Soup dumplings at dawn, red-braised pork at noon, hairy crab in autumn.
Free cancellation on most tours, with live prices on the partner's site.
Shanghai cooks in the benbang style its own cooks call nong you chi jiang, thick oil and red sauce: pork belly braised glossy with dark soy and rock sugar, eels and crucian carp in the same sweet-savoury key, and a breakfast of dabing, youtiao, cifantuan and soy milk eaten on the way to work. The xiaolongbao took its modern form in 1871 in Nanxiang, now part of Jiading district, and pan-fried shengjian reached the city's tea houses by the 1920s. After the port opened in 1843, cooks from Anhui, Suzhou and Wuxi, Guangdong and Huaiyang set up across the city, and Russian emigres on Avenue Joffre, today's Huaihai Road, left a tomato borscht and a breaded pork chop with spicy Worcestershire that locals still call old Shanghai flavour. The calendar sets the menu: qingtuan and yanduxian soup with spring bamboo in April, cold sesame noodles in the summer heat, hairy crab from October into December. The 2026 Michelin Guide lists 153 restaurants in Shanghai and its surroundings, and the lane-house noodle shops are still where most locals eat.
Private tour · 4 hours
Start your Shanghai trip calmly with Tony, an English-speaking Shanghai local host. Get practical help with Alipay, WeChat, local transport, food, and a flexible city route.
Experience a 5D dining experience on the Shanghai Bund. Enjoy a 7-course meal led by Panda Chef Cheng, with 270° panoramic projections, AR tables, and 360° surround sound.
Water activity · 4 hours
Discover Shanghai on a night tour with a river cruise and food tasting. Stroll along Suzhou Creek, explore shikumen lanes, and taste local snacks before cruising the H...
The plates that define eating in Shanghai.
Xiaolongbao are Shanghai's soup dumplings, a thin pleated wrapper holding minced pork and a spoonful of broth that turns to liquid in the bamboo steamer, eaten with black vinegar and shredded ginger.
Where Nanxiang Steamed Bun, Lai Lai Xiao Long, Wu You Xian, Jia Jia Tang Bao
Where to eat Xiaolongbao (soup dumplings) in Shanghai →Shengjian mantou are Shanghai's pan-fried pork buns, a semi-leavened dough pleated round a pork and jelly filling, then fried in a wide pan until the base turns crisp and golden under a juicy top.
Where Da Hu Chun, Dong Tai Xiang, Shu Cai Ji, Yang's Fry-Dumpling
Where to eat Shengjian mantou (pan-fried pork buns) in Shanghai →Scallion oil noodles are Shanghai's simplest comfort food, fresh wheat noodles tossed in scallion fried slowly to a deep gold with light and dark soy sauce, sometimes finished with dried shrimp.
Where Huxi Laolongtang Noodle Shop, Jianguo 328
Where to eat Scallion oil noodles (cong you ban mian) in Shanghai →Hong shao rou is Shanghai's red-braised pork belly, cubes of skin, fat and lean meat simmered slowly in dark soy and rock sugar until the sauce turns glossy and the pork holds three distinct, tender layers.
Where Lan Xin (Lyceum), Fu 1015, Ren He Guan
Where to eat Hong shao rou (red-braised pork belly) in Shanghai →Cifantuan is a Shanghai breakfast staple, a warm glutinous rice roll wrapped by hand around a stick of hot youtiao, sometimes with sugar, pickles or pork floss tucked inside, eaten on the walk to work.
Where to eat Cifantuan (sticky rice breakfast roll) in Shanghai →Eight-treasure duck is a whole boned duck stuffed with sticky rice, chestnuts, mushrooms, ham and other treasures, then steamed for hours until the rice absorbs the duck's juices, a Shanghai celebration centrepiece.
Where Lu Bo Lang, Shanghai Old Restaurant
Where to eat Eight-treasure duck (ba bao ya) in Shanghai →Shanghai fried pork chop is a breaded, deep fried chop served with a squeeze of la jiangyou, the city's own tangy, faintly spiced Worcestershire style sauce, a Haipai classic eaten with borscht and potato salad.
Where Deda Western Restaurant, Er Guang Wonton
Where to eat Shanghai fried pork chop (zha zhu pai) in Shanghai →Zongzi are glutinous rice dumplings wrapped in bamboo leaves and simmered for hours, eaten across China at the Dragon Boat Festival, with Shanghai favouring pork, salted egg yolk and sweet red bean fillings.
Where Shen Da Cheng
Where to eat Zongzi (glutinous rice dumplings) in Shanghai →Qingtuan are jade green rice balls stained with mugwort or wheatgrass juice, a springtime treat around Qingming Festival filled with sweet red bean paste or savoury salted egg yolk and pork floss.
