As part of the Shanghai Michelin Guide Scramble, I headed off-the-beaten path to try Canton 8 in Runan street. The restaurant is located in an interesting part of town full of creative industry companies. Modern cafes share the space with traditional Chinese restaurants.
The visit
I went on a weekday without a reservation. I was a bit worried by a review posted by The Shanghai Kid that claimed to have waiting for one hour and half (but it was a weekend). No problem, I arrived at around 11.30 and I was offered a table on the spot. But the restaurant got busy quickly.
The dining room is not enormous (not a Chinese banquet room) and decorated with modern taste.
They had an interesting tasting menu for 500 RMB, but I preferred hand picking my dishes. At lunch, dim sum items are available.
I had the chef’s soup of the day: it was a relatively thick stock with pieces of winter melon, duck meat, and pearl barley.
In a Cantonese restaurant I usually order crispy roast pork. This was good, with the skin not too crispy making it a very tender bite.
The two classics, har gar (shrimp dumpling) and siu mai (marinated minced pork meat dumpling with crab roe) were ok, as many other I ate.
I also tried one of their “delicacies”: a Boston lobster claw in shrimp paste. It was a nicely presented dish, illustrative of their extended menu that is not just dim sum.
Finally I had the Hong Kong style pork “pineapple” buns (no pineapple used of course). The baking was perfect.
Finally I had a almond creamy soup as a dessert.
In the Shanghai Kid’s review that I mentioned service was bashed harshly. Service during my visit was impeccable. One member of staff did speak English and was particularly nice, to the point to ask if I needed fork and knife (me, the poor Westerner!) or a taxi at the end. That’s above and beyond most restaurants in Shanghai.
The check
This substantial lunch cost me 280 RMB (41 USD). Someone says that Canton 8 hold the controversial record of cheapest two star Michelin restaurant. Maybe. But it is not very important.
The dim sum was good (but not extraordinary) and the menu also sports many delicacies that could make an interesting dinner. The rating of the Michelin Guide defies logic, but I would have no problem recommending the restaurant for Cantonese food in Shanghai.
Where in Shanghai:
63 Runan Street
In Chinese: 汝南街63号
Tip: there is a branch of Canton 8 in a more central location on the Bund.