Hai Lights is your shortcut through the chaos. Shanghai's PACKED with choices – restaurants, bars, galleries, bike routes, football clubs, hotpot joints, pizza spots, pasta dens, weird little shops selling weirder little things. We cut through the noise to curate only the best. Each list hits a theme – Spanish restaurants that don't suck, places to pretend you're into cycling, clubs where people actually play football (not just wear the jerseys), and whatever else makes this city tick.

No fluff, no filler. Just the places that matter, the ones worth your time – and ours.

We've eaten a lot of carbs lately. Not just any carbs though; arguably the best kind – noodles. The most tasteful of noods, if you will. Here's our A to Z list covering some of our favorite pasta finds around Shanghai lately. And no... this isn't exclusively an Italian list!

But first, since we're talking about noods, here's a sneak peek of a little past pasta porn to get you in the mood...

8 1/2 Otto e Mezzo Bombana

An extension of the three-Michelin-starred venue (of the same name) in Hong Kong, executive chef Nicoló Rotella has recreated the same fine dining affair on the North Bund at two-Michelin-starred venue 8 1/2 Otto e Mezzo Bombana.

Hailing from Italy's Liguria region comes the humble trofie – an artisanal twisted pasta, short and thin, conventionally tossed in an herbaceous pesto Genovese. Aligning with that same ethos, but elevating it a step further, the expertly al dente pasta is coated in a slick basil oil, clam water and Qingdao tomato juice sauce that creates a shiny veneer on each individually rolled spindle.

8 1/2 Otto e Mezzo Bombana

Address: 6-7/F, 169 Yuanmingyuan Rd

圆明园路169号6-7楼

Alimentari Grande

The largest of all nine Shanghai Alimentari locations, Alimentari Grande is a Donghu Road institution serving up everyone's favorite unpretentious, fast-casual Italian, ideal for everyday dining. Available at all four Alimentari Grande locations in China (Shanghai, Hangzhou, Chengdu and Beijing) the name of the season is fresh, fresh, fresh – featured through ingredients to cooking techniques, from plating to accoutrement.

Velvety basil pesto cream sticks to each bucatini noodle of the Pesto & Chicken (80 yuan), the hollow cylindrical strands soaking up the excess sauce. Cherry tomatoes, torn basil leaves, pine nuts and a generous sprinkle of Parmesan crumble make it the ultimate bite of reminiscent of spring.

Alimentari Grande

Address: 20 Donghu Rd

东湖路20号

Bambino

Chef Lucky Lasagna's 30-seater neighborhood trattoria, Bambino, is a bastion to all things comforting and good in this world. Chef Lucky's bold use of ingredients and unapologetically soulful style are the through line that connects all aspects at Bambino, with the restaurant's tagline "cucina furiosa."

He is the literal embodiment of the establishment's spirit animal, nonna and mascot, as he's not afraid to share his home flavors as food that feeds both the stomach and the heart.

The dish worth rearranging your schedule for is the Spaghetti alla Chitarra (88 yuan). Elastic, handmade egg and olive oil pasta "alla chitarra" is the base of this dish – a square-shaped noodle made by pressing the pasta dough through a wooden box with metal strings similar in appearance to a guitar, hence the name chitarra, Italian for "guitar."

Adorned with aglio e olio-poached prawns – but with butter instead of oil – briny capers, black olives and anchovies, plus a nip of chili and grated lemon skin, the summery parsley sauce brings the whole moreish mouthful together.

Bambino

Address: 600 Shaanxi Rd N.

陕西北路600号

Bella Vita

If you've lived in Shanghai for more than a week, you've probably heard of neighborhood Italian establishment Bella Vita. Well, that's because the group has nine China outposts in total, spanning fast casual Bella Vita, upscale Bella Vita Bistro, café Buonissimo, and more. Owner and Italian native Samuele Rossi (previously chef de cuisine at Grand Hyatt Beijing and executive sous chef at MGM Macau) is all about the imported, high-end ingredients, homemade everything (pretty much a requirement for opening a successful Italian restaurant in Shanghai these days), and a lofty wine list.

