Welcome to Shanghai

Food in
Shanghai

难以忘怀的上海传统美点

Unforgettable Traditional Shanghai Classics



During 1930s to 1940s, it was well recognized that Shanghai was the world of gourmet. After Shanghai became a trade port, businessmen poured into Shanghai from all parts of the country. With the blooming of banks, exchanges, commercial firms and hotels, catering business also began to flourish, especially the fast development of various stalls of snacks and dim sum dishes. At first, there were only several kinds of snacks in Shanghai, including small dumplings, small wontons and rice muffins. As more people came to Shanghai for living, they also brought gourmet food from their hometown. Alleyways in Shanghai became gathering places of all kinds of snack stalls. There were also many mobile vendors walking through the streets day and night.

Among the many traditional Shanghai snacks, the earliest to be on the market were Suzhou style rice cakes. Wufangzhai was the first restaurant to serve the food, such as Tangtuan, yellow muffins and red bean cakes. Then other stores followed its footstep, such as Shendacheng, Qiaojiasha, Wangjiasha and The Canglang Pavilion. Very soon, almost a thousand kinds of snacks appeared one after another, such as Yangzhou Emerald Shaomai (Flowerpot Dumplings), Huaiyang Soupin Bun, Huangqiao Clay Oven Roll, Guangdong Wonton, Rice Cake, Taro Cake, Ningbo Tangtuan with Lard, Jiaxing Zongzi, Huzhou Zongzi, Tianjin GouBuLi Steamed Buns, Northern Boiled Dumplings, Home-made Cake, Nanxiang Steamed Bread, Fried Mantou, Pork Chop and Rice Cake, Chicken Porridge, Wheat Gluten & Beancurd Sheets Soup, Spring Roll, Eight-Treasure Rice Pudding, Noodles with Gravy, Noodle with Minced Meat, Noodle with Saury, Soup Noodle, Fried Noodle and Stewed Noodle.

Year-round Rice Cakes (Wufangzhai Restaurant)
四季糕团（五芳斋）

Opened in 1858, Wufangzhai sold authentic Suzhou style rice cakes. The name for the restaurant was from the five fragrances used in making rice cakes, including lotus seed, lotus, osmanthus, rose and pine flower. The flour used to make rice cakes is grinded with water and tastes glutinous and fragrant. It became very popular and made its name in Shanghai within two years.

Rice cakes of Wufangzhai feature meticulous cooking methods and various varieties. It offers different kinds of rice cakes in accordance with important festivals in the year. Spring festival: Eight-treasure Rice Pudding, Sugared Rice Cake, Muffin; Tomb-sweeping Day: Green Rice Ball; Dragon Boat Festival: All kinds of Zongzi; Double Ninth Festival (Height Ascending Festival): Double Ninth Cake. Wufangzhai remains to be the top rice cake stores in Shanghai in terms of quality and variety. Birthday Cake, Double Ninth Cake and Small Wanton have been awarded Shanghai High Quality Snack and Chinese Famous Snack for many times. In 1956, ChenYun came to Shanghai and made a special trip to Wufangzhai. He ate the Lard Tangtuan and Sesame Tangtuan, praising that Wufangzhai Tangtuan had a very unique taste. When American president Nixon first came to Shanghai and ate the small rice balls stuffed with fillings, he said that "It is as expensive as a pearl".

Fried Meat Ball 炒肉团

Fried Meat Ball is a traditional snack of Wufangzhai. Made of dried bamboo shoot, minced meat, dried shrimp, needle mushroom, champignon, agaric and water bamboo root, the filling tastes especially delicious with sesame oil. Grind glutinous rice and japonica rice into flour, steam it till well done, then knead the dough until it is smooth and will not stick to table and hand. When making the semi-product and wrapping the dough, particular attention should be paid to the shape of rice ball, ensuring that it is well-proportioned and looks beautiful. The snack is glutinous and smooth with a fragrant smell and a perfectly balanced flavor of aroma and saltiness, mostly suitable for hot days.

Five-colored ChongYang Cake 五色重阳糕

Five-colored ChongYang Cake is awarded Ministerial Premium Product and Chinese Famous Snack. ChongYang is a traditional festival. To make this cake, the glutinous rice should be high quality Baiyuan rice. Blend it with japonica rice in the ratio 3∶7, and then grind them into flour. Each piece of the cake has one color, and with Heiyangsu (a kind of fillings which is a mixture of lard and black sesame powder) inside each of the five pieces. The five colors are yellow from country egg, red from rose, cyan from barley leaf cyan, natural color from rice and brown from cocoa, respectively representing preserved fruit, meat of melon seed, walnut kernel, black sesame and white sesame. The cake tastes glutinous with a smooth and chewable texture.

