Shanghai Chinese Food and Recommended Shanghai Restaurants
For people visiting the Chinese city of Shanghai, there are many, many dishes that are considered local favorites. Ask any two people who live in Shanghai, and they’re likely to give you two totally different lists of favorite dishes and restaurants. There are so many places to eat, so many cultural influences accumulated over the centuries, and so many new experiences to have that it can almost be a bit daunting and hard to find where to begin! But never fear! That’s why we’ve developed this guide to Shanghai food and recommended Shanghai restaurants.
In this guide, we'll provide some basic information on Shanghai itself, especially in the context of foreign tourism. Then, we’ll highlight some of the top, most well-known dishes that make up Shanghai cuisine and explain a bit about what they are, their ingredients, and so on. Next, we’ll point out some of the most popular spots in the city for dining – concentrated areas that offer travelers a wealth of food options. Finally, we’ll look at some of the top restaurants and eateries in Shanghai that you should consider visiting when on your trip to China.
Shanghai Food
There is likely to be much argument from one person to the next as to which of Shanghai’s many foods, snacks, desserts, and so forth should make a top list of Shanghai food. Nevertheless, we’ve tried to narrow it down to the top 15 Shanghai foods that most experts agree exemplify the cuisine of the city, and that every visitor should try, at least once.
1. Xiaolongbao (Soup Dumplings)
It’s almost a cliché, as these are near the top of everyone’s list, but for a good reason: they’re delicious! These thin dumplings are filled with protein and vegetables, such as pork, shrimp, or crab, as well as a rich, flavorful broth, and served piping hot fresh out of the steamer, usually in a basket (their name literally translates into “little basket buns”). They are usually accompanied by a dipping sauce, typically vinegar-based with soy. First-time tasters should use caution, and allow them to cool a bit before eating, as the contents can be quite hot!
If you are interested in our activity of making Xiaolongbao by yourself, please feel free to contact us.
2. Da Zha Xie (Hairy Crab)
This famous crab dish is synonymous with Shanghai food and cuisine. These are freshwater female crabs, usually from rivers or lakes, and typically harvested and available in late autumn or early winter. They are simply prepared, tied with strings and steamed, served with a simple sauce of rice vinegar, ginger, and scallions in most cases. The meat is highly flavorful, and considered a prized delicacy, and consequently can be a bit on the expensive side.
3. Crawfish/Crayfish
Another form of seafood that is seasonal in Shanghai is the crawfish, which peak in summer. These are usually cooked up and tossed with chili sauce. They take some work to get at the meat, and are not dissimilar from their American counterparts, and make a great accompaniment for a slow, lazy hot day sitting in the shade with a cool drink.
4. Pork Chop with Rice Cake
There are a few versions of this dish that can be found in Shanghai. In general, a pork chop is breaded and fried. Sometimes it is served whole, and other times cut up into pieces. The whole version is served over rice cakes, whereas the cut up variety is often mixed with pieces of fried and cut up rice cake. However it is prepared, it is served with a soy-based sweet and sticky brown sauce and is quite delicious!
5. Food on a Stick
Like in many other Chinese cities, variants on kebabs are quite popular. You can find almost anything skewered on a stick and cooked up, from meats to vegetables to even dessert items. They can be found from street food vendors all over the place, with different offerings and preparations. Many will spice to order, allowing customers to control the level of seasoning and heat. They’re great on the go, or as part of a sit-down meal.
6. Braised Eggplant
Eggplant plays a much larger role in Chinese cuisine than it does in many other countries. The Shanghai preparation of this vegetable is a braised dish that’s quite hearty and delicious. The eggplant is stewed in a mix of soy, vinegar, ginger, sugar, garlic, spices, and wine. It can be found at most of the restaurants in the city, and provides a deliciously balanced mix of sweet, savory, and salty flavors.
7. Green or Spring Onion Pancakes
These aren’t necessarily only affiliated with Shanghai, as the green onion pancake can be found in a number of cities and cuisines around China. However, they are extremely popular, and considered a must-try on many people’s food bucket lists for a trip to Shanghai. The dough often incorporates a bit of pork or pork fat along with chopped green onions. It’s made into a pancake and fried on a griddle, resulting in a crispy outside and soft interior.
8. Hongshao Rou (Red-Braised Pork Belly)
What’s not to love about hongshao rou? It’s delicious pork belly, cooked red-style, a common Chinese technique. Red cooking uses soy, sugar, and fermented bean paste, with slow-cooking of the protein. This gives it a red color, and a unique taste that’s sweet, salty, and savory.