And, while the rest of Shanghai seems to be riding the fusion train, Bella Vita digs deep into hyper-traditional, genuine pan-Italian recipes.

The Linguina in Salsa di Pomodorini (99 yuan) is a classic combo of the most archetypal of Italian flavor pairings: tart cherry tomatoes, supple burrata and an earthy lashing of basil oil – one that has stood the test of time.

The string tying it all together is Barilla linguine, each springy strand slathered in the tastes of the season.

Bella Vita

Address: 555 Haifang Rd

海防路555号

Bella Vita Bistro

The predecessor to Bella Vita (mentioned above), Bella Vita Bistro opened on Tianping Road in October 2021, helmed by chef Andrea Botti, a man who – for Bella Vita – left the Maldives to move to Shanghai that same year.

If leaving one of the most beautiful places on Earth doesn't demonstrate utter dedication to deliver the absolute best, we don't know what does.

The pan-Italian menu aligns with Bella Vita's motto, "enjoying Italian cuisine is more experiential, not intellectual." Here, they want to keep it straightforward, giving their guests exactly what they expect – in a cozy, familiar setting fit for celebrating special occasions, going on a nice date or engaging in a business dinner.

Available for both lunch and dinner, and utilizing a signature Sardinian grain, the Crab Meat Fregola (199 yuan) sees a pungent dollop of whipped lemon cream placed in the center – meant to be evenly mixed amongst the spherical noodles.

The lemon cream is created by cooking an entire lemon and blending both the skin and pulp – lending equally sour and bitter notes to the plate, balanced by the crab and seafood bisque's natural sweetness.

Bella Vita Bistro

Address: 318 Tianping Rd

天平路318号

Bottega

Since Bottega landed in the old Beef & Liberty spot in the K. Wah Center on Xiangyang Road, it has been consistently packed to the brim, as is the case with their second Jing'an location.

Maybe it's because they have a happening location.

Maybe it's because they have won – like – every pizza award in the history of awards.

Maybe it's because the team has created a winning formula since opening the first Bottega in Beijing in 2014.

Or maybe it's just because they indisputably make Shanghai's best Napoli-style pizza, and consistently deliver that same level of quality across the entire menu, as well as service, presentation and atmosphere.

Just spitballing here, what do we know? We aren't restaurant owners.

But whatever it is, they nail it, and we have never left Bottega not immediately craving... more Bottega.

Famed as one of the "Big 4" pastas of Rome, the Amatriciana (99 yuan) earns its place in this quartet as the brightest of the bunch, with pipe-like rigatoni pasta smothered in a tart vine-ripened tomato sauce.

Instead of the customary pancetta, charred guanciale – caramelized pork cheek slivers – shine as the protagonist of this culinary performance; smoky and salty, the pork is only further amplified by the pecorino's brazen salinity.

Bottega

Address: 101B, 1/F, K. Wah Center, 108 Xiangyang Rd N,

襄阳北路108号嘉华中心1楼101B

Calypso

Calypso Restaurant & Lounge at Jing An Shangri-La, Shanghai launches new seasonal menus each quarter, curated by chef de cuisine Tonino Giglio, with the most recent aptly dubbed "From Barcelona With Love." Presenting equally colorful and fresh flavors of Mediterranean cuisines – including Italy, south of France, and a strong emphasis on authentic Spanish food – both sets offer diners a culinary-driven "vacation" to the Mediterranean Sea.

Italian-imported durum semolina pasta is the focus of the Linguine Pesto and Prawns (148 yuan), tossed in a heavy-handed (yet very welcomed) ladleful of quintessential Genovese-style basil pesto, flanked by three grilled prawns – their pleasantly smoky char adding a tempered bitterness plus a snappy textural contrast.

Calypso Restaurant & Lounge

Address: South Wing Plaza, Jing An Kerry Centre, 1218 Yan'an Rd M.