Where Shen Da Cheng, Xing Hua Lou, Wang Bao He, Taikang Foods
Where to eat Qingtuan (mugwort rice dumplings) in Shanghai →Butterfly crackers are Shanghai's version of the French palmier, hundreds of laminated pastry layers rolled, folded and baked with sugar until they caramelise into a crisp pair of golden wings.
Where Park Hotel Bakery, Lao Xiang Zhai, Lu Bo Lang
Where to eat Hudiesu (butterfly cracker) in Shanghai →Luosong tang is Shanghai's own borscht, a Russian recipe reworked with tomato paste instead of beetroot, simmered with beef, potatoes and cabbage into a sweet and sour soup that is now a Haipai classic.
Where Deda Western Restaurant
Where to eat Luosong tang (Shanghai borscht) in Shanghai →A handful of the places we send friends to when they are in Shanghai.
Blossom inside Plaza 66 in Jing'an serves casual Chaoshan and Cantonese dishes, the affordable sister of Michelin two-star Amazing Chinese Cuisine.
OrderOrder the steamed East Sea grouper with pickled mustard greens and the Chiu Chow beef offal pot.
Da Hu Chun on Middle Sichuan Road in Shanghai holds a Bib Gourmand for the fluffy pan-fried shengjian bao that built its snack food culture.
OrderOrder the pork, prawn or crab roe shengjian bao with a side of beef curry soup, the customary pairing here.
Nanxiang Steamed Bun at City God Temple is the Yu Garden shop of the brand founded in 1900, holding a Bib Gourmand for pork and crab xiaolongbao in Shanghai.
OrderOrder the pork or crab-and-pork xiaolongbao, or the supersized version meant to be sipped through a straw.
Polux by Paul Pairet in Xintiandi, Shanghai holds a Bib Gourmand for all-day French cafe and bistro food from the chef behind Mr and Mrs Bund and Ultraviolet.
OrderOrder the grilled seabass vierge or the steak frites, then finish with the onion soup.
Rongjia Noodles Soup with Yellow Croaker in Jing'an, Shanghai holds a Bib Gourmand for yellow croaker in a milky fish-bone broth over springy wheat noodles.
OrderOrder the yellow croaker noodle soup, its broth simmered from fish bones until milky and rich.
Jingmei Wuxi Noodles on Yanping Road in Jing'an, Shanghai holds a Bib Gourmand for sweet-leaning Wuxi noodles in a small, cramped dining room.
OrderOrder the Wuxi braised pork rib noodles, dressed with soy sauce and scallion oil and dried shrimp.
The riverfront of 1920s banks and trading houses, now hotel dining rooms and rooftop bars facing the Pudong towers across the Huangpu.
Best for: Fine dining, Rooftop bars, Cantonese
Shanghai's centre: the Nanjing East Road pedestrian strip, old department-store food halls and the time-honoured restaurants of Fuzhou Road.
Best for: Time-honoured brands, Shanghainese, Pastries
The former walled town around Yuyuan Garden, where soup-dumpling houses, snack stalls and wet markets fill the lanes south of Yan'an Road.
Best for: Xiaolongbao, Street food, Breakfast
Restored shikumen lane houses around Madang Road and Taikang Road, mixing hotel dining rooms, bars and the Tianzifang lanes.
Best for: Cantonese, Cocktails, Brunch
Plane-tree streets of villas and lane houses, dense with cafes, bakeries, wine bars and small restaurants from Wukang Road to Fumin Road.
Best for: Cafes, Wine bars, Brunch
Office towers and old lanes around Jing'an Temple and Nanjing West Road, with hotel restaurants, cocktail bars and busy lunch counters.
