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Birds of Paradise is a tiki bar and restaurant that serves Polynesian-inspired food and Asian fusion bites. And they now do brunch!

Shanghai F&B luminaries Yao Lu (Union Trading Co.) and Austin Hu (Heritage by Madison, Union Trading Co.) steer the whimsical wheel of this fun, quirky, laidback establishment on Yanping Lu.

Birds of Paradise, a tiki bar and restaurant in Shanghai. Photo by Rachel Gouk.
Birds of Paradise, a tiki bar and restaurant in Shanghai. Photo by Rachel Gouk.
Birds of Paradise, a tiki bar and restaurant in Shanghai. Photo by Rachel Gouk.

It’s a cozy space with the bar taking center stage; casual seating wraps around to the right, and a counter table looks out onto the street. It’s kid-friendly, strollers are a squeeze, but you can manage. It’s also dog-friendly.

Brunch other yummy things

The Loco Moco (¥98) is a Hawaiian cult classic. The rice is fried with onion and charred beef bits, and is served with two beef patties, egg, and black pepper gravy. I think what really makes a loco moco is the gravy, and the one at BOP is ace.

Loco Moco at Birds of Paradise, a tiki bar and restaurant in Shanghai. Photo by Rachel Gouk.
Loco Moco

Another must-try from the regular menu is the Okonomiyaki Fries (¥58). The fries are given lashings of Kewpie mayo and Bull Dog tonkotsu sauce, topped with shoga (like pickled ginger), nori (seaweed), and wisps of bonito flakes.

Okonomiyaki fries at Birds of Paradise, a tiki bar and restaurant in Shanghai. Photo by Rachel Gouk.
Okonomiyaki Fries

For brunch, there’s the Egg Salad Sando (¥68). Not only does it have creamy chopped egg sandwiched between butter-toasted bread, there’s also a halved onsen egg in the center of each serving.

Egg Salad Sandwich for brunch at Birds of Paradise, a tiki bar and restaurant in Shanghai. Photo by Rachel Gouk.
Egg Salad Sando

Spam Eggs N Rice (¥68) with crispy fried spam, furikake, and scrambled eggs. You could make this at home, but if you’re having kids in tow when you go to BOP, they’ll dig this.

Spam, eggs and rice for brunch at Birds of Paradise, a tiki bar and restaurant in Shanghai. Photo by Rachel Gouk.
Spam Eggs N Rice

My favorite of all the things is the Morning After Sliders (¥78), stacked with chicken katsu, egg, cheese, and sausage gravy. It tastes as good as it looks.

Chicken katsu sliders for brunch at Birds of Paradise, a tiki bar and restaurant in Shanghai. Photo by Rachel Gouk.
ALL THE GRAVY THINGS!
Chicken katsu sliders for brunch at Birds of Paradise, a tiki bar and restaurant in Shanghai. Photo by Rachel Gouk.
Morning After Sliders

The Breakfast Burrito (¥78) is wrapped to bursting with kimchi fried rice, cheese sausage, and scrambled eggs. Comes with chipotle cream. I recommend sharing the half so you can try more dishes.

Breakfast Burrito for brunch at Birds of Paradise, a tiki bar and restaurant in Shanghai. Photo by Rachel Gouk.
Breakfast Burrito

Poached Eggs (¥88) are available with soft shell crab, terikayi salmon, or avocado. The yuzu kosho (chili peppers and yuzu peel) hollandaise is a refreshing twist.

Eggs Benedict for brunch at Birds of Paradise, a tiki bar and restaurant in Shanghai. Photo by Rachel Gouk.
Poached Eggs

Don’t miss the Banana French Toast (¥78). Trust me, expletives of delight will ensue. These fluffy milk-soaked triangles of bread are rolled in cornflakes and fried, and are topped with oatmeal streusel and sticky miso caramel.

Banana French Toast for brunch at Birds of Paradise, a tiki bar and restaurant in Shanghai. Photo by Rachel Gouk.
Banana French Toast
Pancakes for brunch at Birds of Paradise, a tiki bar and restaurant in Shanghai. Photo by Rachel Gouk.
Macadamia Pancakes (¥88) with white chocolate and mango sauce.

The Drinks

I hear great things about the drinks, but cocktails are not my forte. So take it from my peers, captions below. (I can attest that they do a bloody good Bloody Mary.)

Bloody Mary at Birds of Paradise, a tiki bar and restaurant in Shanghai. Photo by Rachel Gouk.
Bloody Tiki – Absolute vodka, citrus, pickled jalapeno, tomato, celery bitters, and spices.

“My morning-after-drinking cure to reflect my morning-after-drinking mood: more sour than usual, pleasantly spicy, salty, and just overall sassy.” — Elysia Bagley, Editor, DRiNK Magazine on the Bloody Tiki.

Banana cold brew at Birds of Paradise, a tiki bar and restaurant in Shanghai. Photo by Rachel Gouk.
Starboard Cooler – house made banana cold brew, fino sherry, and sugarcane juice.

“The Starboard Cooler is smooth. It’s equal parts wake up and chill da f*ck out.” — Cristina Ng, Food & Drink Editor, That’s Shanghai.

Selected cocktails at Birds of Paradise during brunch time are ¥50, same with their regular happy hour, which runs from 3-8pm daily. Prices for regular cocktails have also been reduced since opening.

In Summary

Brunch at Birds of Paradise, a tiki bar and restaurant in Shanghai. Photo by Rachel Gouk.

Top three brunch dishes: Morning After Sliders, Breakfast Burrito, and Banana French Toast.

I’m a big fan of Austin Hu’s take on east-meets-west flavors. So naturally, the food at BOP is right up my alley. It’s great comfort food, unfussy, and affordable—it’s my jam.

PS: Hawaiian shirts are not mandatory to gain entry into Birds of Paradise, but it might earn you a high five.

Birds of Paradise
Address: 98 Yanping Lu, near Wuding Lu  延平路98号, 近武定路
Tel: 62607587
Hours: 12pm-2am, lunch weekdays 12-3pm, brunch weekends 12-4pm