15 Postcards
Nestled in the East Village, CheLi serves exquisite Shanghainese fare like wine-soaked crab and velvety braised pork belly, all in a dreamy, tranquil setting.
"CheLi spotlights the seafood-dominant cuisine from the larger region around the city of Shanghai—all in a serene, waterfall-clad room on St. Marks Place. Our favorite ordering method here relies mainly on fish and crustaceans, like the meaty Atlantic blue crab soaked in floral Shaoxing wine. But there’s plenty of delicious pork to be eaten, too—the stacks of red braised pork belly coated in a dark soy sauce, in particular, are requisite ordering." - will hartman, bryan kim, kenny yang, neha talreja, hannah albertine
"The dumplings are surprisingly thick-skinned and sturdy at this luxury Shanghai restaurant on a balcony overlooking St. Marks, which takes a historic view of the cooking of Shanghai and surrounding areas (don’t miss the epic Song Dynasty steamed bun). Refreshingly, only the two traditional kinds of soup dumplings are offered: pork and pork with crab." - Robert Sietsema
"CheLi spotlights the seafood dominant cuisine of the region around Shanghai, all in a serene, waterfall-clad room in the East Village. Our ordering method here is to prioritize fish and crustaceans, like the meaty Atlantic blue crab soaked in floral shaoxing wine. But there’s plenty of delicious pork to be eaten, too: the stacks of red braised pork belly coated in a dark soy sauce, in particular, are requisite ordering. There’s another location in Flushing." - neha talreja, bryan kim, will hartman, sonal shah, willa moore
"With a line that’s almost always stretching out the front door, this hot spot in St. Marks Place remains one of the best places for elegant Shanghainese cooking. The décor itself is noteworthy: Red and cream lanterns add to the imperial décor with nooks and crannies snaking throughout. The menu is lengthy and there are plenty of familiar favorites to choose from, but first try asking the server about some regional highlights. Chicken soaked in Shaoxing wine; stir-fried rice cakes with pork and leeks; and peach resin stew with crabmeat are all worth consideration. Oddly enough, a recent stunner came straight out of the Sichuan lexicon: House special fish stew with Sichuan peppercorns is a must-order feast.There is also a second location in Flushing." - Michelin Inspector
"Chef Qiling Wang and his wife, pastry chef Fang Fang, are clearly in charge of this deep study on Shanghainese cuisine. There is wine-soaked chicken to get things going, while a stew of minced crabmeat and peach resin deserves its specially marked notation." - The MICHELIN Guide
