EATLiving
Eat & Drink
Specialty coffeeMore cafés than any city on earthNeighbourhood roastersPour-overWork-friendlyGarden roomsHotel cafésLate openingBy corridorShanghai has more coffee shops than any city in the world. We skip the chains and map the neighbourhood roasters, the cafés where you can actually work, and the ones worth crossing the city for — corridor by corridor.All corridors
Flavour restaurantsWhere to take guests — and what to orderShanghai breakfastBenbang & JiangnanDumplings & noodlesSichuan & HunanCantonese & ChaoshanYunnan & GuizhouXinjiang & NorthwestHotpot stylesAn English menu is not a quality signal. We sort by cuisine — Shanghainese, Sichuan, Cantonese, Japanese, Korean, Southeast Asian, Western, halal, vegetarian — and hold one bar: would we take a visiting client there. Dish-level notes included.All corridors
Cocktail barsSpeakeasies, conversation rooms, hotel viewsCocktailsConversation barsJazzRooftopsHotel heritageWineSports pubsLow/no alcoholThe Former French Concession has one of Asia's densest cocktail scenes. We keep the speakeasies that survived their lists, the villa rooms you can still talk in, and the Bund hotel bars with a real view — plus which nights are quiet enough for a client.All corridors- Craft beerLocal tanks, not hotel importsShanghai breweriesTaproomsBeer gardensImported tapsFood pairingQuiet tablesFestival calendarShanghai brews, and rooms close. Which taprooms still publish an official site, and how to check a tap is on before you cross town — last year’s room is often a clothing shop.All corridors
- Brunch & bakeriesSourdough, bagels and weekend tablesLocal breakfastBakeriesHotel brunchChinese dessertsIce creamKid-friendlyGroup tablesWeekend brunch is expat infrastructure. The bakeries doing real sourdough and butter croissants, and the brunch rooms where a table for six on Sunday is actually possible.All corridors
- Tea, milk tea & new Chinese drinksTea houses, fruit tea, milk caps, sugar and ice — decodedTraditional teaModern tea roomsClassic milk teaFresh fruit teaMilk capsChinese ingredientsSugar & iceToppingsChina’s drink menu is a city experience in its own right. Start with real tea and a quiet tea house, then learn the milk-tea family: tea base, milk or cream, fruit, milk cap, sugar, ice and toppings. The useful skill is ordering a drink you actually want, not chasing one viral cup.All corridors
Live near what you love.
Where you live decides how far all of this is. Tell us what your week looks like — we shortlist homes around it.