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What I ate in Shanghai, American franchise edition

Traveling to Shanghai was on my list of things to do when I first arrived in China. It’s one of the most popular cities in the world and the commercial hub of China. This was my second time here, but my first time exploring the city.

As we all know Covid happened and the very first time I landed in Shanghai was the day the lockdown began in China. But that is an entirely different story for a different blog post. Until then let’s dig into what I ate while in Shanghai.

Shanghai is a tier one city and know internationally to host a vast amount of expats. Because of this it is home to many international franchises. Many of which include American food chains. I’m based in Wuhan and though the city is up and coming it doesn’t have some franchises that are found in Shanghai.

So as you can imagine the food on this trip was based tremendously if not exclusively on American franchises that can be found in Shanghai. I was so excited for the food and at some points I didn’t even know what to choose. So little time, so many good options. Nevertheless, we kicked off the food tour with Chilies. It was our first day in the city and after that five hour train ride, we were starving.

Chilies

The branch we went to was right by the river across from the Bund and just around the corner from the Oriental Pearl Tower. For starters we ordered some nachos that were simply okay. Nothing to talk about, it served the purpose of staving off the hunger until the mains arrived. Our order consisted of the Cowboy Burger and Spaghetti Bolognese. Just know someone I’m always eating with likes Spaghetti Bolognese, so it will be ordered a lot. Lol.

The Cowboy Burger was juicy and tasty. The flavors were subtle in my opinion. With the avocado, and bacon being the main reasons I selected it I was happy with my selection to say the least. However, the star of the show was the fries/chips. I’ve never had fries this thin. If you like a crispy and flavor packed bite, these fries are just that.

The Spaghetti Bolognese was also a great selection. The minced beef was plenty and seasoned just right. I generally don’t like an overly seasoned bolognese. Portion wise, the dish was perfect. It didn’t leave room for more neither did it leave you fighting to finish. Chilies by the river is a good spot to lounge and take it the sights along the river, with a courteous staff that really attended to our every need.

Le Pain de Palmier

After dinner we took a walk around the Bund area. It was packed! Holidays in China equal tourists galore and extremely packed tourist areas. We stumbled upon a bakery (Le Pain de Palmier) and bought a few croissants and some chocolate. The night was topped off with room service from the hotel. Which was a simple fettuccine carbonara.

Cheesecake Factory

Our second and third day saw us eating at the same restaurant. This was purely by chance though. Cheesecake Factory was on our list of places to visit before we arrived in Shanghai. Our first day there we had the Crispy Pineapple Chicken and the Chicken Bellagio.

The first thing I will say is the flavor is very American and the portions are even more American. They were large but so delicious. The pineapple chicken was both sweet and tangy. It gave real sweet and sour chicken vibes with less red coloring. I loved the chicken Bellagio. It was a crispy coated chicken breast over basil pasta with Parmesan cream sauce, topped with prosciutto and arugula. If you’re a lover of different flavor profiles in one dish, this would be it. It was creamy, salty, tangy and a little sweet. I’d rate both meals an 8/10.

Drinks that rounded out the meal were the Coconut Mojito and a Pineapple Cherry Lemonade (non-alcoholic). Both were a 10/10 recommendation. But if coconut isn’t your favorite flavor or you don’t like your drink separating, the Coconut Mojito wouldn’t be something you would enjoy. However, if you like a light, refreshing flavor the Pineapple Cherry Lemonade will deliver just that.

For dessert we had cheesecakes to go because we were too full to have them at the restaurants. We tried the Dulche de leche caramel cheesecake and the White Chocolate Raspberry Truffle. If you like sweet and I mean really sweet, try the Dulche de Leche Caramel. On the other hand the White Chocolate Raspberry Truffle is more of a balanced flavor pairing and I enjoyed it a lot.

On the third day we had plans to go to the Museum of Ice Cream and it’s located at the same mall as the Cheesecake Factory, so we went back for more. This time around we were with friends so the experience felt different. With a lesson in hand from the previous day, we decided the portions at Cheesecake Factory were just too large for us and decided to share an entree. For the starter I ordered the Crab cake bites and the Bang-Bang Chicken and shrimp.

I was in love with those crab bites and I was so upset they were so small. They literally melt in your mouth like butter. The flavor was not overpowering and each bite left you wanting more. The Bang-Bang Chicken and shrimp was described as a spicy Thai dish, but it was no where near spicy. It was more sweet from the coconut than spicy. I really think more spicy would have paired well with the dish and kicked the taste up a notch. The crab cake bites were a 9/10 and the Bang-Bang Chicken and Shrimp was a 7.5/10.

We complimented our meal with two non-alcoholic drinks that were divine. A definite 10/10 for both the Passion Mint Fizz and the Tropical Ginger Cooler.

Five Guys

Next up for the final meal in Shanghai we had Five Guys. My friends know how much I really love burgers so they recommended that we try it before we left. Being able to build your own burger was a big plus for me. I had a little bacon cheeseburger and added everything to my heart’s desire. I can’t wait to go back and have another.

Barbarossa Restaurant and lounge

Honorable mention is Barbarossa Restaurant and lounge. Even though we only went for drinks the Moroccan restaurant seems like a great date night spot. I had the chicken quesadillas at the lounge and they were beyond tasty.

Join me for part two of this Shanghai blog to see what I got up to while visiting this vast city that is Shanghai.