The Char bar terrace.
Winsor Dobbin digs the sophisticated yet creative vibe of a newcomer on Shanghai's famous thoroughfare.
STAYING in a recently completed hotel can be fraught with danger for the unwary. There can be check-in glitches, language difficulties, missing shuttle connections and forgotten wake-up calls. Even builders sometimes still on site.
So when I learnt the new Hotel Indigo Shanghai on the Bund was coming off a soft opening period, had an iconic restaurant that had been open only a few weeks and was just launching its top suites, the alarm bells were ringing.
So what did the hotel - the first of the boutique Indigo chain to launch in the Asia-Pacific region - do to upset this admittedly, and increasingly, grumpy traveller? Nothing. Not a thing. I was stunned. In a pleasant way.
Rarely has a trip gone so smoothly - a credit to the hotel's Australian management team and a group of keen young Chinese staffers who never missed a beat. It's a cliche to say "the staff could not have been more helpful" but it is also true.
From the moment I was picked up at Shanghai Airport by a sleek Buick, I was transfixed by futuristic Shanghai, with its fascinating amalgam of the old and the new - a theme the Hotel Indigo has built into its design and service ethos.
Vintage future ... Hotel Indigo blends modern and traditional.
The rooms feature Shikumen bricks, murals of nearby Yuyuan Garden, ceramics and textiles to add a feel of the city, while the lobby houses a restored rickshaw and an old bike alongside modern art installations and a revolving selection of artworks by locals.
The hotel has possibly the finest location in this vibrant metropolis of 22 million people - on the banks of the bustling Huangpu River, where colourful modern cruise boats power past barges filled with building materials for yet another high-rise construction project.
The Bund, Shanghai's main thoroughfare, is immediately below, as is the historic Shiliupu Dock, with the futuristic skyscrapers of Pudong on the opposite bank of the river glistening like a mini-Manhattan - and probably not mini for much longer. Ten minutes' walk away are both the Old City and the Cool Docks, an ultra-modern amalgam of bars, cafes and restaurants frequented by the city's upwardly mobile.
Noodles at Quay.
From the Char bar on the 30th floor of the hotel, the entire city is laid out like a giant carpet. There can be few more dramatic settings for a quiet beer or glass of wine.
A level below is Char, the hotel's signature restaurant, which is the domain of executive chef Julie Donohoe (who has worked with Kylie Kwong and Neil Perry and was most recently at the InterContinental Sydney hotel).
Char is a modern bar and grill that has taken Shanghai by storm with effusive reviews from critics, including five out of five from the local Time Out, which described it as "steakhouse gets sexy".
Standout dishes include a deliciously rich foie gras parfait, Blackmore's wagyu beef steaks imported from Victoria and a whole black cod served with a sauce and paintbrush to enable diners to give the fish their own artistic flourish.
Donohoe has also revived some classics, including prawn cocktail, giving them innovative reworks.
The eclectic wine list has been put together by local Ethan Tian, the hotel's sommelier and food and drink director, an urbane fellow from Harbin who once worked at Tetsuya's in Sydney and had recently returned from a trip checking out Tasmanian vineyards.
Less formal dining is available in the casual Quay, open for breakfast, lunch and dinner and serving a cross-section of traditional Shanghainese and Western dishes. The local noodles are good but so is the hamburger.
Of the 184 Indigo rooms, including 23 suites, most have sweeping views of both the Bund and the Pudong skyline.
Built on the site of a former bank building - surely the ultimate profligacy given the stunning views - the accommodation features historic photos, traditional lamps and bamboo desks but the hotel is very definitely 21st century. There are 42-inch flat-screen TVs with a range of cable channels, Bose sound systems, free wi-fi and broadband connections and iPhone-iPod docks and chargers.
Social media fans beware, however. Access to the internet is fast and easy - and iMac stations are offered free in the hotel's public areas - but Twitter and Facebook are blocked by the government.
There are "pods" that can be commandeered to watch a movie or sporting event while food and drinks are ferried to you, a superb 17-metre swimming pool with city views, free massage chairs and a well-equipped gym. And the hotel sits above a delightful river walk.
The bathrooms feature large showers, deep baths and electronic toilets with warmed seats and adjustable bidets. As you would expect, there is 24-hour room service, from a slick multilingual team of bright young things headed by veteran Australian general manager Bruce Ryde, once of Hamilton Island.
One of the great things about Shanghai is you can spend as little as you like or splurge on cocktails at the ultra-chic el Coctel, dinner at Fulton Place or M on the Bund, buy diamonds in the private club atmosphere of The Carat Club, or maybe sign up for a Lamborghini or Bentley at one of Shanghai's ever-increasing range of luxury car dealers. There is no doubt this is a city on the move.
But, as if in a parallel universe, old Shanghai lives alongside all this glitz. Luxury goods stores share pavement space with traditional dumpling houses and old, grey-haired merchants whittling sticks of wood in doorways. There are rats in the laneways a block back from the Bund; ferries run from Pier 16, just a stroll from the hotel, to Pudong for about 7¢ - surely one of the world's great travel bargains.
The writer was a guest of Hotel Indigo Shanghai on the Bund and was assisted by Qantas.
Trip notes
Where Hotel Indigo Shanghai on the Bund: 585 Zhongshan Dong Er Road, Huangpu Area, Shanghai. +86 21 3302 9999. shanghai.hotelindigo.com. Qantas has direct flights from Sydney to Shanghai. qantas.com.au.
How much Rooms start from yuan 1350 ($190). Bund view rooms from yuan 2000 and suites from yuan 3000, depending on currency variations.
Top marks The hotel has a chic, laid-back vibe with efficient staff.
Black mark The water pressure in the shower in my room was not up to scratch but I reported the problem and the power was back by my return that evening.
Don't miss The nearby Yuyuan Garden, regarded as one of the finest gardens in the country.
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