Restaurants, exhibitions and inspiring places discovered in Shanghai

Stéphanie is the founder of Studio Noosh and sees China as a daily source of cultural and creative inspiration.

Her China favorites

1. Why do you love China / Shanghai so much?
I'm happy to have discovered China through my own lens, rather than the reductive one often conveyed by European media. Day-to-day, I love the practical, efficient, and pragmatic side of life here. The Chinese never stop. They move forward, find solutions, innovate — an energy that perfectly matches my character.
Shanghai is a fascinating city: dynamic, international, bold, yet paradoxically very human. A metropolis of over 26 million people that sometimes feels like a large village.
I've had the chance to travel through several regions — from Yunnan to Ningxia, from Tibet to Xinjiang — each with its own landscapes, traditions, and unique craftsmanship. It's an endless journey of extraordinary cultural diversity.

2. A place: The Bund. It's an absolutely unique place in the world: on one side, the futuristic towers of Pudong symbolizing modern China; on the other, the historic Art Déco and neoclassical buildings from the early 20th century, a legacy of Shanghai's international concession era. A stroll along the Bund at sunset captures the entire soul of the city — between past and future, East and West.

3. A restaurant: Sichuan Citizen, in the former French concession. The menu is varied, colorful, and flavorful — an excellent introduction to Sichuan cuisine. Their hot-and-sour soup is a true delight, as is their signature cocktail, the “Basil Drop”!

4. A hotel: The Peninsula, on the Bund. A place of rare elegance, where refinement meets history.
I love its spectacular skyline view, its historic building, its Art Déco-inspired interiors from 1920s Shanghai, and the cocktails at the Sir Ellis bar. A tribute to a bygone glamour. The perfect place to feel the timeless charm of yesterday’s and today’s Shanghai.

5. A souvenir to bring back: A blue-and-white porcelain pot, historically used to store and transport tea or precious spices.
Today, it is readily repurposed as a vase or a lamp base. A true timeless chinoiserie.

6. Anything else to add? Yes, I’d love to invite everyone to come discover China for themselves.
To go beyond the clichés, to open their eyes and their hearts wide.
Until recently, no visa was required for a month-long trip — making this the perfect time to venture there.
This country is rich with over 5,000 years of history, traditions, arts, and encounters. It’s a fascinating, vibrant, profoundly human culture that inspires me every day in my work and my vision of beauty.