It’s Christmas day today but in China, it’s just a regular day and all shops and offices operates as usual. I spent the earlier half of the day around Xintiandi – a trendy area of Shanghai, and I really liked the feeling there. It feels like Lower East Side of Manhattan or something, the hip neighborhood where Momofuku Noodle Bar is. There are trendy malls (not the wholesale sort) and even a Lululemon showroom!

With no plans for lunch, it was by random chance that I found Shanghai Tang Cafe. This is associated with the brand Shanghai Tang. In Japan, fashion/ beauty brand cafes and restaurants are very common but I was surprised to see this in China too. Even though Shanghai Tang is technically a Hong Kong label, I like the idea of having it in Shanghai. It’s as thought this meal will make my Shanghai adventure complete.

I honestly had no idea what to expect about this place. I did not even know Shanghai Tang had a restaurant and did not do any prior research about it. I left everything up to fate/ chance/ luck.

Beautifully sunny day during winter! The facade of this restaurant is beautiful too.

Upon stepping in, I was sold. The restaurant was so beautiful! It was just like the brand’s image – bringing a modern touch to Chinese style, like using bright colours for traditional furniture designs. I love this modern Chinese decor and it was made perfect with the choice of music playing in the background, like 天涯歌女.

Even the menu was so pretty.

桂花拉糕 – RMB 21

That osmanthus cake was the best thing ever! My encounters with 桂花糕 was the jelly sort, which I liked but wasn’t crazy about. This one however, was like a rice cake. It was chewy in texture and had a very nice aroma from the osmanthus. I loved this so much, I bought some dried osmanthus flowers home later this trip so I could maybe make this at home while counting down to the next time I get to revisit Shanghai. I wish I got the Rose with Chinese Yam Cake too.

Seen in the background, I ordered blood chrysanthemum tea and it was so good. I love the tea culture of this country.

酸辣汤

Not bad!

Fried tofu

This portion was huge and is addictive. It’s makes a good appetizer if you have a bigger group. I love how pretty it looks too.

锅贴 – RMB22

Just because I had to get every iconic Shanghainese dim sum.

Pan-fried dumpling 生煎包 – RMB 36

This one wasn’t fantastic, especially since I tried Yang’s this morning (which was supposedly the best in town).

小笼包 – RMB 22

Decent but comparing to Jia Jia Tang Bao it wasn’t better. Probably on par with Nan Xiang (which I think is a tourist trap).

Yellow croaker soup noodles – RMB 48

This one was quite disappointing despite being their signature dish. I suppose this kind of noodles isn’t to my liking.

Overall I like this restaurant a lot because of the theme and that osmanthus cake was too good. I regret not ordering some other items but I’m sure I’ll come here again someday!