Shanghai 'Fast Food' (4 Dishes, 1 Soup) Cost 173 RMB, Blogger Claims. Wait, What?!
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Oh my, scrolling through my phone during lunch, I watched a video that made me literally drop my jaw with surprise! It was said that in Shanghai, four ordinary home-cooked dishes plus a bowl of soup costed 173 RMB!
Check out this order:
• Cool stir-fried cucumber, 29 RMB!
• Stir-fried Napa cabbage, 39 RMB!
• A bowl of millet porridge, still costs 18 RMB!Heavens! At these prices, we could easily feast on a sumptuous "Pig-slaughtering Feast" (a traditional Chinese meal prepared during festivals or for guests in Northeast China) back home in the northeastern region!
How come in Nanjing Road, the most famous pedestrian street in Shanghai, which is packed with tourists, suddenly became a dining套餐that makes ordinary office workers shed tears?
The host in the video looked stunned after receiving the bill. The server, however, had no fault: "We're located in a tourist area, after all, and our prices are clearly marked! "
At first listening, the justification seems reasonable. But upon closer examination, while the rent in Nanjing Road is high, what could justify selling cucumbers at meat prices, let alone a plate!
Then there came some enthusiasts who searched online and discovered that in the same area, there're plenty of options elsewhere:
• Community canteens (mostly government-subsidized services aimed at local residents), can satisfy you with two meaty and two leafy vegetable dishes with no less than 18 RMB.
• Even chain fast-food stores offer big chicken thighs, crispy and fragrant enough, within 30 RMB.Comparatively speaking, this so-called “four-dish-one-soup” set for 173 RMB isn't anything more than an “overpriced food scam” targeted at naive visitors from outside!
The restaurant owner protests against the blogger's exaggerations, but the comment section is already boiling over:
Some dug up news last month: a beef burger served with coffee priced at 688 RMB in Lujiazui, the heart of finance with numerous skyscrapers and high expenses in downtown Shanghai.
Compared to that exorbitant beef burger, people couldn't help mocking, "Spending money in Shanghai truly feels different from other places!"Nevertheless, some natives say, "Eating noodles starting from 50 RMB in Bund (the world-famous waterfront area that offers a panoramic view of Huangpu River and Oriental Pearl Tower) isn’t something you should feel surprised about. You don’t like it? Why not find your way to enjoy scallion pancakes (a popular street delicacy), crisp and delicious, at nearby alleys?"
In essence, the living costs in Shanghai aren't uniformly expensive, and they vary as differently as waters flow through the majestic Huangpu River that runs across the city center:
White-collar workers in Jing'an Temple (another busy business district of Shanghai), for instance, may spend only 48 RMB on a business lunch without blinking an eye. However, in the wet market of Xuhui District, green peas still sell well at only 5 RMB per pound.
Many restaurants take advantage of their locations and charge outlandish prices. If you simply believe that Shanghai meals are always astronomically expensive, it may lead you to fall into traps easily. Actually, delicacies are everywhere!
The delicious braised lion's head (large meatballs) in community canteens, a bowl just costing 10 RMB; the mouth-watering fresh pancake rolls at just 15 RMB per two ounces down in old alley, these affordable dishes are always abound!This incident gave a good reminder to us:
TRAVEL TIP
Next time dining out, search for reviews and meal prices on apps like Dazhong Dianping or TripAdvisor. Run away from the overrated and absurdly expensive dishes near tourist spots if possible. But if you do want to give them a try, remember this: it's reasonable that the price on menus is clear. However, an excessive markup on ordinary meals compared with fancy ones is dishonest.In conclusion, being vigilant when traveling is always a wise strategy!
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Just sell it to those 'Ba Zi' (a somewhat derogatory term for outsiders, often implying they're gullible).
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Tourist spots have their own pricing, try getting a 'rip-off meal' (literally 'slaughter pig meal') at a Beijing scenic area and see. Besides, Shanghai restaurants clearly display their prices; they don't just calculate the bill after you've eaten. This blogger knew how much it would cost when they ordered.
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And look at the bowls and plates in the background – does that look like fast food? It's just a regular small restaurant. At a small eatery on Nanjing Road, 170 RMB for two meat dishes, two vegetable dishes, and a soup... what more can you ask for?
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Is Deepseek any good?
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And those AI-generated 'body part' avatars too.
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Pack it up and sell it to the 'Ba Zi'.
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What's all that gibberish you're spouting? Just send me 20,000 (RMB).
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I pay over 100 RMB for just a pork chop rice bowl on Loushanguan Road. So, four dishes and a soup for under 200 at a tourist spot? What's there to complain about?
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That's actually a normal price.
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Use your brain 🧠, don't be like the pig brains
🧠 they serve at hot pot restaurants. -
At least the pig brains are inspected and quarantined.