Updated January 2025
Jianbing is China’s most popular breakfast street food. You’d think it’s easy to find in Shanghai, but the recent clean-up of street vendors proves it difficult! Here’s where you can eat jianbing in Shanghai.
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What is Jianbing?
Jianbing 煎饼 is a savory Chinese breakfast food. It’s essentially a Chinese crepe, the batter made with millet flour and soybean meal.
First, the batter is spread on a circular grill. Toppings are an amalgam of ingredients, including egg (or double egg), youtiao 油条 (fried crullers), cuibing 脆饼 or baocui 薄脆 (translates to crispy pancake or crispy fritter) made from wheat flour, cilantro, lettuce, green onions, pickled mustard tubers, chili paste, fermented bean paste, and sometimes meat.
It’s found in every city in China, but its origins can be traced to Shandong and Tianjin.
This is at Xiangyang Nan Lu. The husband and wife team have lived in Shanghai for 20 years, and have been running this hole-in-the-wall for the past three years. Jianbing with youtiao here is starts at ¥8.
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How to order
- Yi ge jian bing 一个煎饼 one jianbing
- Yao ji dan 鸡蛋 with an egg
- Bu la 不辣 for not spicy
- Wei la 微辣 for a little spicy
- Zhong la 中辣 for medium spicy
- La 辣 if you have strong stomach lining
Find it:
Xiangyang Lu Jianbing Stall 煎饼小屋
280 Xiangyang Nan Lu 襄阳南路280号
Hours: 6am-8pm
Also swing by Yongkang Road (nearby) for a post-jianbing coffee.
More Jianbing Options
Most jianbing stalls open in the morning, around 6am and close around 8pm.
Fatty’s 胖子煎饼
Known for their fatttt jianbings. 261 Tiezhou Nan Lu 铁州南路261号
Zhenning Market
Located outside the Zhenning Market. 436 Zhenning Lu 镇宁路436
Tianzifang – 老上海弄堂里的软煎饼
Near the tourist spot Tianzifang. 150 Nantangbang Lu 南塘浜路150号
The Bund – 陈记饼店
One that’s close to the Bund. Zhejiang Zhong Lu 浙江中路142号
Did you know? There’s a World Jianbing Day!
World Jianbing Day falls on April 30. It didn’t exist before UnTour Food Tours decided to take charge (in 2020) and dedicate a day to China’s most loved breakfast food.
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