Shanghai's food culture is built on a philosophy of refinement. Known as Hu cuisine, the city's culinary identity draws from the fresh seasonal produce of Jiangsu and Zhejiang provinces and weaves in a long history of contact with Western cooking traditions — a combination that produces dishes at once deeply Chinese and distinctly cosmopolitan. The result is a food city where every street corner and every shikumen lane house holds something worth trying. Book your flights to Shanghai through Traveloka and prepare for one of Asia's great eating cities.

Xiao long bao are Shanghai's most celebrated export to the wider food world, and eating them at their source is a genuinely different experience from what you find elsewhere. The thin, translucent dough wraps around a core of seasoned pork and a small pocket of broth — produced by folding aspic (solidified stock) into the filling before steaming, so it melts into soup during cooking. The technique requires skill, and quality varies widely across the city. Variations using crab roe or shrimp filling are worth seeking out if you want to move beyond the standard pork version.

Sheng jian bao occupy the same flavour territory as xiao long bao but are transformed by the cooking method into something altogether more textural. The buns are pan-fried until their flat bottoms caramelise into a golden, crackling crust, while the tops remain soft and fluffy from steaming. The interior holds a juicy pork filling with a small reservoir of hot broth — handle with care on the first bite. They are sold fresh from large flat-bottomed pans at sheng jian stalls across the city, typically in portions of four, and best eaten immediately.

Shanghai's hotel scene is as diverse as its food culture, ranging from historic bund-facing properties to contemporary towers in Pudong. Hotels in Shanghai suit every traveller style and budget, and booking through Traveloka keeps the process simple.

Hong shao rou — red braised pork belly — is Shanghai's answer to the universal craving for deeply satisfying, slow-cooked meat. Cubed pork belly is browned and then braised for hours in a fragrant sauce of soy sauce, Shaoxing wine, rock sugar, and a considered blend of Chinese spices until the fat turns yielding and the sauce reduces to a lacquered, mahogany glaze. The flavour is simultaneously savoury, sweet, and deeply aromatic. It appears on menus across the city from simple lunch canteens to high-end Hu cuisine restaurants, and the quality is nearly always worth exploring.

Yellow croaker is a prized fish along China's eastern coast, and Shanghai has made it the centrepiece of one of its most comforting noodle dishes. Whole or sliced croaker is cooked in an aromatic broth built on ginger, scallions, and soy sauce, then served over noodles in a bowl that is both protein-rich and restorative. The fish's clean, slightly sweet flavour works perfectly against the savoury depth of the broth. It is the kind of dish that locals return to repeatedly, and first-time visitors to Shanghai should make a point of finding a version made with fresh fish — the difference is immediately apparent.

Shanghai's stir-fried noodles — thick wheat noodles tossed in a wok with soy sauce, cabbage, bok choy, and a choice of pork, chicken, or shrimp — are a masterclass in the power of good wok technique. The high heat of the wok imparts a slight char to the noodles that no home kitchen can fully replicate, giving the dish a smokiness and depth that elevates it well above its simple ingredients. It is eaten at all hours: as a quick lunch, a late-night bowl after a night out, or a takeaway from a neighbourhood stall. The cost is low, the flavour is high, and the satisfaction is immediate.

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Tangyuan are round dumplings made from glutinous rice flour, giving them a soft, chewy texture that is often likened to Japanese mochi. They are served in a warm, gently sweetened liquid — most commonly ginger syrup or black sesame soup — and carry fillings that range from sweet red bean paste to crushed peanuts and sesame. In Shanghai, tangyuan are closely associated with the Lantern Festival but appear on dessert menus and at street stalls throughout the year. Their warmth and subtle sweetness make them the ideal way to close a meal on a cool Shanghai evening.

Cong you bing is one of Shanghai's most enduring street foods — a flatbread layered with sesame oil and finely chopped scallions, rolled and then pan-fried until the outer surface is crispy and fragrant while the interior remains flaky and soft. The technique of laminating the dough with oil and scallions before cooking creates distinct, pull-apart layers that give the pancake its characteristic texture. It is sold by vendors across the city at almost any hour, and the gap between a freshly made cong you bing and a reheated one is significant. Always eat it hot.

Shanghai hairy crab — named for the distinctive hair-like structures on its claws — is a seasonal delicacy that draws serious food travellers to the city each autumn, typically from October to December. The crab is prized above all for its roe: in females, a creamy, golden mass; in males, a firmer, ivory-coloured milt. Both have a slightly sweet, intensely savoury richness that is difficult to describe and almost impossible to replicate outside of the season. Eating hairy crab in Shanghai is a ritual rather than simply a meal, typically accompanied by Shaoxing wine and followed by ginger tea to balance the richness.

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