San Bai Bei (三佰杯) is a Chinese restaurant that specializes in Ningbo cuisine, namely seafood, located in Jing’an, Shanghai. The atmosphere is more pub than restaurant, fantastically frenetic and friendly, and makes for a great late-night spot.
I’m not sure if the naming of the venue had any inspiration from the poem《将进酒》by Tang Dynasty poet Li Bai, where a line mentions said “三百杯”. The poem, loosely translated as “To Drink,” sings of anger and resistance towards life, the protagonist sick with unhappiness and helplessness, turns to his drinking cup to numb himself.
The venue certainly conveys a drink-friendly environment, but devoid of any despair mentioned in said poem. It’s quite really the opposite. The space is lively, oozing with energy, and can be best described as a “Chinese pub.”
Its atmosphere is frenetic and fast-paced, from both diners and staff, one racing to eat and drink, the other racing to serve whilst calling out the day’s specials. It can become raucous, especially if it’s within the stimulating hours of imbibing.
On that note, it is also known and favorited as a late-night spot.
The Hallmarks of Ningbo Cuisine
On my visit, I ordered modestly, a handful of dishes that nowhere near scratches the surface of what Ningbo cuisine is. I was told, more like told off, by my dear Ningbo friend that I should have ordered “all the stinky things.” Let me explain:
Ningbo cuisine is abundant with seafood, is often described as “salty and fresh,” and delicacies are often pickled and preserved.
The words outside San Bai Bei list the core elements and flavors that makes Ningbo food unique: 醉糟呛腌霉臭酱鲜, which translates to alcohol or drunken (zuì), wine or rice wine pickled (zāo), sharp or acrid (qiàng), preserved in salt (yān), molded or fermented (méi), stinky (chòu), soy sauced (jiàng), and the Chinese equivalent of umami (xiān).
Think drunken crab (低温腌江蟹), stinky tofu with soy beans (臭豆腐炒毛豆), boiled intestines (白切大肠), and fermented herring with boiled jelly fish (霉鳓鱼肉饼配沸腾海蜇). If you’re a white-bread kind of eater, this kind of food might send you running, but for Ningbo people, it’s 好下饭/好下酒! (Great with rice/appetizing or great with drinks.)
The Food
I, for one, love drunken crab, traditionally marinated live in a liquor of soy sauce, ginger, and/or Shaoxing wine or baijiu. However, live marination isn’t accepted at most restaurants in Shanghai anymore.
San Bai Bei serves 低温腌江蟹, a low-temperature marinated crab, that’s pretty darned good. It’s hacked up into tiny pieces, as it should be I’m told, so you can suck and nibble on them as a bar snack. I prefer it with rice, as it is plenty salty.
Some prices fluctuate, mainly due to seafood prices from the port of origin. Also, all the menus are hand-written on the boards in Chinese. The red board is the fresh catch directly from Ningbo. You’ll need a trusty translation app if your Chinese isn’t fluent enough. Staff are pretty patient, thankfully.
Beer is ¥25 a pint.
It’s a pretty popular restaurant. Expect to wait for a table during dinnertime, less of a wait if it’s much later.
A very cool restaurant, one I’m hoping to revisit for “all the stinky things.”
San Bai Bei (三佰杯)
Address: 56 Maoming Nan Lu 茂名南路56号
Tel: 13916032300
Hours: Tue-Sun, 5:30pm-1am; closed Monday
