I went to Shanghai Chufang Higashiguchi near Kanda Station. There are many Chinese restaurants in this area. The restaurant is located on the basement floor and has a slightly suspicious atmosphere. The menu includes Chinese donburi, mapo don, daily specials, and other dishes ranging from 600 to 700 yen, very affordable. I ordered the tantanmen set. It came with tantanmen, fried rice, and almond jelly. The fried rice had eggs and was quite light in flavor. It went well with the mapo tofu. The tantanmen had plenty of bean sprouts and had a rough appearance. It wasn't very spicy but you could taste the flavor of the minced meat. The soup was quite flavorful and coated the thin noodles well. The portion of noodles was generous, more than it appeared. The set, which also included the slightly grainy almond jelly, was only 600 yen including tax, a great deal. It had a continental taste, which I personally enjoyed. Thank you for the meal.

Shanghai Kitchen. A popular Chinese restaurant on the outskirts of Kanda. I was hesitant to try it out, but the time has come! I descended deep underground down the stairs and entered through a strange automatic door with a loud noise. There were no other customers. The restaurant was completely silent. A Chinese woman was serving in the hall. The door made a strange noise, like the cry of a monster from Ultraman. There were two options for the daily special at 600 yen each (see photo). The "daily service for 500 yen" included a Chinese rice bowl and mapo tofu. As a fan of Chinese rice bowls, I decided to go for it. The Chinese rice bowl arrived in about 5 minutes after ordering. Nearly half of the ingredients were cabbage, which was great for cabbage lovers. Other ingredients included wood ear mushrooms, carrots (almost raw), bamboo shoots, komatsuna, pork, quail eggs, squid, and one shrimp. It had an average taste, with the rice being a bit dry. But for 500 yen with soup and almond jelly included, it was acceptable. The almond jelly had a unique texture, a bit different. In reality, the regular customers seemed to order the Chinese rice bowl a lot. It was budget-friendly and somewhat healthy. Not bad. Yeah. Yeah... Thank you for the meal.

The continental-style popular Chinese restaurants may be a bit exaggerated, but they have now spread widely throughout Japan, with at least one restaurant found in every city. Some people may not have a good impression of them, but I personally have a fairly positive view of these restaurants. They are relatively inexpensive, the taste is not bad, and the speed of service is quite fast. In other words, there are quite a few restaurants that embody the concept of "fast, cheap, and tasty", despite some differences in quality. When it comes to lunch in Kanda, I often rely on these continental-style popular Chinese restaurants. On this particular day, I had a relatively free schedule, the weather was slightly overcast, and the temperature was moderate, making it perfect for a lunch expedition. So, I ventured to the Suda-cho area, which is considered the limit of the Kanda lunch area. Walking along Chuo Street from Kanda towards Suda-cho, passing the eel restaurant "Kanda Kikukawa", the restaurant I visited was located about 100 meters to the right in the basement of a building. Just a little further ahead, a similar restaurant called "Shoumi" opened at the end of May 2019, and I have already visited and reviewed it, so the order of my visits may have been reversed. Shanghai Chubo is also located near the south exit as "Shanghai Chubo Kura Kanda Station Front Store", and although the name is slightly different, the lunch menus are almost identical, so it seems to be a two-store system. I arrived at the restaurant around 12:15 pm on that day. The lunch menu board was displayed outside, with prices ranging from 500 yen to 700 yen. Among the continental-style popular Chinese restaurants in Kanda, this is one of the more affordable options. As I descended the dimly lit staircase, I found the entrance to the restaurant. Upon entering, the seating area spread out to the right. There were only table seats, and some seats had partitions, but they did not provide much privacy. I was guided to a table near the front by the staff. Although I couldn't see clearly due to the partition, there were about two other customers already seated. The staircase was dimly lit, and the interior of the restaurant had a dark atmosphere. The menu was placed on the table, similar to the one displayed outside. There were two daily lunch specials (stir-fried leeks, stir-fried chicken with Chinese miso) for 600 yen each. The "Daily Service" Chinese bowl and mapo tofu bowl were both 500 yen. There were a total of 13 set meals, noodles, and rice sets priced between 600 yen and 700 yen. I ordered the Shanghai yakisoba set priced at 700 yen. It came with Shanghai yakisoba, mini fried rice, soup, and almond jelly. Just a few days ago, I had a similar mixed yakisoba set at a continental-style popular Chinese restaurant in Awajicho, but since this was "Shanghai Chubo", I decided to go with the Shanghai yakisoba. Also, whether it's mixed yakisoba or Shanghai yakisoba, you get a good amount of vegetables, making it relatively nutritious. The waiting time was about 5 minutes. It wasn't super fast, but it was still a quick service typical of continental-style popular Chinese restaurants. The Shanghai yakisoba was made with steamed noodles, but they were not the typical deep-steamed noodles you would expect from Shanghai yakisoba. It was fried noodles with thinly sliced pork, cabbage, komatsuna, bean sprouts, carrots, and wood ear mushrooms. However, I didn't find it particularly delicious. This may be due to my personal preference, as well as the influence of the seasoning technique and the skill of the chef. The mini fried rice was a simple egg fried rice with a slightly cold texture, lacking the freshness of a freshly made dish. The taste was rather flat. The miso soup tasted like it had been sitting for a while, not necessarily spoiled, but lacking in freshness. The almond jelly was average, around a B- level in my ranking. Overall, I felt that the quality of the food at this continental-style popular Chinese restaurant was not particularly high.

