli. Squid is thinly sliced, filled with grilled squid and finely chopped raw squid with roasted garlic aioli, served with crispy garlic. It delivers a big briny punch, while garlic crisps add umami and texture, inspired by Madrid’s 19th-century squid sandwich.
A custard-like dish follows, the Mushrooms, Onions, Artichokes & Sea Urchin, where sea urchin replaces egg yolk, paired with chanterelle stew, black mushroom cream, onion foam, crispy artichoke petals, and candied lemon peel. Earthy, creamy, a hint of sweetness, and robust, it straddles the line between chawanmushi and French onion soup. It is very comforting.
A three-part seafood course showcases Rubio’s culinary journey through Spain, Ecuador and China.
The Prawn Tartare (Spain) is sandwiched between chicken skin with black garlic emulsion. The skin is super crispy, and the combination of creamy prawns with black garlic memorable. The Grilled Langoustine (Ecuador) is accompanied by coconut, cherry lime juice, and pickled onions, and the Blue Lobster, inspired by Zhejiang cuisine, is marinated in Chinese yellow wine and served with pickled juice gel and fresh longan.
Cold-Smoked Hamachi is next, topped with 12-year-old Qiandao Lake caviar. It is paired with a pickled beetroot roll filled with cream cheese, pickled carrots and cucumbers, and pickled carrot emulsion. The fish is luxuriously velvety with a smoky aroma and the sharp pickles add a tangy contrast. A great combination of flavors.
A seared Scallop follows, served with toasted butter, teardrop peas sautéed with garlic oil, diced carrots, and puffed rice noodles, all complemented by a light chicken broth.
Basque-inspired flavors are showcased in the Cod, Pilpil, Clams & Mussels dish. Cod is wrapped in zucchini and served with mussel cream and pilpil sauce infused with Chinese herbal elements.
Drawing from Ecuador’s encebollado fish stew, the Tuna, Onion Soup & Cilantro dish pairs three cuts of sushi-grade tuna with a tangy broth of lime, tamarind, and cilantro, alongside grilled Chinese mountain yam. It’s bright and appetizing, reminiscent of Assam laksa, but much lighter. This was quite lovely.
A tribute to Segovia’s famed Suckling Pig is next. The fatty cut of pork is marinated in Shaoxing wine sauce, inspired by Wuxi-style spareribs, slow-cooked for 24 hours, then roasted in the Josper oven. Served with cauliflower couscous and cream, cherries, cherry jus, endives, and asparagus. It’s sweet and savory.
The Nebula Rice reimagines paella as a crispy socarrat roll with mushroom-infused formed into a crispy roll served alongside flavorful and tender roasted duck breast. Socarrat means “to scorch” in Spanish, and the al dente paella has a crispy bite to it. Served with sauces of roasted duck jus, garlic aioli, and purple sweet potato cream.
Dessert begins with a table-side spectacle — a White Chocolate and Mango Cream Waffle is shaped with liquid nitrogen by Chef Rubio. It is plated with caramelized mango rolls, coriander gel, and black olive jam. The waffle itself is light and cloud-like.
The meal concludes with a traditional Basque dessert reimagined, featuring sherry-marinated strawberries, smoked meringue, and butter puff pastry. It’s accompanied by a boozy shot of spiked pastry cream, styled after the rompope, a Latin-style eggnog. The traditional rum is replaced with erguotou (the working man’s baijiu) and Ecuadorian liquor.
The meal ends with petit fours of blue cheese and fig with butter cookie, rhubarb with green apple jelly and lemon basil, and a chestnut waffle.
The Wine List
For drinks, the wine list boasts 240 labels with a strong focus on Spanish wines, plucked from 21 regions. Two pairing options are available: the Viva el Vino Series (¥390), a competitively priced pairing featuring five Spanish wines, and the Vina Estrellado Series (¥790), offering six global selections.
All prices are subject to 10% service charge.
In Summary
Nebula Shanghai may not reinvent the wheel, but it confidently embraces the avant-garde, and is as much about artistry and story-telling as it is about the experience. For Shanghai (and for me too), it’s uncharted culinary territory. One thing is for certain, it is something quite new for the city. I’m curious to see what they develop for their next menu.
Nebula Shanghai
Click here to view the venue listing.
