Travel Reference
In-Depth Information
one of the many crab dishes. A good intro-
duction to local flavours. Around ¥200 per
person.
Yin
音
There's a picture menu and you can't go far
wrong with any of their numerous tasty dim
sum and dumpling options. Finish off with
custard tarts.
Black Café
黑暗餐厅
hēi àn cān tīng
65 Maoming Bei Lu, near Yan'an Zhong Lu
T
yīn
59 Maoming Nan Lu
54665070.
Hardwood
floors and screens create an intimate atmos-
phere, and the food is similarly tasteful, well
thought through and understated. No MSG is
used and all dishes - Shanghai staples - are
light and not oily, making it a great place to
sample local cuisine; drunken chicken and
eggplant pancakes are particular highlights.
There's no sign; head for the alley parallel to
Maoming Nan Lu, and you'll see its grand
wooden doors opposite the back of Shanghai
Tang. Set menu is ¥100 per person.
T
52286575.
The gimmick here is that you
eat your meal in complete darkness - you're
helped to a table and left to feel your way
around. Don't wear your best clothes.
Anyway it's novel, and the food's not bad.
Set Western meal is ¥168.
Meilongzhen
梅龙镇酒家
méi lóng zhèn
22, Lane 1081, Nanjing Xi Lu
62535353.
A
Shanghai restaurant with a dash of Sichuan
spiciness; it's very popular, so reserve. Go
for twice-cooked pork, and drink “eight-
treasure” tea - check out the long spouted
kettles - finishing off with a sugar-roasted
banana. It's tucked behind Nanjing Xi Lu,
but you can't miss the colourful arched
doorway. ¥90 per person.
New York Style Pizza
Inside Jing'an Plaza, Huashan Lu, near Nanjing
Xi Lu. 10am-midnight.
An undemanding diner
that does the best pizzas in town; ¥10 a
slice, ¥70 for the whole goddamn thing.
Good for post-booze munchies.
Southern Barbarian
南蛮子
nán mán zi
1449 Qiujiang Lu, near Gonghe Xi Lu, 1.5km
from Shanghai Railway Station
T
13621
797634.
Excellent food from Yunnan, in
southwest China, in a cosy little modern
bistro. Try fried goat's cheese and wild
mushrooms, or so-called “crossing the
bridge” (chicken broth) noodles, and then
the barbecued chicken wings and potato
pancake. ¥50 per person
.
Yuxin Sichuan Dish
渝信川菜
yú xìn chuān cài
3rd Floor, 333 Chengdu Bei Lu
T
Jing'an
Jing'an is a good area for international
cuisine, and though you won't find
any romantic converted villas there are
some surprisingly intimate venues.
1931
112 Maoming Nan Lu, just south of Weihai Lu
T
64725264.
This civilized little place rather
resembles a nineteenth-century front room.
The food is a good mix of Shanghainese,
Japanese and Southeast Asian cuisines,
served in reasonably priced, good-sized
portions. Reservations required. ¥150 per
person.
Bali Laguna
巴厘岛
bā l
l d
d o
189 Huashan Lu, inside Jing'an Park, near
Yan'an Zhong Lu
62486970.
A classy,
popular Indonesian restaurant beautifully
situated in quiet Jing'an Park - look at the
trees and realize what you're missing.
Good place for a date. Try the seafood
curry (¥88), served inside a pineapple.
¥140 per person.
Bi Feng Tang
避风塘
bì fēng táng
1333 Nanjing Xi Lu, by Tongren Lu. 24hr.
This
cheap Cantonese fast-food diner makes a
tasty last spot on a night out (though
beware the merciless lighting). There are
many branches around town; this one is
handy for business travellers at the Portman
and revellers from Tongren Lu (indeed, it
seems to be at its busiest around midnight).
T
52980438.
Super-spicy Sichuan food in a no-nonsense
dining hall. Very popular with families and
the white-collar crowd, so reservation is
recommended. Go for the kou shui ji (saliva
T
i
chicken) and sha guo yu (fish pot), with
which you can work on developing a face
as red as the peppers. Little English is
spoken but there's a picture menu.
121
