The Place
Xiao Long Feng is a Cantonese diner chain with at least three locations in the Shanghai metro area. It’s fast, comfort food served up to swarms of people at all hours of the day. The place is rammed over lunch and dinner hours, but swing by during an off-time to avoid a long wait.
Image by Sophie Steiner/That's
Image by Sophie Steiner/That's
Many of this city’s best Cantonese diners sit on the east side of People’s Square Park, but Xiao Long Feng’s advantage is that it has more accessible locations in expat hubs in both Jing’an and Xuhui.
The Food
The menu spans dim sum, toasts, eggs, roasted meats, rice, noodles and stir-fried mains. Like a true Hong Kong diner, the drink list is about as long as the food menu, with every kind of Hong Kong Milk Tea (RMB16-20) iteration, fruit beverage, smoothie and soda combination you can permutate.
Image by Sophie Steiner/That's
The Condensed Milk Toast is to Hong Kongers as PB&J is to Americans. However, in recent years, this nostalgia-inducing sandwich of saccharine condensed milk pooled between two cheap pieces of white bread has become a wanghong dessert sensation – with the addition of evaporated milk, Ovaltine, chocolate or Milo powder and sometimes ice cream on top.
When sliced open, the milk seeps out, creating a chocolaty sweet goo for this egg-fried ‘lowbrow’ dessert that we just can’t seem to get enough of.
Image by Sophie Steiner/That's
The most famous dish at Xiao Long Feng, Ovaltine Toast with Condensed Milk (RMB28), truly does contain multitudes – it’s a metaphor for how British colonialism shaped the Hong Kong palate and national identity.
The ball has now been picked up by mainland Chinese and run with – the dessert expanded upon into a monstrosity of a sweet treat that spurts a sugary dairy liquid out of fried over-processed bread in a way that just must be livestreamed on Dianping.
Other Hong Kong-style French toasts are also on offer, like one stuffed with peanut butter, one sliced into cubes and topped with pads of butter, Ice cream toast and kaya toast.
Image by Sophie Steiner/That's
If an entire plate of sugar-rush inducing French toast, bursting with your choice of extra-sweet topping is not going to fly for a mid-week lunch, go for a smaller pastry item instead.
It’s hard to find a good Pineapple Bun in Shanghai, one that is of Hong Kong bakery quality – with its crumbly, cracked hat of baked sugar and plush pillow center.
We didn’t quite find it at Xiao Long Feng either in the Pineapple Bun with Butter (RMB12), but what we did find didn’t necessarily disappoint. It scratches the itch, but barely.
Image by Sophie Steiner/That's
Now that you’ve successfully finished dessert first, jump back to savory with the Fried Shrimp with Scrambled Eggs on Rice (RMB53). Ultra-fluffy, the thick layer of creamy eggs goes perfectly with a drizzle of sweet soy sauce.
Beef and pork are other egg-topper options, and if you’re a ride or die fried eggs fan, they’ve got those too – with your choice of Black Pepper Pork, Chicken Chop or Curry Pork (RMB43-49).
Image by Sophie Steiner/That's
A heaping portion of chewy rope-like noodles are intertwined with shrimp, squid, onions, bean sprouts and scallions as the Fried Instant Noodles with Seafood (RMB48). A mouthful will leave your lips shimmering with salt-laden sesame oil, but we were found wanting for more of that umaami-rich seafood flavor promised by the XO sauce. When we want MSG, we really want MSG.
The HK Style Stir Fried Rice Noodles with Beef (RMB39) are another great shout – nearly half the tables had a plate of these glistening noods when we visited.
Image by Sophie Steiner/That's
A trip to a Hong Kong diner is never complete without some roasted meats, so we jumped on the largest portion, the Two BBQ Meats Combo (RMB72). Choosing from BBQ Pork, Steamed Chicken, Macau Roasted Pork Belly and Roasted Duck just may be the hardest decision of your day.
The BBQ Pork is unfortunately not up to Hong Kong standards, as expected for Shanghai. It’s tender enough, with well-rendered fat, but that sought after roasted crust is MIA, resulting in a less-flavorful and less-textured piece of meat.
Image by Sophie Steiner/That's
The Roasted Duck is inching its way closer to what we would find in Hong Kong, served with a tangy plum sauce just asking for an extra portion of rice. The crispy skin clings to a juicy layer of flavorful fat that drips its way down to the tender meat below it.
After a commendable showing in the meat department, Xiao Long Feng has convinced us enough to come back and see how the other meat options stack up against their Hong Kong counterparts.
The Vibe
This. Is. A. Diner. And the vibe is just that. The service is friendlier than some of the more trendy Canto diners we’ve visited behind People’s Square Park, and they are more tolerant towards foreigners – probably because the outposts we frequent are situated on the expat-heavy Jiaozhou Lu and Shanxi Nan Lu, respectively.
Image by Sophie Steiner/That's
We even spotted one English menu taped on the window near the entrance – although we have mixed feelings about that, but that’s a topic for a different day, and one that doesn’t fit in the review of a Hong Kong diner that ticks all the boxes when that Canto craving hits.
Price: RMB60-150
Who’s Going: Nostalgic Westerners, local lunch crowd, those seeking drunk eats during the day
Good For: Satisfying Canto food cravings, roasted meats consumption, dessert porn
See a listing for Xiao Long Feng. Read more Shanghai Restaurant Reviews.
[Cover Image by Sophie Steiner/That’s]
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