When you look at the Shanghai skyline towards the Pudong District, along the Huangpu River, you will notice a tower dotted with spheres. That spherical tower is the Oriental Pearl TV Tower. This tower was the tallest building in China from 1994 until 2007, when the Shanghai World Financial Center was built.
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Scarpetta: A taste of Italy in Shanghai
If you’re looking for a fine dining experience in Shanghai, I highly recommend Scarpetta. In the most unexpected city, you can experience Shanghai’s greatest Italian restaurant.
The polenta in a jar is filled with wild mushroom and eaten with a cheese crisp.
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Lost Heaven: An Unknown World
The first time I heard of Yunnan was at Lost Heaven. Here I was transported to a whole new culture by the food. The food reminded me of a Cantonese base with hints of Burmese; a delicious combination I never would have imagined.
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The Bund
Shanghai has one of the best skylines, and the best place to see it is along The Bund. This waterfront view runs along the western bank of the Huangpu River. 
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Yang’s Fry Dumplings
Shanghai is infamous for its soup dumplings, xiao long bao. Here in Shanghai, I was introduced to its cousin, the sheng jian bao, at Yang’s Fry Dumplings. It’s a total game changer!
Sheng jian baos are made with a thicker skin, filled with soupy meat and then FRIED. The crispy and crunchiness of the sheng jian bao brings this soup dumpling to a whole other level. Eat like you would with xiao long bao. Take a bite of the skin and let the soup cool. Once it’s cool, drink the soup and then consume the rest of the heavenly fried bao. 
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House of Prime Rib
My dad loves prime rib, so on his birthday, my siblings and I decided to treat him to none other than House of Prime Rib. Generally, reservations are hard to come by (reservations should be made two months in advance) but we called a week before and were able to get a table for seven. Note: They will not seat you until the whole party is present, even if guests are in the restroom. We had a bit of difficulty from the hostess for this.
Now don’t get HOPR confused with other steakhouses, as they serve nothing but PRIME RIB! The pre-fixe meal includes salad, mashed potatoes or baked potato, yorkshire pudding, creamed spinach or creamed corn, and your choice of cut of prime rib. They offer four different cuts of prime rib: City, House of Prime Rib, English, and King Henry VIII. The City cut is a smaller portion of the HOPR cut. The House of Prime Rib cut is their standard cut. The English cut is multiple thin cuts of meat. The King Henry VIII is a generous extra thick cut. If you have kids, they also offer a children size cut. Or if you don’t want meat, they also offer fresh fish.
The salad is prepared at your table like a show. It consists of romaine lettuce with beets, goat cheese and their unique dressing, which tastes like thousand island.
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Turtle Tower
Those who know me know I love a good bowl of noodle soup. No one makes a better pho ga (chicken noodle soup) than Turtle Tower. It always hits the spot on a cold day.
Their pho ga comes with flat rice noodle, shredded chicken, and broth filled to the brim topped with green onions and cilantro. Hours of cooking creates a clear flavorful broth that I can’t wait to dive into once the bowl hits the table. I always end up burning my tongue from being impatient. It’s so good that every drop of this broth gets slurped. The best part? Each bowl is under $10 after tax.
Locations:
Molinari Delicatessen
On my recent lunch time walk, my coworker introduced me to Molinari Delicatessen. If you’re looking for an authentic Italian deli, this is the place to go. It is the oldest Italian deli west of the Rockies. When I walked through the door, I was amazed by all the homemade Italian specialties ranging from olive oil to cured salami to focaccia. Just like any deli, grab a number and wait for your number be called out to be serviced.
At lunch time, they are known for their deli meat sandwiches. They offer a large variety from mortadella to coppa to proscuitto. Be careful. The picture below may cause drooling.
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Porfirio’s
When people suggest going to nice, fancy Mexican restaurants, I always balk because, to me, Mexican food should always be cheap, greasy, and come from a hole in the wall type of establishment. Of all the fancy Mexican places I’ve been to, I find they are too commercialized and don’t hold that authentic flavor you find from the cheaper places. Porfirio’s, a gourmet Mexican restaurant in Cancun, was recommended to me by the hotel concierge at the Westin Lagunamar. Since this recommendation was coming from a local, I went against my judgment and decided to give it a try. Boy, did it not disappoint!
The decor of this establishment was perfect for a romantic date. The indoor seating is lighted with candles and dim lighting to set the mood. Outdoors, they have seating on the patio next to the water fountains and dock.
To start the night, I tried the Josefina de guayaba (guava) and mango. These drinks were made with mezcal, which is distilled from an agave plant. The liquor definitely showed through the mango but not the guava one.
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Dash Japanese Tapas and Sushi
While Old Town Sushi is all the rage in San Mateo, I discovered Dash Japanese Tapas and Sushi last year. It surely didn’t disappoint. I recently went again and fell in love all over again. The shop is inconspicuously located in the alley of downtown San Mateo next to the movie theater. There’s not much of a wait but reservations are recommended for dinner.
We started with the baked baby scallop with uni. This dish was amazing! The creaminess from the uni was well balance with the scallop and roe.
YUMTRAVELS 