Zongzi 粽子

Zongzi is known as Wufangzhai's speciality in Shanghai. Common fillings include meat, sweetened bean paste, yolk and chestnut. Wufangzhai believes that high quality materials should be used in order to make good products: high quality Baiyuan rice for glutinous rice, frozen pork thigh meat for meat, natural red yolk for yolk, Tianjin Liangxiang chestnut for chestnut, Shaoxing reed for the leaf wrapping, and must be cooked in coal oven for six hours. This way, the rice of Zongzi are not mushy, tastes glutinous and smooth with a strong aroma.

As a result of the governmental relocation project, Wufangzhai has been moved to 136 Middle Sichuan Road and 422 Middle Sichuan Road.

Wheat Gluten & Bean Curd Sheets Soup(Songsheng Snack Restaurant)
面筋百叶汤（松盛点心店）

The restaurant is located in Chenghuang Temple, the most famous snack is the soup. There used to be a street stall on Jiushi Road near Yu Garden, it makes really good Bean Curd Sheet Soup. Songsheng Restaurant's owner Yu Pingong disdiscovered the little stall and learned how to cook the soup from the stall vendor. He then made some improvements and introduced this gourmet to the restaurant. The beancurd sheets were washed to take out the starch then used as wrapping for the minced meat, and fried in the wok. Beancurd sheets should be made of pure bean and boiled in alkali water. Served with soup, it tasted especially delicious. Besides, Yu Pingong was also very adaptable to the customers, that they can order one or two wrap in the same order. The restaurant enjoyed booming business and made a name of itself.

Chicken & Duck Blood Soup (Yuxin Snack Restaurant)
鸡鸭血汤（豫新点心店）

Chicken & Duck Blood Soup was said to be invented by a vendor named Xu Fuquan, who sold snacks in front of Chenghuang Temple at the beginning of the Republic of China. He used an iron wok which was deep inside and with an iron sheet in the middle to divide it into two parts: one to cook soup with chicken heads, claws, and intestine; and the other part is used to cook chicken and duck blood soup. When customers ordered, he would ladle out chicken and soup from both sides, then sprinkle some scallion and drip some yellow chicken oil. With the palette of red, yellow and green, the soup was excellent in color, smell and taste, promoting one's appetite to a great deal. With extra condiments such as pepper powder or spicy powder, the soup would be perfected to great extent.

Nowadays, the soup is considered as a famous and special snack. When Norodom Sihanouk, head of Cambodia, visited the Yu Garden, he liked the soup so much that he ended up finishing two orders.

Sweet Porridge Food Court in Chenghuang Temple
桂花赤豆粥、白糖莲心粥——城隍庙小吃广场

"Red Bean Porridge with Sweet Osmanthus, Sugared Lotus Seeds Porridge!" During hot summer days, you could hear such hollers in old Shanghai streets and the fragrant breeze would immediately cool you down. The voice sounded like a beautiful song and presented a wonderful picture of the old Shanghai. No wonder the Shanghainess who have stayed overseas for decades find it hard to forget those hometown stuff. Soon after they returned to Shanghai, they would taste the snacks from the street stalls.

Red Bean Porridge with Sweet Osmanthus was first invented by a woman named Zhang Axiang a hundred years ago. She used to shoulder the porridge stall and ramble through the streets, hand striking bamboo tube and holler alongside the street to sell the porridge. After she made some money, she settled down in front of the opera hall in Chenghuang Temple and specialized in selling red bean porridge with sweet osmanthus. The delicious porridge was made of white glutinous rice, Dahongpao red bean, white sugar and osmanthus, and was cooked in a copper wok. With fully dried date branch as fuel, the sugared porridge tasted sweet but not too much and gave out a rich aroma. Until today it remains as a popular snack in Old City God Temple.

