Affordable Shanghai business lunches
Say the words “business lunch” in Shanghai and suddenly prices increase three-fold. But there are still a few holdouts that are as good a deal as the one you’re there to make.
Here are the best from each area of the city.
French Concession: Lapis Sky
The interior feels like the lovechild of M on the Bund and Kathleen’s 5. Several tables offer unobstructed view of French Concession villas and comfortable sofa-like seats that encourage hours of lazy lunching.
Try the very affordable three-course lunch set menu for RMB 68, which includes a soft drink, a daily soup, an appetizer and a main.
The mains include roast chicken with baby potatoes, pan-fried snapper with mushroom ragout and a signature burger with bacon.
If you feel like brunch, that’s available from 7:30 a.m. on weekends. The must-try for bunch: the slow-cooked hot spring egg with creamed baby spinach, truffle oil and foccacia.
Lapis Sky, 10 Baoqing Lu, near Fuxing Zhong Lu 宝庆路10号, 近复兴中路, +86 21 6474 6888
Xintiandi: Koyama
Koyama has a lot going for it. They offer 400-plus traditional Japanese dishes and regional specialties and a menu showing many of them in food-porn detail.
The decor is traditional Japanese and gives the restaurant an air of calm. Diners sit on traditional tatami mats and eat in the privacy of individual wooden booths.
The quality of their fish makes Koyama expensive for dinner (anywhere from RMB 200-700 according to dianping.com) but the set lunch is a steal.
There are several lunch bento options, but our favorite is the RMB 88 chirashi bowl set.
- More on CNNGo: Shanghai's best high-end Japanese dining
The sushi rice with tamago, fish paste and thick cuts of fresh tuna, salmon, cuttlefish and octopus is almost too pretty to eat. Seasonally, they’ll include mackerel, hamachi or other fish. The set also comes with chawanmushi (steamed egg), miso soup and a side salad.
It’s the best lunch deal in Xintiandi any day of the week.
Koyama, 3/F, South Block Plaza, Lane 123 Xingye Lu, near Madang Lu 新天地南里广场3楼, 兴业路123弄, 近马当路, +86 21 53821 125
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