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All the things you'd want to do this Monday through Thursday. On the schedule this week: Prehistoric animatronics, an Agatha Christie murder mystery play, live music at Lola, and Eduardo Vargas fully moves into Chicha. Read on (or check out our calendar) for more! more ›

Matt Mayer is a British web and mobile developer for ReignDesign who has lived in Shanghai for 4 years. He is the man behind ExploreShanghai, the No. 1 online Shanghai metro map which is also now available as an iPhone app. more ›

The ever-vigilant other lifestyle sites/magazines in this city have picked up the news of local restuarant maven Eduardo Vargas' crazy inflated plans for expansion, so we figured we'd chat about it too. Basically, if you haven't read Urbanatomy or Smart Shanghai's takes, here's a summary. more ›

Osteria, the warm and wonderful new Italian restaurant on Jinxian Lu, is having its grand opening tonight at 6 pm, though it appears to have already built up a following in its soft opening phase. Certainly co-owner Eduardo Vargas can move large swaths of diners with his involvement in any restaurant, mostly because his brand (and it's now definitely a brand) connotes an immediate sense of comfort and quality. Osteria easily clears the bar, but this time greatly due to the help of the charismatic Zoltan, partner and sommelier/wine journalist who zealously preys on empty wine glasses both downstairs in the lounge and upstairs where the main courses are served. This is a man who loves his wine and relishes in sharing it with his new friends. And you, dear reader, will be made to feel like a new friend right when you walk in. more ›

Kelley Lee and Eduardo Vargas have teamed up again to give us Closed Door. Well, not exactly all of us. Their new little wine bar and Italian restaurant is willing to share its coziness with only those who call ahead and reserve a table at this purposefully tiny and hidden place. And they seem pretty serious about this initial round of exclusivity; prospective diners are queried first through a sliding peep-hole in their large, inconspicuous front gate. more ›

He does it again: We had the pleasure of attending a couple of tastings at Bambou, Eduardo Vargas' soon to soft-open new Southeast Asian restaurant. Eduardo has taken over the former "duck bar" above his own Azul and converted it into a tastefully dark and intimate space. With the dim lights and Buddha bar music playing over the speakers, we felt like we were at a Dragonfly awaiting our full body massages. What we got instead was a parade of delightful Vietnamese dishes, prepared by Eduardo's veteran chef with years of experience on the Hanoi and Bangkok hotel circuits. There was much gushing over the mango and tuna salad and the glazed pork belly. Traditional favorites such as the crispy spring rolls and the individual bowls of pho were also competently made. Our favorite dish was the seared tenderloin, crisp and flavorful and better than Puxi on a bright, spring afternoon. And of course, Eduardo's famously orgasmic creme brulee was the perfect capper to a near perfect feast. more ›