‘Where to brunch?’, is a question that gets asked so often in Shanghai life it should have its own acronym — WTB? — the other popular question kinda already has one, WTF. Woof. And by that we mean ‘where to free-flow’, naturally!
Brunch is life. Brunch is good.
So, to save yourself some time and useless, end-of-week group chat banter, here’s a collection of places to get your eggs, bacon, posh-sounding toast dishes, and almighty, booze bargains.
* For the full list of places that do free-flow and brunch, visit our deals page.
VUE (Restaurant)
Five-star hotel brunch with fancy brunch stations and fancier brunch food, hence the price. And you can book that right here via SmartTicket.
When: Sundays, 11.30am-3pm.
What it costs: 658-758rmb
Drinks included: Wine, beer, and soft drinks at the lower price, or Perrier Jouet Champagne for 100rmb extra.
How many hours can I drink for: 3.5
SENSO
A la carte Italian brunch with things like Salmon Benedict (88rmb) and Mimosa Salad (65rmb). This place even has an outdoor terrace!
When: Saturdays and Sundays, 11.30am-3.30pm.
What it costs: 95rmb an hour for the booze
Drinks included: Beer, prosecco, spritz, gin and tonics
How many hours can I drink for: 4
Cantina Agave (Fumin Lu)
Margarita messiness and tacos and tequila. Pad your stomach with Mexi-brunch dishes: breakfast tacos, chorizo scrambled eggs and Mexican-style eggs Benedict.
When: Saturdays and Sundays, 11am-3pm.
What it costs: 68-108rmb for the dishes, BUT 150rmb for the free-flow
Drinks included: Margaritas, sangria, margaritas, prosecco, margaritas and Corona beer
How many hours can I drink for: 4
Zeitgeist
The German option, with Bavarian stomach padding like Crispy Pork Knuckle (258rmb) and Jagerschnitzel (128rmb). Food is a la carte, booze is a fixed price.
When: Saturdays and Sundays, 11am-3pm.
What it costs: 188rmb for the booze
Drinks included: Prosecco, spritzes, Bloody Mary, Bellini, certain gin and tonics, and house wines
How many hours can I drink for: 4
Co. Cheese Melt Bar (Nanchang Lu)
For 200rmb, sandwich specialist Co. Cheese gives you a sandwich to make sure you eat something, and as much booze as you can handle in three hours.
When: Saturdays and Sunday, noon to 3pm.
What it costs: 200rmb including a grilled cheese and the grilled booze.
Drinks included: Draft Asahi, mixed drinks, Bloody Mary, house wines, aperol spritz, mimosas and soft drinks.
How many hours can I drink for: 3
THE CUT Rooftop
A versatile mix of dishes, from light healthy stuff to the charcoal grill, but you're here for the lounge vibes, the nice view over the park (outdoors, if you can stand the cold) and the crowd of young professional types.
When: Saturdays and Sundays, 11am-5pm.
What it costs: 158rmb for the alcohol for two hours, then 40rmb an hour after that
Drinks included: Gin and tonics, mimosa, craft beers, house wines
How many hours can I drink for: It really depends on you, doesn’t it? Up to six hours.
Mr & Mrs Bund
Wasted on the Bund, nothing quite like it. Food is a la carte and you’re likely to spend, oh, maybe 400rmb on some nice French dishes? Maybe a little more. On top of that, they’ve got a whole menu of different flavors of inebriation.
When: Friday, Saturday and Sunday, 11.30am-2.30pm.
What it costs: 200rmb for soft drinks, house wines and beers; 380rmb for house wine, beer, cocktails, spirits and Laurent Perrier Champagne; 580rmb for premium drinks and Laurent Perrier rose.
Drinks included: Bubbbbbbbbles.
How many hours can I drink for: 3
Italo Trattoria
Italo has improved. And now they do brunch. For under 200rmb, you can get two courses of things like a salmon carpaccio or a Roman-style “carbonara pizza”.
When: Sundays, 11.30am-3.30pm.
What it costs: 188rmb for wines and beer, 248rmb for that plus cocktails
Drinks included: Alcohol.
How many hours can I drink for: 2
Tacolicious (Tonglefang)
Two tacos for 40rmb at the rule-breaking taco shop. Smoked salmon with chipotle cream cheese?
When: Sundays, noon-3pm.
What it costs: 150rmb
Drinks included: Mexican mules, frozen margaritas, and beeeer
How many hours can I drink for: 3
Heritage By Madison
Caloric comfort food to honor the legacy of Austin Hu — RIP! A few dishes: Chicken ‘HK’ Waffles (98rmb) and a truffled mushroom over eggs on toast, the ‘Faux Chawanmushi’ (88rmb). It’s a la carte on the food and then a fixed price on endless booze.
When: Saturdays and Sundays, 11.30am-3pm.
What it costs: 188rmb regular or 468rmb premium. 88rmb per extra hour.
Drinks included: House wines, sparkling wines, cocktails, and beer, if it’s a regular day for you. All that plus Derutz Champagne if it’s a premium day.
How many hours can I drink for: 3.5
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