Shanghainese

Shanghai Restaurants

I have split this section into two parts starting with full blown restaurants where you can get the full range of Shanghai dishes from appetisers to main dishes, rice and noodles. The second section is specifically for Xiaolongbao (famous Shanghai dumplings), which can certainly be a meal, but tend to be more of a casual meal or a snack with the focus mainly on dumplings and not much else.

Just a note to mention there is also another famous dumpling, Shengjianbao, which usually has a thicker skin and is pan fried to give a crispy, dark brown finish on either the base (similar to what Americans call pot stickers) or the folded part of the dumpling. Many, but not all places will offer both, but for now, I have just focused on places that primarily do Xiaolongbao, the smaller, steamed versions.

Restaurants

开心食堂(湖南路店)
Shanghainese restaurant in a small house, a bit different to the shopping mall restaurants. Food is great, but booking can be a bit disorganized and may need to wait a bit even with booking. Like many local places, this place doesn’t open late. Aim to eat around 6-7pm.

Address:
287 Hunan Road, Xuhui District
徐汇区湖南路 287 弄甲 1
Phone: 13818186686

Shanghai Club
We like this place inside Taikoo Hui mall. It is quite upscale with tablecloths and nice wines, but if you avoid the expensive dishes, it is quite reasonable. Although it is a Shanghai restaurant, they do very good Beijing Roast Duck which I recommend as well as a nice 狮子头 (famous Shanghai pork meatball).

Address:
288 Shimen Yi Road, Jingan District
静安区石门一路288号

Old Jesse
An old favourite for Shanghai food with all the Shanghai classics including braised pork belly, sweet and sour pork ribs and scallion noodles.

Address:
41 Tianping Road, Xuhui District
徐汇区天平路41号

Shanghai Dumpling Shops (Xiaolongbao)

You can't come to Shanghai and not sample their most famous dumplings. Xiaolong Bao are steamed dumplings, usually with a pork filling together with a soup broth that will spill out as you bite into it. They are usually dipped in vinegar and ginger. I don’t eat Shanghai dumplings often, so these are places that are meant to be decent according to my Shanghainese wife, but I have not yet been to any of them apart from Din Tai Fung.

Jia Jia Tang Bao 佳家汤包（黄河路店）
Established in 1986 according to the sign, they have multiple locations across the city, but this is their flagship store and is always busy, which means the ingredients will always be fresh. This location is quite central (People’s Square, close to People's Park) and is on a street with a lot of other food places, so you can walk around and see what you fancy. Go for whatever variant you like, but make sure you also try one portion of the signature pork variety (鲜肉汤包). Also worth trying are the scallion noodles (葱油拌面) which are plain noodles with, well, scallions - a very simple dish, but very tasty nonetheless.

Address:
127 Huang He Road, Huangpu District
黄浦区黄河路127号

Din Tai Fung
Perhaps the Rolls Royce of Xiaolongbao restaurants anywhere in the world, Din Tai Fung actually originated in Taiwan. Some people feel it is over-priced, mainly because it is. Xiaolongbao are usually very casual, cheap meals in humble surroundings, but Din Tai Fung takes the humble dumpling and puts it in spotlessly clean, luxurious surroundings, with an army or servers and charges several multiples of what it would normally cost. Is it worth it? Well, the ingredients are top notch and the hygiene levels are several tiers above most other dumpling shops. It's like travelling first class instead of economy and if you're willing and able to afford it, then why not. You only live once. They have multiple locations in Shanghai. I have just listed two of them. And if you're ever in Taipei, check out the original store where it all started, near Yong Kang Street.

Address:
3rd Floor, IAPM Mall, 999 Huaihai Middle Road, Xuhui District
徐汇区淮海999号环贸广场L3-318

L336, Taikoo Hui Mall, 288 Shimenyi Road, Jingan District
静安区石门一路288号兴亚太古汇

Lin Long Fang 麟笼坊
Address:
69 Xuanhua Road, Changning District
长宁区宣化路69号

Fa Hua Tang Bao 法华汤包馆
Address:
503 Fahuazhen Road, Changning District
长宁区法华镇路503号