Yu Shan Feng, Shanghai
We have a list a mile long of restaurants here in Shanghai that people have recommended to us, but it was gorgeous out on Saturday, so we just decided to simply walk around the city and find a place we thought looked good. Which is how we found Yu Shan Feng...
We’ve taken a shine to the old school Chinese diners that litter this city, so this place looked right up our alley. The fact they had a poster outside with English translations sealed the deal...
And I must say, their English translations are near perfect, probably the best I’ve seen in China. I’m fairly certain that they had the help of an actual native speaker with culinary knowledge, rather than just rely on Google Translate.
Yu Shan Feng’s a pretty big place, maybe seating up to about 100 people at any given time, so there’s not much waiting. We arrived around noon, the peak of the weekend lunch time rusg, and were seated right away. In traditional SH diner style, they give you a Chinese paper menu & pencil and you check off what you want. You have to ask for the English menu, and when you've decided on your dishes, the waitresses will help you match the English menu to the order form.
Oh, and be prepared, there are over 200 dishes on the menu!
We went with four. Here’s a look...
Sweet potato leaves stir-fried in garlic, one of the best vegetable dishes I’ve had in China! I literally drank the sauce out the bottom of the bowl...
Another amazing find, tender beef brisket with cucumber wedges wrapped in pancakes...
I was skeptical of the cold cucumber center at first, but it added a much needed crunch to each bite...
There was a tart “barbecue sauce” inside the roll already, but Yu Shan Feng’s house hot sauce added a nice kick!
You need to ask for the hot sauce separately as we discovered by watching a couple at the table next to us...
Pork xiao long bao hit the table next, and while not the best in city, they were still quite good. Would definitely rank in my Shanghai top ten...
Finished up with a plate of salt & pepper pork trotters...
Covered in garlic, ginger, onions and chiles, the flavorful fall-off-the-bone chunks of meat and fat were wonderful with a bowl of white rice...
All this food and a big bottle of Tsingtao for 129rmb, which is about $20.00 US!
One other thing I want to add... I don’t think we’ve every been to a friendlier restaurant in Shanghai. Even though they were quite busy, every staffer was kind, polite and extremely helpful. And EVERYONE smiled constantly. They made you feel comfortable here.
We’ll definitely be going back to explore so much more of Yu Shan Feng’s extensive menu... and definitely getting those sweet potato leaves again!
YU SHAN FENG
15 Baoqing Lu
On the corner of Fuxing Lu
Shanghai, China














