The Shanghai Scoop is a monthly column dedicated to the latest food and drink news happening in Shanghai.

New Restaurants – Opening Soon

Stefan Stiller, chef-patron of Michelin two-star Taian Table, is opening Nikai, a new Japanese-inspired restaurant in Shanghai. Nikai will open late September/early October on the second floor of the Taian Table, a space that has been refurbished to accommodate a dining table for 10 around an open kitchen.

Inspired by the kaiseki tradition and structure, Nikai will be Japanese-inspired in the way that Taian Table is European-inspired: “A high reverence for natural ingredients and minimalist beauty but will not be a traditional Japanese restaurant.” The kitchen will be led by chef de cuisine Alex Fu, a Shanghainese chef who has long been Stiller’s lieutenant. Dinner is 16 to 20 small courses, pricing TBD.

Harrods Tea Rooms is opening in Taikoo Hui late October. This is the first tea room in China from the UK luxury department store brand. It’ll be modeled after the brand’s many tea rooms around the world, serving up the quintessential British afternoon tea experience of teas, fresh pastries, and champagne, among others.

Opening in mid-late October is TAIGA, a Russian restaurant and bar in the same complex as Tacolicious. The space will have an open kitchen, a cocktail bar, lounge seating with shisha, and an outdoor space. On the menu will be traditional Russian food with modern presentation.

BIBIMI Group (Barbarian, Bites & Brews, et al.) is opening an upscale Western style izakaya on Wuding Lu called Dreamer, scheduled for late October.

Lost Bakery will reopen on the ground floor of Lost Heaven Gaoyou Lu mid-late September. They’ll be following up with another location at Lost Heaven on the Bund late October.

New Restaurants – Now Open

Speaking of bakeries, Luneurs has just opened another location in Super Brand Mall, Lujiazui. That makes it NINE stores! There are three more on the way, slated to open at TX Mall on Huaihai Zhong Lu (September), Disneytown (October), and Taikoo Li Qiantan.

In soft opening is Lounge by Topgolf, an entertainment venue from the UK that centers itself on, you guessed it, golf!

It’s a beautiful arena that’s dedicated to technology-enabled sports entertainment, meaning, you can play games like golf, football, American football, and handball on the big screen. There’s also a nine-hole mini golf course, as well as seven VIP Swing Suites and five private rooms. Food and drink is pan-Asian, courtesy of the chef-bartender team from Shake, Danyi Gao and Colin Tait. More on this in the coming weeks.

Over on Changshu Lu, French rotisserie Dodu closed to rebrand into Mezcalito, a casual Mexican restaurant and bar that does modern iterations of tacos, quesadillas, and burritos, among other drink-friendly dishes. Plenty of Mexican-inspired cocktails and mezcal on offer.

Also new and hot is Sakaba Malabar, a restaurant and bar that serves Spanish food with a Japanese twist alongside stellar cocktails, sakes, and wines. I wrote about it here.

Now Closed/ Closing

In a sudden turn of events, The Apartment will close to rebrand at the end of September. New management is in place, and the space will be changed into something completely different.

Also, Lucky You has closed on Fumin Lu, so has Paulaner Brauhaus in Xintiandi, and STYX.