延安中路1218号静安嘉里中心南区广场

Chez JOJO

A French-style bistro and wine bar, Chez JOJO serves standard French fare, such as homemade foie gras, French oysters, cote de boeuf and cheese fondue along with a large selection of wines (up to 200 varietals) by glass and bottle. With two locations around Shanghai, one on Yongjia Road and another on Fumin Road, both spaces are partially hidden from the street, with plenty of garden and terrace seating.

If you're aiming for something lighter than pâte, foie gras or terrine, the Grilled Salmon Steak with Pesto Tagliatele (178 yuan) just may be calling your name. With scorched edges but a succulent center that flakes away with the mere nudge of a fork, the salmon is adeptly seared, plated atop swirling noodles thick with luscious pesto cream.

Chez JOJO

Address: 3/F, A Mansion, 291 Fumin Rd

富民路291号悟锦大楼3楼

Commune Reserve

Followers of Stone Brewing and fellow craft beer lovers alike flock to Commune Reserve along Yuyuan Road for more than just their extensive 30 beer tap list.

The menu is an eclectic list of global comfort food favorites – chicken wings, sticky ribs, pasta dishes and burgers. Bites that pair well with – no surprise here – a frothy mug of the good stuff.

Case in point, a recipe that tastes like it's been passed down through generations of Italian nonnas, the Beef Cheek Ragù Pasta (108 yuan) sees thin spaghetti noodles tossed in a pancetta and braised beef cheek San Marzano tomato sauce, finished with a tableside hit of Parmigiano Reggiano. Each juicy confit tomato bursts under the slightest pressure, adding a refreshing brightness to the otherwise rich pasta sauce, making it all the more enjoyable year-round.

Commune Reserve

Address: 1107 Yuyuan Rd

愚园路1107号

High Yaki The Sea

Chef Carlos Sotomayor (previously of elEFANTE and UP Shanghai) is the man behind the menu at owner Justin Xu's High Yaki The Sea. Showcasing a blend of Western cooking techniques with splashes of Japanese, Thai and wider Southeast Asian flavors, smoke and fire are a predominant component of every dish – running the gamut of global fire power, the restaurant boasts both a Combi oven and Salamander broiler, plus a Japanese binchotan charcoal-grill.

Unbridled in its excess, the Uni Noodles (288 yuan) are a tidal wave of sea urchin in two forms – a Japanese dried sea urchin butter and a baker's dozen of fresh Dalian sea urchin. Equal parts lux and lush, together the two form a "uni Alfredo" of sorts, unctuously coating each saucy thread of udon.

High Yaki The Sea

Address: Unit 113, Bldg 5, 8 Hengshan Rd

衡山路8号锦和越界5号楼113单元

La Scala

Inspired by Milan's famed opera house, the Teatro alla Scala, and Italian Renaissance gardens, upscale restaurant La Scala is a stylish highlight of The Sukhothai Shanghai. The culinary team, helmed by executive chef Duncan Feng, takes La Scala's epicurean offering to new heights, crafting creative culinary memories for guests and discerning gourmets alike.

A fusion of Mexican and Italian cuisine, the Chili con Lasagna (188 yuan) presents a 17-layered noodle stack – mimicking the hotel's 17 floors – interspersed with minced Australian wagyu and red bean chili. A soft tuft of tomato chantilly is siphoned tableside, oozing down the side and into each delicately pleated stratum.

La Scala

Address: 380 Weihai Rd

威海路380号

Mignon 9

Mignon 9 – a trendy Parisian-style restaurant – opened on Wuyuan Road last fall, lending even more of a Paris backstreet feel to the already leafy-green, tree-lined roads in downtown Xuhui. The menu is designed by Singapore-trained chef Hank Li (previously of L'Atelier Chic Choc) and packed with Parisian-influenced cuisine – roasted chicken, foie gras, grilled steaks, charcoal-grilled seafood, pastas and the like – plus apéritif cocktails and wine.

