instead of stepping out for lunch is strong.
But don’t let this weird period between winter and spring keep you cooped up at your desk, poking at a lifeless salad or last night’s leftovers.
Take full advantage of these lunch (and brunch) menus and schedule a long-overdue catch-up in between slurps of Hunanese, Japanese or Italian-inspired noodles, and more.
Every strand counts at this modern Hunanese restaurant that shares a space with a hair salon — pun fully intended.
The catch, however, is that the standout noodles are only available on their midday menu. So leave the warm confines of our office we did to seek out the fiery flavours of Hunanese cuisine in four bowls, a smattering of small dishes, and some unique sweets to end.
By happy coincidence, our party of four each favoured a different bowl of noodles, and if that doesn’t say something about the well-rounded selection, we don’t know what does. Additional protein is permissible by way of pork ribs, pork feet and/or vinegar chicken, but truth be told, it felt a bit like gilding the lily.What you should tack on are the Hunanese dim sum dishes, from the Iberico pork baozi to the smoked spring rolls, oh, those spring rolls...The staff will do the honours of splitting your baozi — all the better to avoid squabbles among friends.
Picture this: your restaurant has been invited to do a pop-up at Fuji Rock Festival, but can only serve one kind of noodles — which would it be and why?
Xie Shu Yu (co-founder): The ‘chosen one’ would be our Spicy Beef Dried Rice Noodles for one very practical reason — served without soup, it is super convenient to slurp down and quickly reload on flavourful carbs between Fred Again and Four Tet sets.
Our dried rice noodles follow a century-old local recipe and have a satisfying chew and nutty rice aroma. Ah, the one with the homemade dried beef that’s rather like jerky?
Xie Shu Yu: Yup! The beef is marinated with Sichuan peppercorns and scarlet chilies to create an addictive ‘mala-like’ numbness. So the noodles would be perfect for a rock festival.
What do diners get to enjoy from the daytime menu that’s different after dusk?
Xie Shu Yu: Our entire Hunan noodles selection is only available for lunch! Super homey and served quickly, they can be customised with everything you need to continue on the rest of your day.
And the desserts, though available at night as well, have a slightly different presentation.
What’s a cheeky midday drink (alcoholic) that diners can enjoy here? And what’s a non-alcoholic option?
Xie Shu Yu: A refreshing glass of skin-contact wine, like the one we specially created with Ian Dai from Xiao Pu winery in Ningxia. It has plenty of fruit that pairs with spiciness, but as a light red wine, won’t make you sleepy!
A non-alcoholic option would be our homemade strawberry coconut tea cold brew that was specially designed for our lunch menu launch. Its creamy mouthfeel and acidity make it perfect for pairing with our daytime dishes.
02 Xime
📍Address: Century Business Plaza, 1/F, 989 Changle Road, Xuhui
⏰ Lunch hour: Daily, 11:30 AM - 3 PM
☎️ ✳️ Reservations: 021-6422-5996
💭 Our takeaways:
White-collar workers who lunch here know what’s up. Located inside an office building, this modern izakaya offers Japanese homecooking at the highest quality.
Turning eight at th
e end of 2025, Xime disproves the notion that quantity and quality can’t go hand in hand. How do they do it? Run such a massive menu yet manage to nail every single dish?
From ropey udon with more bounce than a rubber ball to fresh salads studded with grilled peaches and perfectly seasoned rice bowls, the spread here is a sight for sore eyes — as uplifting as spotting the first blossoms of spring.
Picture this: your restaurant has been invited to do a pop-up at Fuji Rock Festival, but can only serve one kind of udon — which would it be and why?Sam Norris (chef and co-founder): Maybe the pesto udon, which is good for a summer day, or some soup udon, which would be good for a hangover. *Laughs*
What do diners get to enjoy from the daytime menu that’s different after dusk?Sam Norris: At lunchtime from Monday to Friday, all udon, rice and sandos come with miso soup and daily-made side dishes like those homemade pickles you started with.
Our weekend brunch dishes, which we started doing about six weeks ago, are also different.
We always have changes between winter and summer, and whatever does well, we’ll put into the menu and then take other things out.
What’s a cheeky midday drink (alcoholic) that diners can enjoy here? Any coffee for the post-lunch slump?
Sam Norris: We have over a dozen types of shochu. I mean, sometimes people from the upstairs come down and have this as their lunch.
Japanese salarymen?
Sam Norris: Ladies, men, just random people. We serve them just on their own, with ice, or with soda. Some even have it with hot water. We used to make one with Sichuan peppercorns and we had this one customer who would always have it with hot water — I don’t know how he got through the rest of the day.
For caffeine, we offer a pourover coffee from Yunnan that’s got a red wine sort of taste.
03 Yaya’s
📍Address: 329 Tongren Road, Jing’an
⏰ Lunch hour: Daily, 12 noon - 2:30 PM
✳️ Reservations: WeChat ‘yayaspasta’
💭 Our takeaways:
Like the candle that burns twice as bright but half as long, some restaurants thrive on ‘new opening hype,’ though not for long. Fortunate few, like Yaya’s, become ‘new classics’ from day one.
We’re confident that many of our readers have experienced Yaya’s to some degree, whether it was for a dinner date or dropping in for a DJ set. With its neon red signage and Negronis on tap, the Chinese pasta bar definitely passes the vibe check at night.
Our recent weekday lunch on the patio though, made us wonder why we didn’t do this more often. Given that pasta dishes here range between 88 and 118 RMB and lunch sets are 98 or 128 RMB, you’re practically getting a free appetiser and drink.
Like the idea of ‘complimentary’ appetisers and drinks? Join the lunch crowd then.
Picture this: your restaurant has been invited to do a pop-up at Fuji Rock Festival, but can only serve one kind of pasta — which would it be and why?
Andrew Moo (co-founder): It’s got to be our Pappardelle Lamb Ragu. It’s been with us from day one, and it’s our best-seller for a reason.
Picture the perfect mix of fresh pasta with a Chinese twist!
That’s definitely one of your strongest dishes, though the spicy orecciette with termite mushrooms is insanely good too.
What do diners get to enjoy from the daytime menu that’s different after dusk?
Andrew Moo: At lunch, you can grab our affordable lunch sets. Or try something special like the Kimchi Grilled Cheese Sando that’s coming in March!
Plus, you get to enjoy it all bathed in natural sunlight!
What’s a cheeky midday drink (alcoholic) that diners can enjoy here? And what’s a non-alcoholic option? Any coffee for the post-lunch slump?Andrew Moo: A glass of wine or an Aperol Spritz is my go-to for a midday kick.
For something non-alcoholic, try our refreshing strawberry kombucha on tap.
And if you’re in need of a pick-me-up, an espresso will do the trick!
