Wagas
169 Wujiang Lu, Shop 201 (???169?201??)
Shanghai, China
PRICE: ???
RATING:

I’ve been meaning to check out Wagas for awhile now, since they have so many chains around the place and I’ve heard pretty good things about the cafes. Stepping in is like stepping out of China, it seriously feels like I’ve stepped into a cafe in Paddington back in Australia. Airy and clean, high ceilings and cheery staff, we were merrily seated on nice couches in the corner window seat and left to peruse the menu.

The menu isn’t extensive – you basically can choose salads, soups, sandwiches and pastas. We opted for the Wagas salad which was GINORMOUS! I could fit my whole head into the bowl (not that I tried…) and it was piled high with salad, roasted pumpkin, lots of nuts and seeds, etc etc. The tomato vinaigrette it came with was delicious, though I wish it had come on the side separately (or that I’d remembered to ask for that) because I don’t like much dressing on my salads.

The Curry chicken and mango chutney sandwich was a winner too. It was very decently sized and the chicken was surprisingly tender and moist (I often fear chicken in sandwiches as they’re often cold and dried out). The mango chutney was mildly sweet and gave it a lovely flavour, and there was lots of fresh crunchy lettuce. The only downside was that they somehow totally forgot that we ordered the sandwich, so we waited and waited and waited before we finally enquired about it. The guy gave us a “Eeeek!” look and ran off, and the sandwich arrived literally 2 mins later, which was great. It would have been pleasant if we’d been given a discount or a free coffee though. Now that would’ve been great customer service!

The coffee we ordered was perfectly brewed. It was Illys brand, our #1 favourite brand which we always drink in Australia. Creamy and hot, it was a real treat. We really enjoyed the place and will be back. Loved the friendly, attentive service and it was nice to ‘get away’ from the craziness of Shanghai and step into something so totally Western once in a while!

Wagas Salad, chock-full of veggies and nuts

Ummm.. it’s bigger than my head

Curry chicken and mango chutney sandwich. This was excellent!

Illy’s coffee = BLISS

Really cool bathroom with PINK tiles!!! Eeeee!