Comfort food bliss is a warm bowl of Beef Cheek Pasta (108 yuan) – whorls of handmade-daily pappardelle ribbons swaddled in a dense ragù of 12-hour stewed beef cheek, tomatoes and a mirepoix of diced carrots, onions and celery sautéed in butter. A free-handed shaving of Parmesan cheese liquefies into an added layer of creamy indulgence.

Mignon 9

Address: 71 Wuyuan Rd

五原路71号

Mona

Mona opened in July on the ground floor of Fotografiska – a part of the global Fotografiska brand, one of the largest contemporary immersive photography museums in the world with over 200 exhibitions attracting millions of visitors since its inception in Stockholm in 2010.

A top seller, and for good reason, the Beyond Bolognaise (98 yuan) is a riff on Chongqing-style dandanmian (担担面) with Chinese noodles swapped for thicker spaghetti Italian pasta, drowning in a rich peanut, sesame and homemade chili oil paste.

A crumbly topping consisting of minced vegan-friendly Beyond Meat sautéed with customary dandanmian accoutrement, like pickled Yibin yacai (or wild vegetables from Yibin, Sichuan), garlic and ginger, has us questioning if meat is ever really necessary, as we lick a dribble of aromatic oil from our glossy, gratified lips.

Mona

Address: 127 Guangfu Rd

光复路127号

Porto Matto

Chef and owner of Porto Matto, Roberto Bernasconi, landed in Shanghai in 2005 and swung open the doors of his very own restaurant nearly a decade ago in 2014. Aiming to showcase the flavors of his Italian hometown of Bari, Porto Matto is an ode to the traditional recipes of the Apulian region, ones that have permeated economic class lines and generational gaps. The typical Apulian neighborhood trattoria fare is as welcoming as the joint's atmosphere – it all feels like one big family.

An entire page of the menu is dedicated to scialatielli, a pasta variety hailing from Campania, Italy translating to "ruffled." Made entirely in house (like all the rest of the pasta dishes at Porto Matto), this thick pasta has a rectangular cross-section and is presented in medium-length strands, each slightly irregular from being knife cut, giving them a ruffled look on the plate (and living up to their name).

Available with numerous toppings, diners can choose from the above pictured Scialatielli allo Scoglio (138 yuan) with mixed seafood and shellfish cooked in a white wine sauce or opt for the Scialatiello alla Nduja e Rucola (138 yuan) with smoked spicy salami and rocket salad. There are other options too, including homemade calabrese pork sausage with cherry tomatoes, guanciale and sausages in a pecorino sauce, smoked speck and truffle cream sauce, and an Amalfi-inspired mix of clams, squid, shrimp and truffle sauce.

Porto Matto

Address: 2/F, 83 Changshu Rd

常熟路83号2楼

Ragù

Situated on Jiaozhou Road, Ragù is Shanghai's first Italian street food concept, backed by co-owners and married couple Filippo and Yan Murari. First thing first – when we say "street food," we certainly don't mean fast food; most of the stews that grace the menu simmer for anywhere between four to seven hours. It's down to the handheld, on-the-go presentation – the entire lineup of dishes is served in disposable packaging, akin to how one would consume carryout, yet the quality is anything but pre-packaged convenience food.

As for ambrosial pastas, there's homemade Tagliatelle al Ragù (62 yuan); Gnocchi al Musso (68 yuan) – pillowy pasta puffs topped with donkey meat stew; Trofile al Pesto (48 yuan) kinked and rolled short pasta noodles tossed in Ligurian made-fresh-daily pesto; and Gnocchi al Gorgonzola (52 yuan) – a dish that requires no further introductions beyond carbs and cheese.

Ragù

Address: 176 Jiaozhou Rd

胶州路176号

R.O.W.T

Cotemporary Cantonese restaurant R.O.W.T. opened in Shanghai in October 2023 under Chef Sean Yue (previously of Ensue in Shenzhen and Tetsuya in Sydney), an architect-turned-chef who is "building" some truly experimental dishes. With Cantonese ingredients and flavor profiles as the jumping-off point, Chef Sean is using a mix of French, Japanese and modern techniques to create memorable plates.

