Shintori / Japanese

This massive, minimalist warehouse of a Japanese restaurant is easy to miss; look for an unmarked doorway in the gray wall and follow the bamboo-lined path beyond. Shintori is popular, more for its hip decor and urbane vibe -- lofty ceilings, fully-open kitchen, and polished concrete.

Lost Heaven / Yunnan

Lost Heaven's specialty is cuisine from the tribal minorities of China's Yunnan Province. As far as date restaurants go, this place ticks nearly all of the boxes: dim, flickering candle light, exotic decor, atmospheric music and, most importantly, good food.

Sushi Oyama / Japanese

Sushi Oyama is an equisite Japanese sushi restaurant that offers a multi-course "omakase," or chef's choice menu that changes nightly for reservation-only guests. All their seafood is imported directly from Tokyo and Nagasaki, and the menu changes with what's in season.

Mr & Mrs Bund / French

A "Modern French Eatery" by Shanghai-famous chef Paul Pairet, Mr & Mrs Bund serves Pairet's unique take on classic French cuisine. Expect a few molecular specialties and clever in-jokes. Service is family-style, recast for a modern table.

Jing'an / Modern European

Jing'An is a really nice fine dining restaurant. Restaurants this ambitious and well-crafted don't open in Shanghai very often. The backbone of the cooking is well-grounded -- classical Euro roots.

Table No. 1 / Modern European

Table No. 1 is a casual mod-Euro restaurant. It's the first post-Gordon-Ramsay project from Jason Atherton, a London chef who just split from nine years with Ramsay's restaurant group. Spare, plain, uncomplicated. The restaurant is a box with plate glass on two sides; one overlooks the street, one overlooks a minimalist interior courtyard.

Fu 1088 / Shanghainese

Like Shanghai itself, Fu 1088 is modern, experimental and forward thinking but hasn't lost touch with it's roots. Contemporary Chinese cuisine with Western influences is served in a stately, classic, tucked away villa on the edge of Jing'an District.

Jean Georges / French

Yes, this is the Jean Georges of NYC fame and he brings to Shanghai his internationally acclaimed French cuisine with a slight Asian twist. The restaurant is situated on the fourth floor of Three on the Bund, the interior is lavish and exotic with accents like eel-skin sofas.

Sir Elly's / Fine Dining

Sir Elly's is the Peninsula Hotel's fine dining, Euro flagship restaurant, up on the thirteenth floor with views across the river to Pudong. The dining room adheres to Shanghai's art deco aesthetic while kitchen serves forward-thinking French inspired cuisine.

el Willy / Spanish

This is the newly-relocated mid-range Spanish restaurant by "Willy" Trullas Moreno. Willy's cooking is more contemporary than traditional Spanish--but stops well short of molecular fine dining. The space occupies a floor on the recently redeveloped Bund 22 Property.

8 1/2 Otto e Mezzo Bombana / Italian

Umberto Bombana is an oft-dropped name in Hong Kong's food scene and his restaurant 8 1/2 Otto e Mezzo Bombana is one of only five restaurants with three Michelin stars in that city. This branch is their attempt to double down on those accolades when Michelin finally writes a guide on Shanghai.