This is a home dinner, not a cooking class. You come, you sit, you eat, and you leave with a full stomach and a genuine connection to local life in Shanghai.

We have a range of hosts that are in the city centre of Shanghai (Xuhui, Jing'an, Pudong, Huangpu etc), or in the suburbs where you can see a different Shanghai (Songjiang, Jiading)

Here are the sample host profiles:

Meet Jiading Ayi: Auntie Shen is a true daughter of Jiading Old Town, the historic cradle of Shanghai's famous soup dumplings. She has been welcoming international guests into her home since 2016 — first as an Airbnb Superhost. What sets Auntie Shen's home apart is her courtyard garden, where she grows the vegetables that end up on your table. I

Meet Grace: Grace was born in Guizhou, a mountainous province in southwest China known for bold flavours and vibrant minority cultures. She spent over a decade living abroad — mainly in the United States — before finding her way back to China through a familiar longing: the taste of her mother's cooking. What started as homesickness became a passion.

Meet Chuan: Chuan is a freelance designer in Xuhui who has hosted dinners at home for friends for years and now opens the table to international guests. Chuan's cooking blends Guangxi, Guangdong and Southeast Asian flavours, such as sour-spicy tomato noodles with Thai basil, radish beef brisket in clear broth, and sizzling claypot chicken.

Our hosts can host up to 6 guests, making it one of the few experiences in Shanghai that works just as well for a family with children as it does for a group of friends or colleagues.

Before your visit, confirm your dietary preferences and receive step-by-step directions to the home, including phone number and WeChat so you won't get lost. Two days before, you'll receive Home Dining Cheat Sheets, a beautifully designed cultural primer on Chinese dining that answers the questions most foreign guests have before their first home dinner in China.

Sample Menu

Starter

1. Garden Greens with Diced Tofu
   (Finely chopped malantou greens with seasoned diced tofu)

2. Braised Spring Bamboo Shoots
   (Tender seasonal bamboo shoots glazed in a savory-sweet soya sauce)

3. Traditional Shanghainese Smoked Fish
   (Deep-fried fish marinated and lightly smoked with Chinese five-spice)

Main Course

1. Sweet and Sour Pork Ribs
   (Succulent pork ribs in a rich, velvety caramelised glaze)

2. White-Cut Local Chicken
   (Classic poached chicken with a delicate skin, served with garlic-ginger dip)

3. Handmade Fish Ball Soup
   (Delicate, hand-minced fish balls in a clear, nourishing broth)

Staple & Dessert

1. Auntie's Handmade Wontons
   (Ayi's special pork and vegetable wontons in a savoury soup)

2. Red Bean Glutinous Rice Balls Dessert
   (Sweet red bean paste filling in warm, chewy rice balls, served in a light syrup)

Note: the menu changes with the seasons and the hosts. Dietary restrictions? Let us know when booking. We've accommodated vegetarian, halal, non-mammalian, and more.