Best for: Cocktail bars, Contemporary Chinese, Coffee
Xiaolongbao (soup dumplings)
Xiaolongbao are Shanghai's soup dumplings, a thin pleated wrapper holding minced pork and a spoonful of broth that turns to liquid in the bamboo steamer, eaten with black vinegar and shredded ginger
Shengjian mantou (pan-fried pork buns)
Shengjian mantou are Shanghai's pan-fried pork buns, a semi-leavened dough pleated round a pork and jelly filling, then fried in a wide pan until the base turns crisp and golden under a juicy top
Scallion oil noodles (cong you ban mian)
Scallion oil noodles are Shanghai's simplest comfort food, fresh wheat noodles tossed in scallion fried slowly to a deep gold with light and dark soy sauce, sometimes finished with dried shrimp
Hong shao rou (red-braised pork belly)
Hong shao rou is Shanghai's red-braised pork belly, cubes of skin, fat and lean meat simmered slowly in dark soy and rock sugar until the sauce turns glossy and the pork holds three distinct, tender layers
Cifantuan (sticky rice breakfast roll)
Cifantuan is a Shanghai breakfast staple, a warm glutinous rice roll wrapped by hand around a stick of hot youtiao, sometimes with sugar, pickles or pork floss tucked inside, eaten on the walk to work
The Bund
The riverfront of 1920s banks and trading houses, now hotel dining rooms and rooftop bars facing the Pudong towers across the Huangpu
People's Square
Shanghai's centre: the Nanjing East Road pedestrian strip, old department-store food halls and the time-honoured restaurants of Fuzhou Road
Old City
The former walled town around Yuyuan Garden, where soup-dumpling houses, snack stalls and wet markets fill the lanes south of Yan'an Road
Xintiandi
Restored shikumen lane houses around Madang Road and Taikang Road, mixing hotel dining rooms, bars and the Tianzifang lanes
A sample of Shanghai hotels from our booking partner, who list 1,308 here. Live prices and availability open on their site.
ibis Shanghai Lianyang
With a stay at ibis Shanghai Lianyang in Shanghai (Pudong), you'll be within a 5-minute drive of Shanghai P...
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ibis Shanghai Gubei
With a stay at ibis Shanghai Gubei in Shanghai (Minhang), you'll be within a 5-minute drive of Laowai Stree...
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Urban Hotel Shanghai
A stay at Urban Hotel Shanghai places you in the heart of Shanghai, within a 5-minute drive of Shanghai Chi...
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Shanghai Future Shangju Hotel
Located in Shanghai (Pudong), Shanghai Future Shangju Hotel is within a 15-minute drive of Sanjiagang Beach...
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Shanghai Jiahe Shangju Hotel
With a stay at Shanghai Jiahe Shangju Hotel in Shanghai (Pudong), you'll be a 3-minute drive from Huaxia Cu...
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Shanghai Fish Inn Bund
A stay at Shanghai Fish Inn Bund places you in the heart of Shanghai, a 2-minute drive from Nanjing Road Sh...
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Starr Hotel Shanghai
Located in Shanghai (Jing'an), Starr Hotel Shanghai is within a 5-minute drive of Zhabei Park and Shanghai ...
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City Hotel Shanghai
A stay at City Hotel Shanghai places you in the heart of Shanghai, steps from Shanghai Exhibition Center an...
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Guangdong Hotel Shanghai
Located in Shanghai (Yangpu), Guangdong Hotel Shanghai is within a 10-minute drive of Oriental Pearl Tower ...
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Moxy Shanghai Hongqiao CBD
With a stay at Moxy Shanghai Hongqiao CBD in Shanghai (Qingpu), you'll be a 2-minute drive from Shanghai Yi...
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Shanghai Me too
Located in Shanghai (Downtown Shanghai), Shanghai Me too is within a 15-minute walk of Fuxing Park and K11 ...
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Hotel Equatorial Shanghai
Hotel Equatorial Shanghai is centrally located in Shanghai, a 2-minute walk from Jing An Park and 5 minutes...
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Also compare: Expedia in Shanghai
Stays are listed by our booking partners, not editor picks. We earn a commission if you book, at no cost to you.
Every restaurant, cafe, market and bar we cover in Shanghai, pinned. Click a pin for the page.
Peak food season: October to early December for hairy crab and autumn menus; late March and April for qingtuan and yanduxian with spring bamboo shoots. July and August are hot and humid, the season for cold noodles.
Local dining hours: Breakfast stalls from about 06:30, busiest before 09:00. Lunch 11:00-13:30, dinner from 17:00 and often finished by 21:00 in Shanghainese houses; bars run well past midnight.
Tipping: Tipping is not expected in Shanghai. Fine dining and hotel restaurants usually add a 10 to 15 percent service charge to the bill. Most places take Alipay or WeChat Pay; foreign cards work mainly in international venues.
Shanghai's signature dishes include Xiaolongbao (soup dumplings), Shengjian mantou (pan-fried pork buns), Yanduxian (spring pork and bamboo shoot soup), Scallion oil noodles (cong you ban mian), Hong shao rou (red-braised pork belly). See our signature dishes chapter for where to eat each.
TableJourney editors map Shanghai by district. The Bund, People's Square, Old City, Xintiandi are among the strongest for food, each with its own guide.
Editor picks in Shanghai include Taian Table, Bao Li Xuan, Canton 8, plus the full fine dining chapter on TableJourney.
TableJourney covers 5 editor-picked food tours in Shanghai, with what each shows you and how much to budget.
TableJourney's Shanghai dietary chapter covers vegan, vegetarian, halal, kosher venues, each editor-picked with what to order and how to ask.
