Shanghai Restaurant Tour

Tour Details

About the Tour

Category: Cuisine
Duration: 2 hours
Location: Shanghai

Photos & Highlights

Learn about Shanghainese cuisine during curated meal
Led by a local gastronomic expert
Xiao Baihua

Tour Description

Hungry? Then join this Shanghai restaurant tour, a 2-hour curated meal at Xiao Baihua, a lesser known but deeply revered restaurant perfect for sampling the classics of Shanghainese cuisine. Its diminutive size and modest décor belie a kitchen staff whose mouthwatering creations would make your Shanghainese grandmother blush. During our time together, we’ll eat our way from appetizers to soups, exploring the essential components of Shanghainese cuisine, all in the company of a local food expert.

"The restaurant we visited for dinner was the best meal we had in ten days in Shanghai.”

Modern-day Shanghainese cuisine is derived from benbang (local) cuisine—traditional home-style cooking—and from haipai (all-embracing) cuisine that started when Shanghai became a trading port and cuisines from across China were adapted to Shanghainese tastes.

Shanghai means upon the sea, and in Shanghainese cuisine seafood plays a starring role. Sugar and alcohol are also heavily used. It’s very common to see dishes described as “drunken,” meaning marinated in wine or spirits and then served raw, sautéed, or steamed; fish, crab, and chicken most often get this treatment. One of the most beloved Shanghainese dishes, red braised pork (hongshaorou), is a saucy, sugary plate of comfort for any Shanghai native. We'll give this a taste and see why it has been such a staple food for the people of Shanghai.

Shanghainese Sharing

Chinese food is meant to be eaten family-style, each item shared amongst the table. Meals traditionally start with cold dishes before moving onto heartier, hotter fare. As is traditional, the most delicate and expensive flavors are eaten first: seafood, then meat, then vegetables, then rice or noodles. There are plenty of delicious, tender vegetables on the menu at Xiao Baihua, and we may order these, too.

Wrapping up our meal, we’ll leave Xia Baihua well sated, with a better understanding of traditional Shanghainese cuisine, its ingredients, and how it has and continues to evolve. Note, to visit the markets of Shanghai try our Shanghai Food Tour. Looking to learn more about the history of the city? Try our Shanghai Walking Tour.

Note: Xiao Baihua is extremely popular and it is best to book early in the evening at 6pm in order to guarantee a table can be held.

FAQ

Will the restaurant be able to accommodate those with allergies or dietary restrictions?

We do our best to accommodate everyone. If you have severe allergies to ingredients common in Chinese cooking, such as garlic, this may not be the best tour for you. The best thing to do is let us know when you book if anyone in your party has allergies or dietary restrictions. We can check in on dishes, order ahead, and do everything possible to ensure you enjoy your meal.

Where You'll Start

Tour Experts

Crystyl

Crystyl has been covering Shanghai's food scene for international and domestic publications and TV programs for almost a decade. She has contributed to several magazines, including Condé Nast Traveler, Food & Wine, Travel+Leisure, Departures, and AFAR, among others. She was the food editor of Time Out Shanghai for five years, covering the city's culinary scene from street food to Michelin-star restaurants. Crystyl also lectures at various universities and consults for multinational companies on China's food scene, and she is a restaurant critic on International Channel Shanghai's "Fine Dining" TV program. Originally from Boston, she moved to China seventeen years ago as a student and has previously worked as a correspondent for Time Warner's Asiaweek magazine.

Terry

Growing up in a traditional family in Shanghai, Terry brings a wide range of deep insight in Shanghai's local culture, especially in art and history. With his passion for contemporary art, Terry has been managing various galleries M50 which helped him build exceptional expertise in the area's historical backgrounds. Besides art, Terry enjoys traveling around the world and discovering different types of art in multi-cultural environments as well as exploring world-wide cuisine.

3 Reviews – (4.73)

Reviews can only be left by Context customers after they have completed a tour. For more information about our reviews, please see our FAQ.

Terry was terrific, very knowledgeable concerning food of Shanghai. I was the only one for the evening. We sampled a number of dishes which were tasty. I felt the charge for such an evening to sit in one restaurant for a meal was excessive and not worth what I paid.

Barbara

Sep. 25, 2019

The restaurant we visited for lunch was the best meal we had in ten days in Shanghai.

Elizabeth

Nov. 4, 2014