4 Things To Eat at Bund Food Terminal on East Nanjing

When you’re not sure what to eat on East Nanjing Road and you want a taste of everything, head to Bund Food Terminal for a taste of every single food imaginable.

Just a few meters past the entrance to East Nanjing Road next to the Bund, you’ll see a line of people attracted to a narrow hall with neon signs, lights, flashing bulbs, and enticing smells. Step into a tight hall and “follow the yellow brick road” to a sensory-space or food haven, Bund Food Terminal. The smell of Chinese food and chatter hit me as I walked in. I found myself in a hall lined with Chinese food shops and restaurants with formal and informal Chinese script. I smelled Chinese fruit, vegetables, and cooked food. The smells and sights brought me visceral effects of nostalgia, from living in Asian and my upbringing.

Bund Food Terminal has been open for about a year now and is divided into two floors, an upper and a lower level. On the upper level you will find desserts and traditional Chinese snack to-go foods. On the lower level you will find more sit down, lunch and dinner food options. We decided to make the most of this space and hop from stall to stall, mixing and matching foods making up a quick dinner.

1. Cong You Bing or Baked Scallion Pancake

My mom chose the traditional Chinese baked scallion pancake, or Cong You Bing. You’ll see these sold everywhere from street stalls to upscale restaurants. It is usually pan-fried, but Bund Food Terminal offers a baked option as well. The substance is different than our American pancakes. It is made from dough not batter, like American pancakes, and stuffed with minced scallions, also known as green onions, and typically pork. The food brought back childhood memories for me. It reminded me of when my mom and babysitter would make my brother and I Chinese pancakes for lunch. We used different meat and would dip them in ketchup (so American!), but they tasted pretty similar.

2. Dragon’s Breath

Now NEITHER of us ate this, but I found it to be super interesting so thought I would write about it. At first I thought Bund Food Terminal was just selling rainbow-like cereal treats. But after closer inspection, I realized they were liquid nitrogen balls called Dragon’s Breath. The balls would be frozen for 90 seconds and handed to you in a cup. The balls would change color, signifying they were ready to eat. People would place one of the smoking puff balls into their mouths and breathe smoke out of their mouth or out of their nose like a dragon would. Hence the name of the product, Dragon’s Breath. It was scary to watch, but very Instagrammable and an interesting concept.

3. Juice Shops

Unlike Seoul where fruit was extremely expensive, fruit in Shanghai is cheap and DELICIOUS. My mom and I hadn’t had fruit in a couple of days and were craving a juice so stopped by one of the many juice shops that offered everything from coconut beverages to apple, grapefruit, dragonfruit, watermelon, mango juices and smoothies. The juice was cheap and just what we needed to keep up our energy, a healthy dose and infusion of fruit into our bodies.

4. Taiyaki or Fish-Shaped Waffle

Ok so this isn’t Chinese per se…but they are sold everywhere in Shanghai. You might remember me eating a similar version of this dessert in Korea called Bungeoppang. But in China, what is consumed is not the Korean version, but the Japanese version Taiyaki. There are some slight difference between the two discussed in my Bungeoppang article. It’s a waffle with a hot sweet red bean or custard filling. For dessert continuing along my fruit kick, I ordered a roasted banana custard Taiyaki. Super warm, not too sweet, and just what I needed to get me through the night!

A stop by Bund Food Terminal is not only fun, but an exploration of the senses. The fun atmosphere and myriad food brings an excitement to tasting and exploring local Chinese food culture.

Address: Bund Food Terminal, No. 61 Nanjing E Rd, WaiTan, Huangpu Qu, Shanghai Shi, China, 200002

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