The set menu (1,280 yuan per person) spans 14 dishes from an exploding cashew milk filled savory beignet topped with Sichuan caviar to macadamia nut and buffalo milk custard stacked with steamed Zhoushan swimming crab, from the showstopper dry-aged Guangdong duck grilled over charcoal then smoked with thyme, chili, anise, cinnamon and more to an equally mind-blowing dessert of brioche French toast (with a shatteringly crisp caramelized crust) adorned with morel mushroom ice cream dusted with morel powder.

An absolute star, the Shunde-Style Fish Noodles are made from fish meat and egg white piped into boiling water to create its cylindrical noodle shape. Spiny lobster heads are fried in chili oil with basil and lemon zest to create a lobster curry paste of sorts that the bouncy-yet-charred fish noodles arrive swimming in. Pleasantly spicy, yet balanced by citrus, the dish embodies Chef Yue's ethos of being prepared for the unexpected.

In short, get ready for a lesson in rare regional Chinese ingredients, paired with some stellar global wines.

R.O.W.T.

Address: 2/F, 109 Yandang Rd

雁荡路109号2楼

Scarpetta

While Scarpetta has gone through a roller coaster of chefs and menus over the last 12 years, the core essence has remained – one that is all in the name.

Derived from the Italian phrase "fare la scarpetta," meaning to "make the little shoe," it is a concept familiar to anyone who has indulged in a deliciously saucy pasta – the shoe, in this case, being the requisite piece of bread used to mop up every last drop of goodness on the plate.

As Romans are known for their carbs, it's not hard to believe that Chef Merolle's passion is anything pasta. And that passion is conveyed directly on the plate with the Tomato & Gragnano Fusilloni (168 yuan), a seemingly simple red sauce and pasta that couldn't be further from basic.

A 48-hour labor of love, the sauce sees a combination of three kinds of tomatoes – cherry, goji and local beefsteak – simmered with 0.5-to-1 ratio of onions to tomatoes for the utmost sweetness. Like a tomato hug, the sauce seeps its way into every nook and cranny of the corkscrewed pasta, ensuring a tomato onslaught in each forkful.

The poster child of this standout menu iteration, the bowl deserves to be licked clean, "fare la scarpetta" style.

Scarpetta

Address: 33 Mengzi Rd

蒙自路33号

Yaya's

Named after the Chinese word for "tooth," the goal at Yaya's is to serve toothsome pasta – with that chew you'd anticipate from an Italian restaurant – but incorporating Chinese flavor profiles, all curated by Chef Dan Li (previously of Bird), Andrew Moo (previously of Le Daily and Candor) and Mike Liu (Lucky Mart).

Yaya also has a connotation with family – meaning "grandma" in Greek and "grandpa" in Shanghainese – further linking the name to the goal of making homey dishes with a "wow" factor.

Slow-cooked, hand-shredded Inner Mongolian lamb – prized for its punchy gaminess – is stewed in an Italian sofrito-based ragù, but with the Italian spices replaced by Xinjiang herbs – cumin, coriander and fennel – as the Pappardelle & Lamb Ragù (88 yuan).

Rope-like folds of handmade pappardelle are thrown into the mix, finished with a spoonful of sour cream and an anything-but-subtle sprinkling of dill sprigs.

Why so much dill? "We just f*cking love dill," says Moo, slurping a slippery ribbon.

Fair enough. As do we.

Yaya's

Address: Unit E, 1/F, 329 Tongren Rd

铜仁路329号1层E区

Copy Editor's Note: Pretty big list eh? We're certain that there are some other fabulous pasta dishes in town. Drop a note on the WeChat version of this article (search City News Service and follow us if you aren't already) and let us know about that bowl of pasta that you keep going back for. We might do a part 2!