It offers the best value for money and the food is delicious.

This is a Chinese restaurant located in the basement of a building right next to the 5th exit of Kanda Station on the Ginza Line. The restaurant offers all-you-can-eat and drink for 2,980 yen on weekdays and 2,680 yen on weekends and holidays. All drinks are priced at 280 yen, and there is a special dinner set for 980 yen. The entrance to the building leads down a narrow staircase, which can be a bit nerve-wracking. The restaurant has about 9 tables and is quiet as there is no TV. The staff, led by a seasoned lady, manages the place. The dinner set includes one appetizer, one main dish, two dumplings or spring rolls, and one drink. I chose the Bang Bang Chicken Salad (480 yen) as my appetizer, which was simple but generous in portion. For the main dish, I had sweet and sour pork, which had a good amount of onions, carrots, peppers, and 5 pieces of meat with a crispy coating. I also tried the dumplings, which were traditional and chewy. The total bill came to 1,060 yen, excluding tax, for three dishes, making it a decent value for money. On the way out, I took the elevator to the first floor, where it smelled pleasantly of perfume.

~Chilled Tan Tan Noodle Series #6~ (Revisited on 2014.08.04) I decided to visit this place again after seeing chilled tan tan noodles on the lunch menu during my previous visit. However, when I arrived this time, I couldn't find chilled tan tan noodles on the menu. I asked the waitress, but she didn't know either and had to check with the kitchen. Eventually, they agreed to make it for me. It took a while, but the dish was finally brought to me. In addition to the chilled tan tan noodles, the set also included fried rice, soup, water dumplings, pickles, and almond jelly. Among all the chilled tan tan noodles I've tried, this set had the most variety. The tan tan flavor was delicious, but the noodles were not great, and the toppings were just cabbage, which lacked a satisfying crunch. The fried rice was tasty, but the soup was instant and not impressive. The water dumplings, although cold, had a delicious filling. I didn't ask for the price beforehand, but when I paid 1,000 yen at the register, I received 300 yen in change. Despite the taste, I believe the set should be priced at 700 yen. Thank you for the meal. (Visited on 2011.06.09) I noticed that Small South Country had closed and Shanghai Kitchen had opened in its place, so I decided to try it for lunch. Looking at the menu outside, the prices were quite reasonable. There were 15 lunch options, including: - Chinese rice bowl set 500 yen - Mapo tofu set 500 yen - Sweet and sour pork set 600 yen - Five-ingredient noodle set 600 yen - Shanghai yakisoba set 700 yen The prices were all reasonable except for the shark fin ramen at 980 yen, which seemed a bit high. I went downstairs and entered the restaurant, where I saw a few salarymen and unfortunately, I was the only female customer. I ordered the tan tan noodles (600 yen), which came with fried rice, pickles, and almond jelly. The dish arrived surprisingly quickly, almost making me wonder if they had cooked the noodles at all. There was no "sorry for the wait" or anything, just the tray silently placed in front of me, which was quite surprising. The portion of tan tan noodles was generous, with a small serving of fried rice, pickles, a side dish, and almond jelly. The side dish looked like dumplings, but there were no signs of being pan-fried, so they might have been steamed dumplings. I tried them, but they were so thick that I couldn't taste anything. Moving on to the tan tan noodles, the toppings included ground meat, bean sprouts, cabbage, leeks, and green onions, which seemed more like ramen toppings than tan tan noodles. The volume of toppings was good, but the soup was light, and the noodles didn't absorb much flavor. The fried rice had a nice dry texture, but it could have used more ingredients. The carrots and eggs in the fried rice felt a bit lacking. The pickles and almond jelly were average. Considering the price of 600 yen, the taste was acceptable, and the portion was generous. However, there was a sense of something missing. Since the restaurant had just opened, I hope they continue to improve. Thank you for the meal.

