Crossing a few things off my Shanghai tourism to-do list, Long Bar was priority number one. The Long Bar at the Waldorf Astoria is beautifully restored, and I could imagine right away what it was like 100+ years ago. The Jazz was on point, and the musician came over to chat about how he’s been performing for almost two decades. He’s seen some big changes! If you view the Long Bar for what it is—a hotel bar—and don’t expect too much, I think it’s worth grabbing a cocktail and listening to some jazz.

The cocktails are smooth and worth the bund prices. The clientele is mostly people who are staying at the hotel and the occasional group celebrating a special event. We loved that we could all hear each other for the entire evening.

Bar snacks included caviar aged for 10+ years and oysters from Ireland and France. Oysters will forever be the dumbest food known to rich people in my opinion. For RMB 78, you can enjoy one sea gulp of salt and flavor. Call me uncultured; it’s fine. I did enjoy the caviar, however. It arguably has flavor that isn’t just… arbitrary ocean? (Don’t take my word on this paragraph.)

The average price for cocktails ranged from RMB 100-200. It was a fun evening, and I’d recommend it to anyone looking for a drink in a bar that successfully re-creates the era with excellent music.

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