This venue is now closed. For more restaurants in Shanghai, click here.

Bonica is a Mediterranean grill and bar in Jing’an, tucked within the AUNN creative hub on Jiaozhou Lu/Yanping Lu.

It shares the building with four other concepts, Loggia, La Barra, La Mezcaleria, and Tacos El Paisa. Behind it all is Armada Group, a new F&B powerhouse that’s making waves in Shanghai.

Bonica, a Mediterranean restaurant and bar in Jing'an, Shanghai. @ Nomfluence.
Bonica

This whole project is a much-anticipated opening.

I’ll get to the other concepts in due time, but first, Bonica.

The Space

The space is absolutely gorgeous. The design, layout, furnishings, and details of all the venues is like something out of Architecture + Design magazine. Indoor-outdoor spaces, multi-leveled seating areas, a vertical garden and plenty of tropical plants (plus an actual olive tree), and a clear distinction between each venue.

Bonica, a Mediterranean restaurant and bar in Jing'an, Shanghai. @ Nomfluence.

You enter through Loggia, a casual café/lounge with indoor-outdoor seating connected to Bonica. This will be the setting for brunch, which will launch in a month or so. For now, you can order coffee, wine, and cocktails, and the some aperitivo items. And yes, it is dog-friendly.

Bonica, a Mediterranean restaurant and bar in Jing'an, Shanghai. @ Nomfluence.
Bonica, a Mediterranean restaurant and bar in Jing'an, Shanghai. @ Nomfluence.
Loggia
Bonica, a Mediterranean restaurant and bar in Jing'an, Shanghai. @ Nomfluence.
Bonica

On The Menu

Leading the charge at Bonica—as well as all things food-related within the group—is Mexican Executive Chef Marco Chavez. In addition to Marco’s impressive resumé, he also spent the last eight years working at Mr & Mrs Bund, The Chop Chop Club, and Polux.

Chef Marco Chavez of Bonica, a Mediterranean restaurant and bar in Jing'an, Shanghai. @ Nomfluence.
Executive Chef Marco Chavez

Bonica, being a Mediterranean grill, has grill-fired mains at its core, featuring large cuts of seafood and meat, with hints of chef Marco’s heritage peppered throughout. Here’s what to expect:

Bread and Acanto Botanikal olive oil at at Bonica, a Mediterranean restaurant and bar in Jing'an, Shanghai. Photo by Rachel Gouk @ Nomfluence.
Fantastic house bread with olive oil from Jaén, Spain.
Spanish cold cuts at Bonica, a Mediterranean restaurant and bar in Jing'an, Shanghai. Photo by Rachel Gouk @ Nomfluence.
Charcuterie (¥338/100g) of high-quality imported Spanish jamon iberico (shoulder cut), chorizo, and lomo. Excellent quality, fragrant, mild in spice, not overly salty.
Foie gras at Bonica, a Mediterranean restaurant and bar in Jing'an, Shanghai. Photo by Rachel Gouk @ Nomfluence.
Foie Gras Terrine (¥178/100g) – Uber pillowy foie gras terrine with roasted nuts.
Antipasti at Bonica, a Mediterranean restaurant and bar in Jing'an, Shanghai. Photo by Rachel Gouk @ Nomfluence.
Pan Tomate (¥30/two pieces) topped with fresh tomato sauce and olive oil.
Sardines at Bonica, a Mediterranean restaurant and bar in Jing'an, Shanghai. Photo by Rachel Gouk @ Nomfluence.
Sardines (¥68) – Sardines marinated in-house served with pil pil sauce and a healthy dose of olive oil. Addictive.
Escalivada at Bonica, a Mediterranean restaurant and bar in Jing'an, Shanghai. Photo by Rachel Gouk @ Nomfluence.
Escalivada “Bonica” (¥75) – Grilled vegetables of onions, peppers, tomato, and eggplant dressed with aioli and fresh tomato sauce. Add in the tomato sauce and mix it up. This is where your table bread comes very much in handy.
Grilled octopus at Bonica, a Mediterranean restaurant and bar in Jing'an, Shanghai. Photo by Rachel Gouk @ Nomfluence.
Grilled Octopus (¥188/300g) served with a bright, zesty and spicy green salsa, and green chili cream sauce. When done right, these octopus legs are tender and oh-so delightful.
Beef tongue at Bonica, a Mediterranean restaurant and bar in Jing'an, Shanghai. Photo by Rachel Gouk @ Nomfluence.
Beef Tongue (¥190/350g) – A heaving portion of beef tongue that has been slow-cooked for 16 hours before being charred on the grill. Served with a stew of vegetables and potatoes as a dip for the beef.
Eggplant at Bonica, a Mediterranean restaurant and bar in Jing'an, Shanghai. Photo by Rachel Gouk @ Nomfluence.
Scorched Eggplant (¥55) – Whole charred eggplant that’s been grilled and skinned, scored and filled with tahini, couscous and mint. Mix it all up and ta-dah—you have baba ganoush.
Dinner at Bonica, a Mediterranean restaurant and bar in Jing'an, Shanghai. Photo by Rachel Gouk @ Nomfluence.
Pan-Seared Skate Fish (¥248/150g) – A large fillet of meaty skate fish served with a lightly peppered, creamy sauce with Yunnan morel mushrooms. For fans of skate, you’ll find this refined version most enjoyable.
Dessert at Bonica, a Mediterranean restaurant and bar in Jing'an, Shanghai. Photo by Rachel Gouk @ Nomfluence.
Fig Tart (¥72) – A light dessert option. Light and airy cream and a buttery tart base.
Dessert at Bonica, a Mediterranean restaurant and bar in Jing'an, Shanghai. Photo by Rachel Gouk @ Nomfluence.
Pavola (¥72) – Hard meringue and plenty of fresh fruit.
Dessert at Bonica, a Mediterranean restaurant and bar in Jing'an, Shanghai. Photo by Rachel Gouk @ Nomfluence.
Chocolate Tart (¥72) – The most sinful of all the desserts. The chocolate on this is so thick it’s like fudge, and you really have to work your spoon into it. Decadent. Garnished with sea salt.

