Yong Fu

Yong Fu specialises in the cooking of Ningbo, in neighbouring Zhejiang, and its branch on the 11th and 12th floors of the Cathay Building at the Jin Jiang Hotel holds one star in the 2026 Michelin Guide Shanghai. The group runs more than one restaurant in the city, including a second starred branch in Hongkou, but the South Maoming Road address puts it in the heart of the former French Concession.

Ningbo food is built on the sea, and that is the focus here. The restaurant serves wild-caught seafood shipped daily from Ningbo and prepared in a way that lets its natural flavour come through rather than burying it in sauce. Seasonal items are a feature of the menu, such as razor clams from Ninghai, which are served from March to May. The Michelin inspectors recommend the yellow croaker roe aspic and the handmade glutinous rice balls. Portions can be adjusted to the size of your party, which helps when ordering a range of seafood for a small table.

The dining room has an old Shanghai atmosphere, in keeping with the Jin Jiang Hotel complex around it. Prices are at the upper end, reflecting the quality of the seafood, so it suits a celebration, a business dinner or a food-focused evening rather than a casual meal. It is family friendly despite its polish.

The restaurant manages its own bookings, so call ahead, and ask about the seasonal catch when you reserve if you have a particular dish in mind. There is a car park, and credit cards are accepted. Allow two hours for dinner.

The World's 50 Best Discovery listing for the group's Hongkou branch describes seafood netted in the East China Sea the same day and recommends dishes such as the Ningbo San Chou, a trio of fermented white gourd, tofu and amaranth stems, baby taro soup and stir-fried swimmer crab. It also suggests rice wine as a better match for the food than French wine, and notes a more casual sibling, Yong Fu Mini, for lower prices.

The Jin Jiang Hotel stands on South Maoming Road in the former French Concession, and taxi drivers will know it by name.