Best restaurants and what to eat
Chine
Shanghai’s cuisine is famously refined, delicate, and slightly sweet, reflecting the city’s role as a crossroads of Jiangnan food traditions and cosmopolitan trade. Local cooking emphasizes fresh river fish and seafood, glossy braises, dim sum, and rich soy-based sauces, with a signature balance of savory depth and gentle sweetness.
Shanghai’s prized mitten crab is celebrated for its intensely rich roe and sweet, briny flesh, especially in autumn when the flavor peaks. It is usually steamed simply so the natural sweetness shines, often served with black vinegar and ginger.
A famed Shanghai peach from Nanhui, this fruit is perfumed, juicy, and tender-fleshed with a refined sweetness. It is prized eaten fresh at peak ripeness, when the aroma and delicate texture are at their best.
This Shanghai-grown yellow peach has a firmer bite than the white-fleshed varieties and a fuller, honeyed flavor. It is valued both for fresh eating and for fruit desserts where its vibrant color and aroma stand out.
From Chongming Island, this goat meat specialty is lean, fragrant, and deeply savory, with a clean flavor shaped by the island’s grazing conditions. It is often braised or stewed for a warming, hearty dish that pairs well with soy, ginger, and rice wine.
This classic Shanghai rice cake is soft, chewy, and lightly sweet, often filled with red bean paste or enjoyed plain. Its pleasant elasticity and subtle fragrance make it a beloved snack with tea.
A traditional sticky rice sweet from Shanghai, it is valued for its tender, glutinous texture and layered fillings, often balancing sweetness with nutty or bean-based richness. It is typically eaten fresh as a snack or breakfast treat.
A traditional Chongming island rice spirit with a soft, rounded profile and gentle sweetness, it is a local farmhouse-style alcoholic drink rather than a polished industrial spirit. It is often served warmed with rustic dishes, especially in colder weather.
Shanghai-style huangjiu is a mellow rice wine with notes of grain, caramel, and dried fruit, prized for its warming depth. It is typically sipped warm or used in cooking to enrich braises and seafood dishes.
A well-known Shanghai-style rice wine brand rooted in the city’s local drinking culture, it is smooth, gently sweet, and easy to drink. It is commonly served at room temperature or warmed alongside classic Shanghai dishes.
Shanghai-style braised pork belly is glossy, tender, and richly savory with a characteristic gentle sweetness. Slow cooking turns the meat silky and the sauce lacquer-like, making it a hallmark of the city’s comfort food.
This drunken crab specialty is marinated so the flesh becomes fragrant, cool, and intensely savory, with a delicate alcoholic perfume. It is often served chilled, allowing the crab’s sweetness and the marinade’s complexity to shine.
Despite the name, this is not smoked but deep-fried and marinated fish, usually served cold with a sweet-salty glaze. The result is crisp-edged, juicy inside, and deeply aromatic, a classic Shanghai banquet and household dish.
These famous soup dumplings contain juicy pork and a burst of hot broth enclosed in a thin, delicate wrapper. The experience is all about precision: lifting, sipping, and biting to capture the soup without losing it.
Shanghai pan-fried buns are crisp on the bottom, soft on top, and filled with savory pork and rich juices. Their contrast of textures and the scattering of sesame and scallions make them one of the city’s most iconic breakfasts and snacks.
A classic Shanghai shrimp dish, it features shellfish quickly cooked and coated in a glossy sweet-sour sauce. The shrimp stay springy and aromatic, with a lacquered finish that is especially appealing over rice.