5 brilliant summertime brunches
Depending where you're from, people probably ask where you summer, where you study, where you go to church or where you work out... but in Shanghai, we ask a more important question – where do you brunch?
The Cannery
Every dish is a winner at The Cannery’s superlative rustic brunch, making it one of our favourites in Shanghai. Individual cast iron pans come bubbling over with a gratin of smoked haddock, fluffy egg and mature cheddar; or hot and ready for you to cook your own campfire eggs and bacon with herb oil. Words can’t do justice to the charred cheesy reuben: pan-fried in butter, plump with sauerkraut and fall-apart perfect corned beef dripping with dressing. It’s an OMG sammie. For more char, try the broccolini with cucumber-caper-lentil relish, toasted hazelnuts and salty yogurt drizzle.
Campground plush continues with dessert: go for the toasty S’mores with homemade marshmallows and graham crackers plus the requisite oozy milk chocolate; the coffee-soaked and salty-caramel drizzled banana bread or the adult-style cookies and milk plate.
Standard brunch is 188RMB for three plates and a welcome drink, but be sure sip another of The Cannery’s stellar signature cocktails – the mason jar EBT Collins with gin, orange marmalade, tea and peach bitters; fresh green Marie Celery with gin, elderflower, celery juice/bitters and olive brine; or the shucked oyster-topped Pete’s Caesar with smoked salmon fat wash will all do you real good.
The Cannery 1107 Yuyuan Lu, near Jiangsu Lu. Brunch for two with drinks: around 500RMB.
The Commune Social
Having brunch in The Commune Social’s sunny courtyard is like being transported to a creekside bed and breakfast where fairies tend gardens of beetroots and flutter along to top your food with purple leaves. Each dish has that bright, just-harvested feel – delicate and gorgeous to boot. The menu rotates according to season, so there are fresh surprises to be had with each visit.
For 188RMB, choose three plates from the menu and add on additional dishes for 62RMB each, which you’re likely to take advantage of with so many alluring options. Find offerings like hot smoked salmon with tender beetroot and tufts of goat’s curd; slightly sweet and very savoury creamed corn with 65 degree egg, parmesan and seaweed flakes; thinly-sliced confit and grilled beef tongue with pickled shallots; or soft chunks of toasted lemon cake with marmalade and cream cheese.
Sip on a pale pink Mulberry’s Thyme cocktail with plump blueberries and you’ll go home in a dream-like state… though best to treat yourself to one of pastry chef Kim Melvin’s phenomenal desserts, too.
The Commune Social 511 Jiangning Lu, near Kangding Lu. Brunch for two with drinks: around 500RMB.
Mr & Mrs Bund
While brunches may be a dime a dozen in Shanghai, there’s nothing quite as charmingly refined as a weekend afternoon spent with Mr & Mrs Brunch. It’s a luscious affair of sophisticated indulgence, one that boasts all the richest delights of a quintessentially French meal – butter, foie gras, butter, truffles, butter, cream, and butter.
A basket of flaky pastries is gone in a flash: dainty pain au chocolate and sweet brioche dotted with bits of lemony sugar crisp melt away on your tongue after a dip into Mr & Mrs B’s exclusive blend of Illy coffee. Poached eggs find themselves at their absolute best; creamy and perfect whether with dill, crème fraîche and black caviar; broken and mixed with Iberico ham, garlic rosemary fries and aioli; or even grilled (yes, a grilled poached egg, yolk intact).
Use crusty bread to wipe your plate clean of velvety tufts of béarnaise sauce spooned over salmon fillet with a rarely seen, picture-perfect lattice of grill marks across both the flesh and the skin. The chicken vol-au-vent, a crunchy puff pastry crust filled with rich foie gras and mushroom fricassee, showcases the best of both form and flavour.
For dessert, pair bites of Mr & Mrs Bund’s sugar-crusted French toast with spoonfuls of Orange & Orange tart, which, like the signature Lemon & Lemon, undergoes a three day process to reach it’s fabulous chilled state. One more hot tip – don't miss the Thai jasmine iced tea with lemongrass and chilli syrup.
Mr & Mrs Bund Sixth Floor, Bund 18, 18 Zhongshan Dong Yi Lu, near Nanjing Dong Lu Brunch for two with drinks: around 800-1000RMB.
Cobra Lily
Cobra Lily’s brunch is of the ultimate Southeast Asian persuasion – chef Simon Sunwoo’s playful dishes will soon have you forgetting that you’re enjoying your eggs in Xintiandi rather than the beaches of Koh Samui. Think glorious sprinkles of lemongrass, Thai basil and crushed chillies, which adorn dishes like the Siamese Sunrise, a blazing plate of Chiangmai sausage hash with poached egg and kaffir nam prik (Thai-style chilli paste).
Tropical flavours continue to shine in La Vie en Vietnam, a luscious take on French crepes that includes light whips of cream cheese, fresh mango and super-tart passion fruit pulp. For some hangover-busting mala spice, try the Sichuan Brunch Pizza, which swaps out dough and sauce for scallion pancake; and wash it down with an awesome Bloody Ma’ry with three types of infused vodka (Sichuan peppercorn, lemongrass and chilli pepper) served in a rusty can with a bite of spicy beef jerky.
Cobra Lily Xintiandi North Block, No 19, Lane 181 Taicang Lu, near Madang Lu. Brunch for two with drinks: around 400RMB.
Highline
If you want to feel like a Miami Beach VIP while enjoying brunch, Highline is the place to be. Lounge on the slick and posh terrace, soaking in the rad city view while you sip on fresh-squeezed juice blends, pitchers of Pimms and sparkling mimosas.
The sweet, savoury and spicy chicken and waffle is a must; a champion pick no matter what time of day: you’ll wipe your plate clean of its juicy, crunchy, wonderfully seasoned hunks of chicken and Cajun-spiced waffles spread with maple bacon butter and drenched in maple syrup. For a lighter kind of waffle, try the crispy potato hash version topped with smoked salmon and roe, dilly sour cream and greens.
Sweets shine at Highline: orange cream cheese-glazed toffee sticky buns dotted with dates and pecans, Girl Scout-inspired fudgy mint cookie ice cream bars and cloud-like slices of Grandma’s chiffon cake layered with lemon curd and coconut frosting. Oh-so-fresh Yuzu-pineapple sorbet with melon balls and tufts of dried pineapple make for a revitalising ending to a gut-busting meal. But if you’re not willing to pack on a few pounds come brunch time, the edible flower-adorned magenta acai bowl is a brilliant choice that doesn’t feel like a sacrifice.
Highline Sixth Floor, The Ascott, 282 Huaihai Zhong Lu, near Songshan Lu.
Brunch for two with drinks: around 500RMB.