I think I may have come at a bad time... It was just before the end of lunch service, I suppose? I saw a sign for a 500 yen lunch outside the restaurant, so I decided to give it a try! Cheap prices are always appealing, right? I ordered the mapo tofu rice bowl and after a while, the meal arrived. There were quite a few items on the plate. The portion size was also satisfying. I tried some dumplings, but one of them wasn't warm and had a strangely thick skin. The mapo tofu rice bowl had a mild flavor? I ended up adding some soy sauce. It wasn't bad at all. I didn't try the almond jelly-like dessert. But surprisingly, I liked the soup. In terms of the meal itself, the rating is a bit low. But for 500 yen, it's all about balancing and finding satisfaction. Now, it's time to pay, and even though I took a little break and relaxed, when I glanced over at the bill and quickly paid at the register. When I looked back as I was leaving, it was already dark outside. Maybe they wanted me to leave. There was no need to take actions that would lower the overall rating of the place. I haven't felt disappointed like this in a while. Hang in there!

Located about 200 meters from the north exit of Kanda Station, towards Kanda Sudacho, on the right side of the building in B1. The entrance has a slightly worn-out sign. The lunch menu offers two daily specials for 600 yen each, with a daily service for 500 yen. Options include mapo don, chuka don, and other dishes like twice-cooked pork, sweet and sour pork, tantanmen, five-ingredient fried rice, and five-ingredient noodles for 600 yen. Ebi chili, seafood noodles, yakisoba set, and more are available for 700 yen. Prices are generally affordable. The shark fin ramen for 980 yen is exceptional. I ordered the chuka don for just one coin, which is my favorite soy sauce flavor. It came with a water dumpling, pickled vegetables, soup, and almond jelly. The competition for lunch spots in the Kanda area is tough, so the quality is high.

I had to make an emergency stop at this restaurant because the challenge store I originally planned to visit for lunch was not serving lunch. It wasn't crowded, with only two customers already there and two leaving. I quickly ordered the mapo ramen set for 600 yen before heading downstairs. I was prepared for it to be a disappointment, but among the many disappointing mapo ramen in Kanda, this one was actually decent. The spiciness of the mapo matched well with the flavorful ramen soup. The mapo had a slight thickness when mixed with the soup. The minced meat in the mapo seemed to be seasoned as well. The fried rice was sweet as usual, so I ate it with pickled vegetables and then added it to the leftover soup. There was a small steamed dish placed behind the ramen bowl. It had a slight taste, but I couldn't quite figure out what it was. The almond jelly was of a soft type. The fact that I could enjoy the main mapo ramen in the 600 yen set was good. However, the cigarette smoke was a big downside as it affected my appetite, and the impression of the staff was not great. Next time, I would like to change the fried rice to plain white rice.

I love Chinese cuisine the most among all types of food. Especially stir-fried vegetables, I can eat them every day without getting tired of it. I recently visited "Shanghai Chufang" located on the basement floor of Visage Planning, where I am helping with website creation. The complimentary peanuts, sweet and sour cabbage, cucumber, water spinach, liver and garlic chives stir-fry, and dumplings were all delicious. The flavors were authentic and not like the typical Japanese-style Chinese food. Everything was just so tasty and comforting. It was my first time trying liver and garlic chives, and it was surprisingly good. It's a restaurant that I wish was closer to my neighborhood.

I have been to this restaurant twice in relation to work. There are many Chinese restaurants in the Tamachi-Ueno area where people of Chinese descent seem to run. There are two branches in Kanda as well. The taste is not much different from other restaurants, just simply delicious. I have only had the course menu, but the freshly cooked dishes come out on large plates, making it enjoyable to share with everyone. The classic dessert almond jelly was refreshing and homemade, which was nice. The portion size is quite large. Here is an anecdote about the portion size. When I went with my colleagues, everyone was too full to eat the almond jelly. Then, the most well-fed boss said, "I'm full too." We, the subordinates, couldn't let the boss force himself, so we all insisted, "Let me eat it," "No, let me eat it." Then, when the boss raised his hand and said, "I'll eat it," all the subordinates offered their almond jelly to him at once. The boss grumbled but ate everyone's almond jelly. Indeed, people in leadership positions are different. I don't think there is favoritism, but if you are planning a party in this area and considering Chinese food, I recommend this restaurant.