First time trying out Shanghai River, a Shanghainese spot that also offers dim sum.
Hours.
We dropped in on a Thursday evening (with 7:00pm reservations). The inside is huge with several large, family style round tables. Service was fairly attentive.
The menu is like a children’s book with over 25 pages of dishes. Prices aren’t cheap; be aware if you order any seafood market price.
Steamed pork dumplings ($12.95 for 8)
They’re well known for their XLB’s. These were very good; good filling, tasty broth and skin had a great bite.
Szechuan style smoked duck half ($27.80)
This was a winner. There’s a couple small buns but the star is, of course, the smoked duck. The smoky flavour is enthralling and there’s a good ratio of meat to fat/skin. A must try for any duck lovers.
Yan chow deluxe fried rice ($19.80)
Not sure what makes this “deluxe”. We requested this without egg. It came with bok choy. Decent but not worth the price point.
Pan fried live crab with rice cake ($88.00)
Not sure what happened with the rice cakes but we never received any. That being said, the crab was fantastic. The garlic butter sauce was delightfully delicate. If you’re going to splurge, get a crab.
Bamboo fish ($123.75)
We wanted to order the braised ling cod tail ($54.80) but they’d sold out. The waitress recommended this fish instead. It looked small but was 2.25 pounds (which works out to $55.00/lb). Insane. The texture was mushy; no firmness or spring back in the fish. Nothing unique about the sauce either.
Would come back to SR but only for a special occasion or with a much larger group.
Shanghai River
https://www.shanghairivervancouver.com/
7831 Westminster Highway
Richmond, BC
(604) 233-8885
CHERRY BOB-OMBS 