The big guide on what to eat at the tourist mecca
Print Edition
IF you’re in Shanghai and not stuffing your face at Yuyuan Garden, you’re doing it wrong. The whole area — Yuyuan Garden Malls, BFC, the Bund stretch on Zhongshan Rd E2 — is a pulsating, chaotic, deeply edible zone. Dead center is Yuyuan Garden Mall, a glutton’s pilgrimage site with all the heavy hitters packed into one ridiculously photogenic, borderline surreal location. Shanghai Laofandian, Lu Bo Lang, Nanxiang Steamed Bun Shop. The old guard. The must-eats. The “yes, I saw this on a travel show” trifecta. All right here, fighting for space with selfie sticks and soup dumplings.
Lu Bo Lang
First stop, Lu Bo Lang. This one’s having a moment. British Prime Minister Keir Starmer swung by recently, posed with a pastry, and smiled for the cameras. Now the internet’s frothing with clickbait guides trying to reverse-engineer the “Prime Minister eats here” food tour. Good luck getting a table.
The star item? The Prime Minister–style butterfly pastry.
Delicately layered, impossibly flaky, and rich with buttery sweetness, every bite captures the essence of classic haipai (Shanghai-style) pastry. Demand is so high that it may well sell out.
Lu Bo Lang isn’t new to the party. The place has been around since the Ming dynasty — back when it was just a chill little pavilion in Yuyuan Garden’s west wing. Now it’s a four-story, Ming and Qing mashup of dark wood, curved roofs, and photo ops, parked right next to the Zigzag Bridge where the tourist traffic flows thick.
The menu reads like a benbang (Shanghai style) greatest hits playlist: Squirrel-Shaped Mandarin Fish, crabby spring pancakes, the oddly poetic Eyebrow Pastry, osmanthus rice cake, and a whole Madam Dim Sum Set. Everything’s handmade, heritage-listed, and quietly flexing centuries of pastry technique while you’re just trying to get a bite for the ‘gram.
Lu Bo Lang’s guest list reads like a G20 dinner party. Queen Elizabeth II, Bill Clinton, Prince Sihanouk — at some point, they all ended up here, probably wondering how something this pretty also tastes this good. Michelin’s been handing them Michelin Bib Gourmands like clockwork.
Address: 115 Yuyuan Rd
Shanghai Lao Fandian
Next up, Shanghai Lao Fandian. This one’s ancient even by Shanghai standards. Founded during the Guangxu era of the Qing Dynasty, it’s the kind of place your grandparents’ grandparents probably argued about over lunch.
Started life in 1875 as Rongshun Restaurant, a humble little spot run by one Zhang Huanying from Chuansha, Pudong — before Pudong had skyscrapers, or, like, electricity.
It started out scrappy. Zhang ran the kitchen, his wife and kid handled the floor, and the gear was barely holding together. But the food? Classic, home-style Shanghainese that hit just right. Locals caught on fast — cheap, tasty, no fuss.
Then came the copycats. Some other joint jacked the name to cash in, because this was pre–IP law and honor systems weren’t cutting it. Zhang slapped a “Lao” in front to mark the original, but customers weren’t into the whole “Lao Rongshun Restaurant” mouthful. They shortened it to Lao Fandian. The name stuck, the legend grew.
Now with a history of over 150 years, Shanghai Lao Fandian stands as a flagship of benbang (local Shanghai) cuisine. It has hosted numerous heads of state, national leaders, ambassadors, and distinguished figures, including Russian President Vladimir Putin and his wife, Singapore President S. R. Nathan, becoming a global calling card for Shanghai cuisine.
Address: 242 Fuyou Rd
Nanxiang Steamed Bun Shop
Now we come to Nanxiang Steamed Bun Shop. Founded in 1900 and still steaming strong six generations later. This is the xiaolongbao gold standard — thin skins, big fills, hot broth and dumplings so pretty they look like they came out of a jewelry box instead of a bamboo steamer. A core memory in the shape of a soup dumpling.
These dumplings are not just food, they’re certified cultural heritage with steam rising off them. Nanxiang’s xiaolongbao come out looking like edible pagodas — delicate, translucent, almost glowing. People call them “art shaped by fingertips,” and honestly, fair.
Eighteen pleats per bun. That’s not a guess, that’s the standard. Inside is pork leg meat with a tight 30-70 fat-to-lean ratio, hugged by a whisper-thin wrapper and a secret aspic that melts into soup the second it hits heat. Bite carefully unless you’re into facial scalding.
Address: 87 Yuyuan Rd
Ningbo Tangtuan Shop
Back in the day, a guy named Gu Shunxing from Ningbo rolled into Chenghuang Temple with a humble setup and a big idea — literally. He was selling large tangyuan, glutinous rice balls packed with black sesame and lard.
But Shanghainese like their sweets bite-sized and elegant, so Gu dialed it down, refined the shape, and suddenly the city couldn’t get enough. By 1945, he made it official and opened the Ningbo Tangtuan Shop. Seventy-plus years later, it’s still going strong, still sticky, still sweet.
Today, Ningbo Tangtuan Shop is one of the signature names at Yuyuan Garden Malls, known for its affordable prices and excellent quality.
Address: 10 Wenchang Rd
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