9. Glutinous Rice Balls
These giant balls of glutinous rice are made-to-order, with various ingredients like vegetables, eggs, and proteins to stuff in the center. They can be sweet or savory, depending on the time of day and your personal preference. Most often, these are breakfast or brunch items, though they are quite suitable for a filling snack any time of day, and make good street food.
10. Shengjianbao (Fried Pork Dumpling)
Dumplings play a large part in Shanghai cuisine, and, indeed, much of Chinese cuisine as a whole. This local favorite is a fatty fried pork dumpling, flavored with sage and sprinkled with sesame seeds. There are variants that have shrimp in them as well. Most experts agree, Yang’s Fried Dumplings chain locations are the best place to try this Shanghai food.
11. Baked Quail Eggs
A staple of the street food community throughout Shanghai, baked quail eggs make a great snack. They’re cooked in a salt mound for a few hours, before being removed and sold, usually in a plastic container. You can easily peel off the shells of these baked eggs and enjoy the delicious cooked protein inside.
12. Shanghai-style Fried Noodles
You can find many different styles and preparations of noodles in Shanghai, with influences from throughout Chinese cuisine as well as other cultures’ cuisines, too. One of the most ubiquitous, however, are Shanghai-styled fried noodles. They use the thick cumian-style noodles, and are stir-fried with pork, beef, chicken, or even shrimp, along with typical vegetables like cabbage and onions, and served with a soy-style sauce.
13. Shaomai
These delicious dumpling purses are stuffed with a sticky-rice, usually with bits of pork and mushrooms. The flavors all meld together, and it makes a great street food, being contained inside the dumpling skin. It’s not unlike many of the stuffed tortilla-style foods common in Mexican cuisine, in fact.
14. Tangyuan
Tangyuan are dumplings, but of a sweet variety. They’re made with rice powder, and filled with sweet sesame or peanut powder. Most often, they are eaten as a dessert, especially around the Lunar New Year period, as they resemble a round moon.
15. Sweet Osmanthus Cake
A traditional Chinese dessert, sweet osmanthus cake can be served as a solid piece, or layered with a filling. It’s made from glutinous rice flour and sugar, and topped with sprinkles of dried osmanthus flowers. It takes on a jelly-like texture that is slightly translucent, with a sweet, but not overly sweet, flavor. Fillings including black sesame and ground peanuts are quite common, as are water chestnuts.
Areas of Shanghai to Taste Shanghai Food
There are restaurants and places to eat spread all throughout the city of Shanghai, and it’s hard to single out certain areas without knowing exactly what kind of food you’re looking for. Still, there are a few particular dishes or styles of food that can be found in certain neighborhoods with more frequency and ease.
For street food, many locals recommend the famous Qibao Food Street. It features tons of street food stalls and vendors, offering up local favorites like kebabs, baked quail eggs, dumplings, and much more. You can definitely get your money’s worth here, and fill up on delicious street food. Dingxi Lu, another well-known food street, is also worth a stop.
Other recommended food streets include Wujiang Road, Yunnan South Road, Fangbang Lu, Huanghe Road, and Chenghuangmiao. And one more for good measure! In summer, the destination for crawfish (or crayfish, if you prefer) is undoubtedly Shouning Lu. It is considered the crawfish capital of Shanghai, with pretty much the entire street serving up the tiny crustaceans when they are in season – a can’t miss for seafood fans.
Popular Shanghai Restaurants
There are so many great restaurants in Shanghai, it’s almost impossible to narrow it down to just a few. While the below are some of the most popular, and the ones that we prefer, you really can’t go wrong following the locals to a crowded spot, or checking reviews online. And, if you still can’t decide, you can contact us for some local insider tips!
- Din Tai Fung, various locations, considered among the best for dumplings.
- Yang’s Fried Dumplings, various locations, highly praised for their fried dumplings.
- Paradise Dynasty, 8 Century Ave, Pudong New Area, L3-36, Shanghai IFC Center
- Yong Yi Ting, 111 Pudong South Rd, Pudong New Area, Shanghai
- FuChun XiaoLong, YuYuan Road 650, Shanghai
- Cheng Long Xing Xe WangFu, 216 Jiujiang Rd, Huangpu District, Shanghai
- Shanghai Tang, 373 Huang Pi Nan Road, Shanghai
- XinBai Lu Restaurants, various locations, outstanding local cuisine.
- ShangHai HuiGuan, various locations, somewhat upscale chain for Shanghai food.
- Hakkasan, 5F, Bund18 Zhongshan East 1st Road, Huangpu District, Shanghai
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