Teriyaki spring bamboo shoots and black goji jelly.[Photo provided to China Daily]

Besides the dining area on the first floor, Claret has a 600-square-meter sun room and terrace on the third floor of Aio Space, a spacious al fresco dining spot for business banquets, private parties, workshops and so on. The rooftop justifies a gorgeous venue for offering catering service, another asset Claret boasts of.

Over the past four years Sakashita says that she and her chef team have held more than 500 customized banquets.

She started doing catering with Claret's sister brand Deli De Luxe, a small community delicatessen.

"I was not meant to do catering in the first place," she says. "We were initially helping cater for our neighborhoods and friends, and then got increasing words of praise."