Drinks Situation

As for drinks, Bonica has an excellent selection of wines in the walk-in cellar. The selection is curated by their in-house sommelier, who, armed with a Coravin, is able to enhance the wine experience by offering tastings of the daily wine selection of roughly 4-5 labels. The wines are mostly Spanish and French, plus a couple world wines; by the glass from ¥108, bottles from ¥488.

Cocktail bar at Bonica, a Mediterranean restaurant and bar in Jing'an, Shanghai. Photo by Rachel Gouk @ Nomfluence.

In addition, they have their own standalone cocktail bar, sporting some great house cocktails, courtesy of bartender Mark Lloyd (J.Boroski). Not surprisingly, this cocktail list does not sport any mezcal—go to La Mezcaleria on the second floor if you need your fix.

Wine Cellar at Bonica, a Mediterranean restaurant and bar in Jing'an, Shanghai. Photo by Rachel Gouk @ Nomfluence.

The ambience at Bonica is more refined. It has its own bar, a walk-in wine cellar with a sommelier on hand, sleek tables facing the open kitchen, and a “garden” seating area. As for its origin story, Bonica pays homage to European 18th century traders who brought spices, ideas and porcelain from the East, with inspiration from Armada Group’s mix of backgrounds and culinary influences.

Cocktails at Bonica, a Mediterranean restaurant and bar in Jing'an, Shanghai. Photo by Rachel Gouk @ Nomfluence.
Boca Dolça (¥98) – Bourbon, berry liqueur, coconut, tangerine, lemon, egg whites. A strong, punchy, milky drink.
Cocktails at Bonica, a Mediterranean restaurant and bar in Jing'an, Shanghai. Photo by Rachel Gouk @ Nomfluence.
Guifré El Pilós (¥78) – Rhum Argicole, almonds, green apple, Pao hibiscus soda. A fizzy, refreshing drink that goes down all too easily.

Bonica is currently in soft opening, open for dinner. And with any new restaurant, adjustments will be made overtime to fine tune. It is one of the most exciting new openings this year, and for their first week in operations, it’s doing quite well.

I, for one, am looking forward to return soon.

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To locate Bonica, enter through 273 Jiaozhou Lu or 98 Yanping Lu. Walk through the AUNN complex entrance all the way to the end.

Bonica
Address: No. 60, Building 5, 273 Jiaozhou Lu, near Xinzha Lu 胶州路273弄60号1楼, 近新闸路
Tel: 13817893357
Soft Opening Hours: 5:30pm-10:30pm