It is almost perverse how much I crave a good xiaolongbao. There are few moments more highly anticipated than seeing my order slowing coming from the kitchen to my table, in a stack of steaming baskets. The dumplings are all beautifully pleated at first, enticing but prim. But when picked up by chopsticks, they become so bulging with savory broth, held back by so thin of a wrapper, that they are begging for you to unleash their juicy insides.

That said, there are few things more frustrating than xiaolongbao that don't satisfy.

If I were in Taipei there is no question that I would make a beeline to is the flagship Din Tai Fung, hailed by many afficionados as the xiaolongbao mecca. But since I'm in Shanghai, I decided to try out the Din Tai Fung at Xintiandi, expecting it to be at least as good as Beijing's Shin Kong Place branch. This is, after all, the city that claims xiaolongbao as a native dish.

I have eaten Hong Kong-style French toast many times before, but not this variation.

In Hong Kong, French toast can range in thickness from regular sliced bread to John Grisham paperback. Usually it's topped with butter, peanut butter or sweetened condensed milk, or all three. And sometimes pork floss. And every once in a while, you come across bread on steroids, like the one I ordered yesterday at Lisboa, a Macanese restaurant in Shanghai.

It was a block about half the size of your average loaf, overloaded with black sesame and with specks of bacon. The top was buttered, slit in Tic-Tac-Toe fashion, and browned to the crispness that I liked. And it came with a trio of dipping sauces: honey, sweetened condensed milk, and melty vanilla ice cream. 

Xiaolongbao, those glorious steamed dumplings with a meat and soup filling, have migrated far beyond Shanghai and gained a cult following. Meanwhile, another obsession-worthy Shanghainese specialty has remained a local secret.

Shengjian bao, they call it here. Think of it as a fried version of xiaolongbao. Well, a bun, really. A soup bun that is pan-fried until the bottoms are just crisp and the sesame seeds and chives on top meld into the crunchy casing.

When I come to Shanghai I get my shengjian bao from two places. One is in the French Concession, a 3-minute walk from where i usually stay. The baozi aren't spectacular, but they're great for a cheap lunch or hunger fix. The other is the venerable and endearingly misspelled Yang's Fry-Dumpling, just north of People's Square and right across the street from another cheap-eats institution. If you eat shengjian bao only once in Shanghai (or twice, or thrice), do so at Yang's.

Chowing down on shengjian bao is trickier than on xiaolongbao. First,the thick crunchy casing is such a good insulator that the soup is still piping hot 10 minutes after you sit down. Burnt tongues are common, but worth dealing with.

Over the weekend, Jacob and I stayed at a friend's lane house in Shanghai's French Concession. It's a live-work space that is occupied by a web company, and all the techies is get their caffeine and sugar fixes from Paul, a French bakery that opened in the city last year. (I'm sure in Paris Paul is considered average, but in Shanghai a Western bakery can't be found on every corner.) Every morning we were in Shanghai one of us would make a Paul run, and come back with croissants, rolls, etc.

On Saturday, just as I was about to step out to meet my cousin for a soup dumpling lunch, J came through the door with two enormous bags. One was from Paul and was filled with Danishes, doughnuts, olive rolls, and a ham sandwich on baguette. The other was from Mr. Donut; it had a selection of large and mini doughnuts, and a little cardboard caddy of macarons.

"I didn't know Mister Donut made macarons," I said.

J shrugged. "They were 7 kuai. It's worth a try."

I just got back from a long weekend in Shanghai, where I fit in as much good eating as I could in 4 days. One place that had been on my must-visit list for a looooong time was Jia Jia Tang Bao, reportedly one of the best places for xiaolongbao (soup dumplings) in Shanghai. And since Shanghai claims xiaolongbao as a native food (others would argue that it orginated from surrounded towns), some afficionados think Jia Jia Tang Bao has some of the best in the world.

The ideal xiaolongbao, for the uninitiated, should have very thin, almost translucent skin, and equal parts soup and filling inside. I dream about these dumplings, and have tried so many poor versions that I want to cry every time. Often the skin is too think, sometimes there's not enough soup. When you are eating a perfect xiaolongbao, you should be worried about your clothes getting soup stains from a squirty dumpling.

Goodfella in ShanghaiJohn Chen and Jian Jiang are two 20-something Scorsese fans who want to spread underground arts through their gallery and retail store Goodfella. According to Chen, the owners "saw a need to provide a positive platform that will educate like-minded audiences with our knowledge and products, to introduce established and upcoming overseas artists, and to push local artists.”

The artwork, apparel, and home furnishings come from both international designers and Chinese artists such as fashion designer Zhang Da and iconoclast Ai Weiwei. Chen and Jiang also organize shows to promote up-and-coming artists and designers.

Goodfella Running Gallery
1618 Nanjing Road (West)
4th floor Jiuguang, Jing An District
Shanghai
+(86) 21-62887189

地址: 上海市 南京西路 Y436-437, 久光YES!馆, 4F, Y436-437

"Cosmos Gaudí, Architecture, Geometry and Design" is at Shanghai's Museum of Contemporary Art until October 15th. According to MOCA's website, this "is the largest and most comprehensive exhibition of Gaudi's work to come to China and the first to fully capture the artistic vitality of both his architecture and interior design."

Features include archititectural studies of Gaudí's sinuous Modernist designs, building models, and a Spanish-language documentary of his work.

China's fascination with contemporary art, design, and architecture is just beginning, and will only grow in the coming years. (Hint to universities: now's the time to step up your design programs!)

MOCA Shanghai
People's Park, 231 Nanjing West Road, Shanghai
Tel: +86 21 63279900
mocashanghai.org

Dance music pioneer Paul Oakenfold has been doing shows in China for over 10 years. In a recent Guardian article, he discusses the club scenes in not only Shanghai and Beijing, but also Guangzhou, Shenzhen, Hangzhou, and Jinan. Tom Pattinson, an editor at TimeOut Beijing, includes a list of club picks in China.

The Sunday Times this week turned its attention to photography. If you missed it in print, the online archives will be around for at least a week sans registration. Two stories focus on photographing Asia, with a huge dose of nostalgia. Matt Gross's story on photographer John McDermott includes some beautiful images of Angkor Watt, before the expected tourist deluge. And photographer and writer Howard French focuses his attention on the lesser known Shanghai:

"Shanghai’s fast-disappearing old quarters drip with charm, but they are also full of problems, from cramped living spaces that have been subdivided over the years to inadequate heating and plumbing. Many who can afford to move into the high-rises sprouting up everywhere are happy to do so. Others wear looks of mourning."

Long live the black & white format.