Yuan's Shanghai Serendipity Cuisine

We had a fantastic lunch at Yuan's, offering a delicious alternative to traditional Cantonese dim sum. If you're looking for something different, their small Shanghai-style dishes make for a great Chinese brunch option. The Xiaolongbao (soup dumplings) were excellent, but I was particularly impressed with the small cold plates like the Drunken Chicken and Fried Yellow Croaker. The Fried Yellow Croaker has quickly become my favorite Shanghai dish.

The food we ordered had its highs and lows. The xiaolongbaos were a definite highlight, being larger than what I'm used to and delicious. The drunken chicken was also a hit, but the special duck was just okay and nothing too impressive. The Shanghai double cooked fish filets were an interesting dish (though I wouldn't order it again). They were served cold and reminded me of smoked fish. Unfortunately, the double cooked pork in a "lotus leaf" bun was a disappointment. Compared to a similar dish I've had at Dinesty, the pork at this restaurant was very chewy and made it difficult to eat with the bun. On a positive note, the 8 flavour sweet rice was a pleasant surprise with a generous portion size and no complaints about it.

Located directly across from Aberdeen Center, this restaurant offers seating for small tables all the way up to large parties. We were seated promptly, as they are one of the few restaurants open in the morning in Richmond. The noodles were perfectly chewy, the dishes had a modern Chinese twist, and everything was handmade on site. Overall, it was a fantastic dining experience and I would highly recommend it.

If you like a little fancier dining, this is a great place to go to for Shanghainese cuisine. Comfortable and more upscale setting. Great plating with the use of fancy dishes. Service was great as well. Lots of flavours in their dishes...but a bit smaller portion compared to other places. They also have another location across from the Walmart on Alderbridge and Garden City.

I have mixed feelings about this place because of their new opening location across from Walmart in Richmond. I always went to the location across from Aberdeen and I receive pretty good service and good food for a good price. However, my first time at the new location was a disaster. Food took SO LONG to come and their tables are a lot smaller than the other location. So long story short, I would definitely recommend going to the location across from Aberdeen as they seem much more experience and you would also have much more comfortable seating. I go with my family all the time and we order 3 things and our bill is like around 30$.