Shanghai's own cuisine is 本帮菜 (běnbāng cài) — sweet, soy-dark, generous with sugar and rice wine, built on river fish, pork belly and freshwater shrimp. The city's old restaurants are where it survives in recognisable form, and unlike the current opening they will still be there when you arrive.
Show the Chinese column at the door or the taxi window.
The list#
| Restaurant | Chinese | Address | Metro |
|---|---|---|---|
| Shanghai Lao Fandian — benbang | 上海老饭店 | 上海市黄浦区福佑路242号 | Line 10, Yuyuan Garden |
| Lu Bo Lang — benbang, dim sum | 绿波廊 | 上海市黄浦区豫园路115号 | Line 10, Yuyuan Garden |
| Nanxiang Steamed Bun — xiaolongbao | 南翔馒头店（豫园店） | 上海市黄浦区豫园路（九曲桥旁） | Line 10, Yuyuan Garden |
| Wang Bao He — hairy crab | 王宝和酒家 | 上海市黄浦区福州路603号 | Lines 1, 2 and 8, People's Square |
| Xinghualou — Cantonese, pastry | 杏花楼（福州路总店） | 上海市黄浦区福州路343号 | Lines 1, 2 and 8, People's Square |
| Dexingguan — noodles, benbang | 德兴馆（广东路总店） | 上海市黄浦区广东路471号 | Lines 1, 2 and 8, People's Square |
| Shen Dacheng — rice cakes | 沈大成 | 上海市黄浦区南京东路636号 | Lines 2 and 10, Nanjing East Road |
| Xiao Shaoxing — white-cut chicken | 小绍兴（云南南路店） | 上海市黄浦区云南南路75号 | Line 8, Dashijie |
| Guangmingcun — braised meats, mooncakes | 光明邨大酒家 | 上海市黄浦区淮海中路588号 | Line 1, Shanxi South Road |
For Xiao Shaoxing and Guangmingcun the metro connection is stated by the sources. For the rest it is the nearest station to the address rather than a transit link anyone published — reliable in a grid this dense, but worth knowing.
What to order where#
Xiaolongbao. Nanxiang, in the Yu Garden bazaar, has been folding them since 1900 to a fixed specification — a set skin weight, a set filling weight, sixteen pleats. The queue is long and splits by counter: takeaway downstairs, sit-down upstairs. It is touristed and still good.
Benbang classics. Shanghai Lao Fandian dates from 1875 and holds national intangible-heritage status for traditional Shanghainese cooking technique. Order 八宝鸭 (eight-treasure duck) or 油爆河虾 (flash-fried river shrimp). Lu Bo Lang, beside the Nine-Bend Bridge, is the one that has fed a long list of visiting heads of state and is known for its pastry as much as its mains.
Hairy crab, in season. Wang Bao He has specialised in crab and its own aged yellow wine since 1744. Autumn only — outside the season the point of the place disappears.
Noodles. Dexingguan opened in 1883 and is the cheap end of the old guard: 焖蹄面 (braised pork-knuckle noodles) is the order.
White-cut chicken. Xiao Shaoxing, on the Yunnan South Road food street, has done 白斩鸡 and chicken congee since 1943.
Sweet things and things to take away. Shen Dacheng for rice cakes and 青团 in spring. Xinghualou, founded 1851, for Cantonese food and the mooncakes it is genuinely famous for. Guangmingcun for braised and smoked meats sold over the counter — the queue on Huaihai Road is a Shanghai fixture in its own right.
Practical notes#
Ordering is by the table, dishes shared from the middle. Most of these have picture menus; pointing is normal. Pay by phone — Alipay and WeChat Pay work everywhere on this list.
Several of these sit inside the Yu Garden bazaar, which is heavily touristed and full of imitators trading on the same names. Match the Chinese characters in the table against the sign before you sit down.
For regional context, see the regional cuisine guide; for the sights, things to do in Shanghai.