Dried Shrimp Noodle with Chive Oil Shanghai Snack Family (Hubin Snack Restaurant)
开洋葱油面——上海小吃人家（湖滨点心店）

The noodle has always been known with the reputation of "Aroma pervaded Nine Turnings Bridge". It was first invented by Chen Youzhi who sold snacks alongside the lake in front of the Chunfeng Deyi Lou. The noodle is cooked according to North Jiangsu's custom, it is dark red with a tint of yellow, and the chive oil smells of a rich aroma and improves one's appetite. The noodle is mixed with dried shrimps. Served with the chive oil, the noodle has a smooth texture and tastes delicious without smelly odor of shrimps. Other snacks worth of recommending include Crispy Cake and Crab Shell Cake (crisp pastry with stuffing sesame seeds sprinkled on top). Located in No. 69 Old Yu Garden Road, Hubin Snack Restaurant has recently changed its name to Shanghai Snack Family.

Rice Cake with Pork Chop Xiaochangzhou Rice Cake with Pork Chop Restaurant
小常州排骨年糕——小常州

Originally located at Middle Sichuan Road, the restaurant was the most famous restaurant in 1930s' Shanghai. To make this snack, the fat alongside the chop is retained. First tap the chop flat with knife, marinate it in a sauce, then cooked. Served with the rice cake which has been quick-boiled with oil and soy sauce, the dish features soft and glutinous rice cake with savory pork chop. The founder Mr. Dong of the restaurant also did a wonderful job on branding and marketing. He found a gate board, and wrote "King of Xiaochangzhou Pork Chop" on it with red pen and put it in front of his restaurant. And then he invited comic actors to make advertisements on the radio with the slogan "Every pork chop is as big as the gate board".

Rice Cake with Pork Chop Xiandelai Rice Cake with Pork Chop Restaurant
鲜得来排骨年糕——鲜得来

This is a restaurant with rich Jiangnan flavor, has moved to the current South Yunnan Road location, it has more than 80 years histroy. The pork chops are all cut to the same thickness with bones and in the shape of fan. The rice cake is handmade in traditional way, white in appearance and smooth in texture. Served with home-made sweet soy bean paste, the rice cake features soft tender texture with a distinct and lasting after taste. It was once awarded titles of Shanghai Famous Snack and Chinese Famous Snack.

Pan-fried Noodle with Shredded Pork Youyicun
肉丝两面黄——又一村

This popular snack was first sold by snack stalls in 1920s. Because of its crispy and soft texture, it is enjoyed by people of all ages. Youyicun restaurant that was located on West Nanjing Road served the best Pan-fried Noodle. Celebrities Sun Daolin, Wang Wenjuan and Zhou Bochun often came to the restaurant for Pan-fried Noodle. Unfortunately it was no longer in business due to government relocation project. Nowadays Pan-fried Noodle can be found in almost every Shanghai restaurants, and the most famous two are Shendacheng located on Nanjing Road and Zhejiang Road, and Wangjiasha located on West Nanjing Road.

Pigeon-egg-shaped Tangyuan Guihua Hall
鸽蛋圆子——桂花厅

Pigeon-egg-shaped Tangyuan was first invented in 1930s by the famous limp chef Wang Youfa and was named so because its color and shape resemble pigeon egg. As a cold snack for hot summer, it is especially made for teahouses on the lake. The recipe and cooking method were nearly lost during the past years, and was finally saved by the snack chefs of Guihua Hall. past Famous "Trendy Comics" actor Liu Chunsheng used to perform in the restaurant and attracted a lot of audiance. Tangyuan's reputation was boosted greatly. At the National Cooking Skill Show and Appraisal Conference held by the Department of Commercial in 1983, famous snack chef Ms. Ge Xian'e from Shanghai won the first prize and Pigeon-egg-shaped Tangyuan was one of her works. Now you can eat Pigeon-egg-shaped Tangyuanl in Shanghai Classical Hotel located in Chenghuang Temple.

Unforgetable Snacks Qiaojiashan Restaurant
名点脍炙人口——乔家栅食府

Located on South Xiangyang Road and Yongjia Road, Qiaojiasha Restaurant boasts several snacks that win universal praise. The owner offered high salary to hire Gao Shifeng, who was master of making Zongzi. The Meat Zongzi he made was superior in color, smell, taste and shape. To make such Zongzi, the bamboo leaf is from Huizhou; the glutinous rice must be high quality Baiyuan Rice from Guangde or Jintan; the meat used is mixed from half pure lean meat and half pure fat; the rice wine should be aged Shaoxing Huadiao, Taidiao or Tejiafan, and soy sauce should be first-class Shaiyou (one type of soy sauce); other condiments used in making Zongzi including sugar, scallion and ginger. MSG is not used in order to preserve the natural flavor of the food. Each Zongzi is bound with rope by six and half circles and must be cooked till well done. Madam Song Qingling liked Zongzi very much and whenever she arrived in Shanghai, she would order Zongzi from Qiaojiashan. In 1946, Li Zongren and his wife also came to Qiaojiashan for Zongzi. On every Dragon Boat Festival, Song Ziwen and Kong Xiangxi would order a large quantity of Zongzi from the restaurant. Because Kong Xiangxi did not eat Meat Zongzi, Qiaojiashan would prepare vegetable Zongzi for him. He would also buy a lot of Zongzi to send to friends and relatives in American during Spring Festival. After eating Qiaojiashan's Zongzi, Zhou Xinfang wrote an epigraph "The fragrance pervades Southern China."

