Shanghai Restaurants

1. Lost Heaven

Southern China's Yunnan cuisine—with Burmese, Vietnamese, and Thai influences—is highlighted at this restaurant, which has a second location in the Former French Concession. Though service at this branch lacks a bit, the dining room is romantic, with dim lighting and exotic, traditional decor; in warmer months, try for a table on the spacious roof deck.

2. Sui Tang Li

On the second floor of The Middle House Residences, this polished restaurant delivers excellent contemporary renditions of regional Chinese fare, including modern takes on dim sum. Stellar service and tasty Chinese-inspired cocktails combine with the elevated cuisine to make this a must-try eatery.

3. Yong Yi Ting

You'd expect nothing less than an exquisite experience from a restaurant in the Mandarin Oriental, and Yong Yi Ting delivers. The nuanced dishes—which focus on China's famous Huaiyang cuisine from Yangzhou in Jiangsu Province near Shanghai—are light in flavor and skillfully prepared.

4. A Da Scallion Oil Pancakes

The scallion-oil pancakes at this shop are incredibly popular, with long lines forming from the 6 am opening time until closing—around 3 pm, which is when the pancakes usually sell out. Indeed, demand for A Da's delicious take on this traditional Shanghai street food is so fierce that the owner has placed a limit on the number of pieces each customer can order.

5. Bellagio

6. Bellagio

Taiwanese expats pack the Bellagio (which also has branches in Hongqiao and downtown), so you know it offers an authentic taste of Taiwan. Carrying classic dishes such as three-cup chicken, waitresses with short, chic hairstyles move efficiently between the closely spaced black tables and red fabric–covered chairs.

7. Bird and Bitter

A narrow driveway is all that separates this couplet of venues on a leafy lane. Bird, an intimate, relaxed wine bar and kitchen, has a changing menu of unfussy small-plate dishes with fusion twists and a list of wines with interesting stories. Neighboring Bitter, a café and bar with a living-room-like setting, is a great place to grab a coffee or apertif.

8. Blackbird

Part of the renovated Columbia Circle complex, the carousing spot for American expats in the 1930s, Blackbird features different spaces on three levels. The chic first-floor lounge serves contemporary cocktails and Chinese-influenced small plates and casual mains; the fine-dining Table Black, one level up, has a regional-Chinese tasting menu; and the lovely rooftop space is complete with an outdoor bar and an herb garden that supplies the downstairs kitchens.

9. Brut Eatery

This branch of Brut Eatery is a good choice if you're staying near Century Park and/or are traveling with children. The casual café offers a good selection of Western-inspired dishes, with the occasional Asian touch, and has a large play area where kids can run about while you relax and sip coffee.

10. Canton Table

Though the decor here is thoroughly modern, it still evokes old Canton, with gorgeous tiled floors and painted murals of women in qipao dresses. The classic Cantonese dishes have been refined, elevated, and updated to perfectly match the stunning contemporary view of the Pudong skyline.

11. Cejerdary

Outfitted in gorgeous pale wood with an aesthetic that feels almost Japanese in its minimalism, this light, airy shop specializes in one thing: crab noodles. They don't come cheap, but you can taste the care and craftsmanship in each serving—plus, the premium bowls are topped with gold flakes.

12. Cobra Lily

From the team behind local craft brewery Boxing Cat and American eatery Liquid Laundry comes this hip Southeast Asian fusion concept. Spread over two floors and tucked into a renovated shikumen on Xintiandi's main drag, the space is beautiful by day, when it's flooded with light, but you should come in the evening when you won't feel so bad sampling the excellent cocktails.

13. Coquille Seafood Bistro

The scent of butter and brine waft from the kitchen of this lovely French restaurant, the brainchild of Californian banker-turned-restaurateur John Liu and set in a refurbished space that was previously his mother's Vietnamese restaurant. While seated in a brasserie chair at a marble- or wood-topped table, you can tuck into platters of seafood and slurp French onion soup; while seated at the bar, you can watch the frenetic concocting of cocktails.

14. Da Hu Chun

This hole-in-the-wall shop makes traditional Shanghaiese shengjianbao (fried soup dumplings) with wrappings that are pillowy and soft rather than thin and chewy. Take care not to scald your mouth with the piping-hot soup inside the dumplings, and try to come off-hours to avoid the inevitable morning and lunchtime crowds.

15. Daimon Gastrolounge

Hong Kong "Demon Chef" Alvin Leung does playful, inventive, excellent takes on Hong Kong street food at this casual-concept restaurant, where a dimly lit interior features neon signs and pumping music. If you're feeling flush with funds, book a seat at Leung's upscale Bo Shanghai speakeasy (it's hidden behind an unmarked wall), for a fine-dining tour of regional cuisines remixed with Western flair.

16. Din Tai Fung

The star attractions at this Taiwanese chain are the delicate, impeccably folded xiaolongbao (soup dumplings). Be sure to try the particularly delectable pork and black truffle version.

17. Egg

Laptop-equipped freelancers and other trendy locals frequent this petite, friendly, Australian-style café. The menu focuses on breakfast/brunch fare; small plates, often featuring local ingredients; and, of course, delicious hot- or cold-brew coffees.

18. Fuchun Xiaolong

Outfitted to evoke 1920s Shanghai, Fuchan regularly appears on lists of the city's best soup-dumpling restaurants. This branch was renovated in 2018, making it a particularly pleasant place to soak up a retro atmosphere over breakfast, lunch, or dinner.

19. Ginger by the Park

Ginger is a Southeast Asian eatery with a strong European flavor. The food is excellent, and the intimate indoor space, the patio, and the relatively tranquil park-side setting make it a good place to enjoy quiet conversation over a meal or a cup of coffee.

20. Golden Maurya

With a gold- and marble-filled interior, this restaurant makes a statement that lives up to its "Golden Peacock" name. Its serves excellent and fiery Sichuan classics and is a higher-end version of the group's popular Maurya chain.