Feral Xiaoye: Banh Mi Shop Returns as a Full Restaurant

Feral, the Vietnamese banh mi shop I fell in love with late last year, had to close. But it's back — relocated to Yuyuan Road as Feral Xiaoye (Feral小野), bigger, better, and now serving excellent pho alongside those excellent sandwiches.

Table of Contents

The New Feral

feral xiaoye vietnamese restaurant shanghai 38

It's located within a complex tucked away from the street front, the same one that used to house Specters. Instead of just a sandwich shop, Feral is an actual restaurant now, sharing its dining room with a bar, Twelve Nautical Miles Cafe and Tap Room (十二海里编辑部).

feral xiaoye vietnamese restaurant shanghai 41

I mean, it's huge! Out front, there's a spacious shared deck, kitted out with proper table seating and even camping chairs set up for lounging. It's dog friendly outdoors, too.

feral xiaoye vietnamese restaurant shanghai 40

feral xiaoye vietnamese restaurant shanghai 43

Inside, it's a rustic-retro vibe with polished concrete floors, warm wood tones, and high ceilings. Think of a Hanoi street-side eatery meets an indie coffee-beer shop.

The Food

Banh Mi

banh mi fully loaded with sliced meat, pate, and pickles at feral xiaoye vietnamese restaurant shanghai 61

The banh mi remains unchanged: airy bread, a pate spread, lettuce, tomato, and house-pickled shredded vegetables with your filling of choice.

banh mi at feral xiaoye vietnamese restaurant shanghai 72

These hefty sandwiches run from ¥28 (egg and bacon) to ¥58 (black prawns), featuring also pastrami-style beef and lemongrass chicken.

But for non-banh mi items, I have to say, the pho really impressed.

Pho (Excellent Beef Broth)

beef pho noodles with herbs at feral xiaoye vietnamese restaurant shanghai 53

There are three kinds on the menu, all with the same deeply flavored beef broth. The Hanoi-Style Pho with Beef Slices (¥58, 河内经典生烫牛吊龙Pho) is the one to get. It comes with thin slices of high-quality beef that get "cooked" when the hot broth is poured over them, allowing the meat to retain a tender chew.

beef broth pho at feral xiaoye vietnamese restaurant shanghai 48

The broth is savory and deeply flavored, and I almost finished the soup. The bowl is deep, and the noodle portion is generous. It also comes with a herb basket of mint, Thai basil, coriander, garlic, chilies, calamansi, and lime. Plus, you get a free refill of rice noodles with each bowl.

Other Bites

They also have bun cha, the Vietnamese vermicelli dipping noodles.

1 / 2

2 / 2

Swipe to explore • Tap to zoom

1 / 2

For snacks, there are spring rolls (fried or rice rolls). The Hand-Shredded Beef Spring Roll (¥38) is a light bite, fragrant with fresh herbs and dipped into a savory fish sauce mix. The Lemongrass Fried Chicken Wings (¥38), marinated in fish sauce and served with sweet chili sauce, are a perfect drinking snack.

prawn salad at feral xiaoye vietnamese restaurant shanghai 69

Salads are a bit fancier, like the Black Prawn Salad (¥58). The poached prawns have a fresh spring to the bite, tossed with pickled shredded vegetables.

Love that it's back. One of the best banh mi in Shanghai, if not my favorite. And that pho is going to be warming my bones come winter.

Feral Xiaoye
View the listing here.