Qiaojiashan's Tangtuan with soup also has high reputation, features thin skin and rich filling. Three tangtuans weigh 50g. Especially sesame Tangtuan is the most popular dish. Celebrity Weng Tongshi sent an inscribed board with "No. 1 Tangyuan" on it to the restaurant as a gift.

Green Tangtuan with Three Savory Ingredients is adapted from the traditional Suzhou snack---"Shrivelled Mouth Tangtuan", which is small and flat in shape and easy to chew. Qiaojiashan has made some improvements, vegetable juice is added to make small and green Tangtuan. Stew Tangtuan with shredded chicken, ham and bamboo shoot. The snack is a delicious combination of green color and savory taste. The restaurant also creates variations of Green Tangtuan according to the season, such as "Green Tangtuan with Shrimp Meat", "Green Tangtuan with Crab meat", "Green Tangtuan with Shrimp and Crab". Peking Opera master Mei Lanfang and Zhou Xinfang often came to Qiaojiashan for Green Tangtuan.

Cat's Ear Pork Tangtuan was invented by snack chef Wang Yuexian in 1942, named after the shape of the Tangtuan. She got inspiration from deep fried Wanton: hand make the skin from dough, fill in meat (shrimp, crab or chicken) or sweetened bean paste, then deep fry the Tangtuan. Tangtuan in Qiaojiashan are made to order, to ensure a blend of a crisp pastry shell and a soft filling, with a distinct combination of aromatic crisp, sweet taste and soft texture. In those years, famous movie stars Zhou Xuan and Gu Yelu often came to Qiaojiashan for this snack.

Noodle Soup with Shredded Pork Xiaoluochun Pavilion
肉丝汤面——小罗春阁

Pavilion which was located on Baxian Bridge Liulin Road. In 1920s, eating the "Noodle Soup with Shredded Pork" prepared by Xiaoluochun's snack chef Shen Zhaoding was a fashion. The restaurant started to serve noodle soup from 4 p.m. every day. Even 3am in the morning, the restaurant would still be busy with customers having noodles. The dish is made of noodle, shredded pork, water bamboo root, spinach and meat bone soup. All these ingredients are cooked at the same time so that the soup has a savory aroma and rich taste without losing the original flavor. Served with vegetable and shredded pork, the red-brown soup and white noodle composes a colorful palette. Celebrities such as Gai Jiaotian, Xu Yulan, Ding Shi'e, Yao Mushuang, Zhou Bochun and Yang Huasheng often came to Xiaoluochun for a Noodle Soup or Stir Fried Noodle after their night performance.

Pan-fried Bun, Crab Shell Pastry, Beef Soup Dahuchun Snack Restaurant
生煎、蟹壳黄、牛肉汤——大壶春

Established in 1932, Dahuchun was located on Sichuan Road. It was well-known among the residents, employee of the nearby banks and foreign firms. Dahuchun's Pan-fried Bun is popular with diners because of its round and full shape, golden base, thin skin and rich filling, a tender taste of sweet saltiness and scallion. However, Dahuchun has to be closed due to the government relocation project.

Braised Pork Noodle Dexing Noodle Restaurant
焖肉面——德兴面馆

Located on Middle Fujian Road, Dexing Noodle Restaurant was established in 1945 and specializes in Suzhou noodles. Dexing Braised Pork Noodle enjoys high reputation among Shanghai people because its pork is savory and tender, fat but not greasy, soft but not messy, and maintains its original flavor still melts instantly in the mouth. It's a dish suitable for people of all ages. Celebrities such as Yang Huasheng, Zhou Bochun and Huang Yongsheng often came to Dexing for noodle. Beside Braised Pork Noodle, Dexing has also developed other delicious dishes such as Braised Hoof, Braised Claw, Fried Fish, Brasied Chicken, etc.