[Chef’s Table] Shawn Wu Built Trine After Consulting The City

Looking at Shawn Wu’s CV cold, you’d assume he knew his way around a spreadsheet, but not a dining room. Big Four accounting. Management consulting. Municipal government projects. It’s the kind of background that says “corner office,” not “corner bistro.” But amid the presentation decks and conference calls, he noticed something was missing. Shanghai needed more third spaces – places to gather, linger, and return to. More reliable favorites in a city where change is the only constant. So he opened Trine.

Tell us your origin story.

Credit: Brandon McGhee

So, my background is nothing related to F&B. My first experience with connecting with F&B was while I was at university in Vancouver. I was working part-time in Cantonese restaurants, and I found myself particularly interested in connecting with people and providing hospitality experiences. But then I went on to business school, and after I graduated, I went to a Big Four accounting firm.

You’re probably the third or fourth restaurateur I’ve interviewed who started as an accountant. It seems like a completely unrelated profession, but I think that skill probably transfers quite well to this industry.

Yeah! Hopefully! So, a lot of the work I was doing was management consulting. I would help pharmaceutical companies enter China. I also worked with governments in areas like urban development. I became really interested in how a city evolves. And that was how I started thinking about restaurants. I remember in Canada, we always had a go-to place. It didn’t matter what it was, but we always had a place we wanted to go back to.

But coming back to Shanghai, despite all the diverse options here, I always felt like this city was missing this kind of place. I have friends who actually own restaurants. They message me, saying, “Hey, Shawn. Let’s go eat!” And none of them ever knew where to go!

Well, as I’m sure you’ve discovered in this enterprise of yours, people who own restaurants are quite busy.

Absolutely. But this also got me thinking. I did a consulting project with the Shanghai municipal government. I tried to help them answer one question: How does Shanghai rise to the same level as a global city, like London, New York, or Tokyo? One of our key findings was that, beyond the GDP and economic developments, it’s very critical to have “third places.” These are places where you can go besides your job or your home. That’s where a lot of inspiration, cultural exchange, and the vibrancy of urban life come from. And we found that the city just didn’t have enough of them. So, that’s how we decided to venture into the restaurant business.

What makes a go-to place a go-to place, then?

I think first of all, it’s quality. And by “quality,” I mean attention to detail.

What details?

Credit: Brandon McGhee

Everything! Glassware, ingredients, hospitality. And I prefer to use the word “hospitality” instead of “service.” Hospitality is not that robotic sequence of service that you get in a high-end fine dining place. I find that in a lot of those places, the more money you spend, the less hospitality you get. They’re more concerned about placing your fork on the table in precisely the right way. But that does nothing to make the guest feel welcome or looked after.

Shawn had a lot to say about details. Here are some examples of what he was talking about:

Credit: Brandon McGhee

Caption: Trine’s Cocktail menu comes in the form of a tray of ingredients. No words.

This is Trine’s cocktail menu. No gimmicky names (or even words for that matter), just a tray of disparate items: coffee beans, kale, chestnuts, even a wedge of aged cheese. Point to the item you like; they’ll mix up a concoction that highlights its sensory elements. It’s a nice touch, a welcome departure from your run-of-the-mill pre-dinner drink order. It’s the kind of thing that you remember and tell your friends.

…And the cocktails are pretty solid too.

Credit: Brandon McGhee

So, how much research did you do before opening Trine? I have an image of you creating a huge spreadsheet.

So, I’m one of those tedious framework thinkers. And I built this framework with about 300 questions I needed to answer before deciding what this brand should be.

For example…

Location. You’ve got to balance so many factors. For example, is it close to enough neighborhoods that can support what you do? A lot of locations that seem good cannot support restaurants.

Credit: Brandon McGhee

Credit: Brandon McGhee

And why did you want this location?

I think the former French Concession captures a lot of the spirit of Shanghai.

It has the same essence as what we’re trying to do. It has a lot of heritage and history. Even this building–it used to house, like, an aerospace research institution, and they found this German architect to rebuild this place in the Bauhaus style. There is a simplicity and beauty to the building.

So, Trine. Explain the name.

In astrology, “Trine” means the golden triangle. It’s the most balanced shape, and our key concept here is balance. That’s what we try to showcase in all of our dishes, our service, and ambience.

Balance is critical when it comes to food, the way the elements play off each other, the flavors, textures, aromas. But balance is also important when it comes to creating a space where you can have a great time with your friends.

This “rule of threes” features prominently in some of Trine’s signature dishes.

These are ducks, dry-aged onsite for 20 days before being roasted to a gorgeous honey brown…

Credit: Brandon McGhee

This beautiful bird comes to your table in three ways:

Credit: Brandon McGhee

Credit: Brandon McGhee

As a delicate consommé with a couple of tiny tortellini…

Credit: Brandon McGhee

And, of course, the breast…

Credit: Brandon McGhee

If someone opens a restaurant and doesn’t really care about food, they are not going to open a good restaurant, so let’s talk about your relationship with food.

I think cooking is a form of self-expression. It’s a way to leave a mark. I enjoy cooking at home and inviting friends over. I think that’s a way of showing that you care.

Further proof that Shawn cares about food:

Credit: Brandon McGhee

A colorful confit of tomatoes over a creamy bed of stracciatella cheese.

Credit: Brandon McGhee

M9 wagyu steak ‘tarpaccio’ with truffled potato chips.

Credit: Brandon McGhee

Succulent, buttery herbed escargots.

Credit: Brandon McGhee

Roasted seasonal fish – on our visit, it was threadfin – swimming in white wine and butter with tomatoes and fresh blue mussels.

Credit: Brandon McGhee

French toast – caramelized and crusty outside, custardy and creamy inside.

What about the food you grew up with?

I was born and raised in Jiangsu Province, near Shanghai. But a lot of diverse food as a kid. My grandparents spent a decade in Sichuan. My mom is from Hunan, so they need some spicy elements and all that. But as I grew up, I became more and more fond of Cantonese food, where they focus on bringing out the natural flavors of good ingredients.

You talked about go-to restaurants. What’s your go-to restaurant when you’re not in Trine?

Not to blatantly promote my friend, but this is one of my friend’s restaurants. It’s been here for 20 years, and this place does very great, authentic Cantonese food. They get a lot of their ingredients directly from Guangzhou. It’s called Shen Yue Xuan. It’s on Huashan Road.

So, is another zodiac-themed restaurant on the horizon?

Trine already occupies all my energy and time. And I think we have a lot of room to evolve our concept here. So, that’s what I’m working on for the time being.

If you go…

4th Floor, Building 1, 570 Yongjia Road