ShanghaiTraveller.info

Shanghai City Guide

admin — Mon, 28 Apr 2008 19:38:22 +0000

Shanghai is the gem of the East. Shanghai is the most rapidly developed city in China, with a large number of international hotels, international brands, and world-class restaurants.

A beautiful city with an eclectic mix of Eastern neon lightings, 19th century architecture, and high-rised buildings facing the famous Bund.
Shanghainese is the most commonly heard dialect, but locals would be kind to speak in English and Mandarin to foreigners. Shanghainese food requires an acquired taste, and it may take a few tries to like it. Regional chinese cuisines and many western restaurants are widely available.

Known as “the Oriental Paris”, Shanghai is a shopper’s paradise.
Shopping is best in Infinity Complex, Huai Hai Zhong Lu and Nan Jing Lu. Taxi drivers are friendlier through the years, and the charges are really low.

Great activities are also available. Never miss the Bund, and the Pearl Tower from where you can almost follow the fast development of the city right in front of you! Also be sure to check out Jinmao Tower, currently the world’s 4th tallest (completed) building, from which you can see the final construction of the Shanghai World Financial Center, soon to be number 2 (temporarily).

Also check out the Maglev train from Pudong airport to Longyang Road metro station, from which the rest of the city is at your disposal.

Madame Mao’s Dowry

admin — Sat, 26 Apr 2008 03:26:58 +0000

This wonderful shop in the French Concession sells antique furniture, silk clothing, unusual housewares, ceramics, and art, with an emphasis on Cultural Revolution posters and propaganda art.Monday through Saturday 10am to 6pm; Sunday noon to 6pm.

Hua Bao Lou

admin — Sat, 26 Apr 2008 03:26:18 +0000

The basement of this shopping center on “Shanghai Old Street” near the Temple of the Town God and Yu Garden has plenty of antiques and collectibles for sale, though not always at the best prices. Over 200 booths sell embroidery, calligraphy, jade, carvings, and porcelain pieces. Daily 9am to 9pm.

Fuyou Antique Market

admin — Sat, 26 Apr 2008 03:25:30 +0000

Still the most fun place to scavenge for every imaginable antique and collectible, from Buddhist statuary to Qing Dynasty coins. Monday through Friday 9am to 5pm; Saturday and Sunday 5am to 5pm.

Chine Antiques

admin — Sat, 26 Apr 2008 03:24:49 +0000

In business for the last 15 years, and noted for its high-end (and high-priced) antiques, mainly wooden pieces from the Qing Dynasty, Chine will ship purchases overseas. The shop in the Dongtai Market has pictures of what you can find in the warehouse showroom near the Hongqiao Airport.

Angel Pearls

admin — Sat, 26 Apr 2008 02:58:11 +0000

This is one of Shanghai’s best shops for pearls (freshwater pearls, South Sea pearls, Japanese cultured pearls). It also carries silk carpets and embroideries. Daily 10am to 6:30pm (Xinzha Lu location open daily 9am-5:30pm).

Dynasty

admin — Sat, 26 Apr 2008 02:56:40 +0000

Long regarded as one of Shanghai’s top Cantonese restaurants, Dynasty boasts the same chefs (many from Hong Kong) who routinely cater dinners for visiting heads of state at special banquets and luncheons. For their expertise, you can expect not the usual steaming, braising or stir-frying, but some very creative methods of cooking including boiling live fish, cut up in pieces, in a rich chicken broth, or roasting then quick-frying chicken in boiling oil. The large tables with white tablecloths and the open dining space are thoroughly Cantonese, like the menu, where you can’t go wrong with the fresh seafood dishes (prawns and lobster are good bets), the classic crispy roasted chicken, or the dim sum lunch.

Cu Cai Guan

admin — Sat, 26 Apr 2008 02:54:37 +0000

The fairly exotic menu at this lively and popular Cantonese eatery, complete with murals and photographs of Hong Kong pop stars and actors, proves that there’s no part of a pig that can’t be eaten. Trotters, brains, knuckles, and kidneys are all fair and rather delicious game. For the less adventurous, more benign but equally tasty dishes include riben jiemo chao niuliuli (wasabi stir-fried beef), XO jiang chao sijidou (stir-fried string beans in XO sauce), shenggua chao zhujingrou (crispy-skinned pork dipped in a spicy sauce), shuijing xiaren (stir-fried shrimp), and congyou bing (scallion pancakes). Or order from the tanks of live seafood on the first floor. This is one of those restaurants where the food is definitely not like the Cantonese food you’re used to back home — it’s better.

Ba Guo Bu Yi

admin — Sat, 26 Apr 2008 02:53:09 +0000

This deservedly popular eatery in the Gubei Xinqu area serves some of the heartiest and most authentic Sichuan fare in town. Crowds throng nightly to this two-story glass-front complex not for its fake foliage and batik theme, but for its kitchen, which pulls no punches where the Sichuan peppercorn is concerned. The menu is in Chinese only but has plenty of chili alerts to warn the neophyte. Start your evening with the fuqi feipian appetizer (cold beef and tongue doused in chili oil and peanuts), then graduate to lazi jiding (chicken nuggets in a sea of red chili peppers), huiguo rou (twice-cooked pork with chili and scallions), and the delicious shuizhu yu (fish slices and vegetables in a flaming spicy broth), closing with dandan mian (noodles in spicy peanut sauce). In between, be kind to yourself with lots of cold water and beer breaks; you’ll need them to put out the three-alarm fire in your mouth.

A Future Perfect

admin — Sat, 26 Apr 2008 02:52:31 +0000

Expats love the reasonably priced food and pleasant atmosphere at this restaurant tucked away in a small lane in the French Concession. Attached to the boutique hotel Old House Inn, A Future Perfect has an airy white decor with large splashes of lime green, and some of the coziest garden dining in town. If you’re here with a group, ask for the friends and family table, which is a large elevated corner booth great for people watching.

Tasty if not extraordinary, most of the soup, salad, pasta, and meat dishes will cure any homesick cravings you may have, and the hummus appetizer is quite good as well. There are also substantial set breakfasts and lunches, along with a full bar. All this is if you can make sense of the wacky difficult-to-read fonts on the menu. For those toting their own laptops and cannot be off-grid for even a few hours, the restaurant offers free wireless with your meal(s).