Lubolang Restaurant (綠波廊) -- Shanghai-style Dim sum

In America, dim sum means a certain type of breakfast, brunch, or lunch, served in Cantonese restaurants, featuring little steamer baskets of dumplings, rice cakes, and chicken feet dished out by women pushing carts around the dining room. In China, dim sum (點心; dian▪xin) has a much broader meaning: snacks, period.

In Shanghai, snacks take on the form of flaky pastries, mostly sweet (there are a few savory ones as well), stuffed with ingredients such as red beans, lotus seeds, and candied fruits. Shanghai-style dim sum are generally sold in bakeries and confectioneries, but can also be found in some high-end restaurants. One such restaurant is Lu▪bo▪lang (綠波廊), at the Cheng▪huang Temple (城隍廟).

Located on an artificial lake in one of Shanghai’s most touristy districts, Luubolang looks like a dead-ringer for a tourist trap. But don’t let the crowds fool you. This place has been around since the Pearl of the Orient days, and the traditional dim sum it serves are true and authentic. Also, from the menu, there is a good sampling of Lower Yangtze cuisine.

Having come here after eating around numerous food stalls within the temple complex, I didn’t order much here. The stir-fried noodles with river shrimp and gingko nuts was a bit oily—true to the Shanghai way of cooking up things. The noodles were well made, with a nice firm texture. The gingko nuts had a nice medicinal flavor to it, slightly bitter, and the shrimp was sweet with a delectable crunchiness that can only come from freshness.

I also ordered braised shanghai cabbage with crab meat—a classic Shanghai dish. In a Chinese banquet, this dish would have been presented much more elaborately, but here at lunch, I was perfectly happy with it. Fresh shanghai cabbage are first blanched and then quickly braised in broth and crabmeat. The crab roe, which appear as red-orange clumps among the crabmeat, adds an extra touch of sweetness to the already sweet flavor of the river crab.

Lubolang is located inside the Chenghuang Temple complex, at the base of the “Crooked Nine Bridge” (九曲橋; jiu▪qu▪qiao), or by address at: 131 Yu▪yuan Road
綠波廊酒樓 -- 上海市豫園路 131 號