Coming in Sichuan hot with this one! Visit one was so good, I had to come back and this time with friends who know even more than I do about the cuisine! In case you're not aware, though the name of this restaurant references a specific city in northern China and the menu has dishes from across the country, their specialty is the spicy and numbing cuisine of the Sichuan region. If you've never had this before, when you see dishes listed as spicy, they may be very different from what you're thinking. It's certainly can be a polarizing experience, with many loving this flavor and many not into it at all, but the broad menu makes this a great call for everyone. Now I love dining with others who are familiar because it lets you explore the menu through their eyes and enjoy selections made by others with taste diverse from yours. My friend picked several dishes I would've never noticed or ordered blindly this time, and I'm so happy about that. We enjoyed the cold Woodear or black fungus in chili oil, classic snow pea tips with garlic, as well as the quintessential Sichuan cumin lamb, but the other three dishes we had were 100% new to me. Those included Sichuan snails (unshelled in an oily spicy stir fry), scallops with garlic and vermicelli, and crispy spicy intestines. The snails were a win. These are small and somewhat chewy morsels that get wok fried with fried chili, chili oil, peppers and onions. The texture is similar to sautéed calamari, but a bit firmer, and the sauce coats everything with that signature numbing heat. The scallops were the big miss. This dish typically comes in the half shell with fresh scallops, but here they're using a lower quality scallop (likely frozen) and a lot of pre-minced garlic (like you'd find in a jar). It looks impressive but the scallops had absolutely not flavor and the texture was rubbery too. Skip this one for sure. The intestines were the surprise. I've had fried intestines and they crunch like a chip and have no distinct flavor that lets you know what you're eating. These were sliced on the bias and wok tossed until super crispy on the outside with a delicately chewy interior. The sauce really amplified the flavor and this all made for a great bite within the whole meal. All in all, this is a home run. If you haven't been, I urge you to check it out, as it's one of the best authentic Chinese restaurants around. read more

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High expectations because of my son's recommendation, so I was only a little disappointed. The food was mostly good, and some REALLY good, but overall I was a little disappointed. We started with an appetizer that was a bit dry and tasteless, then moved on to the main courses. I had the shrimp with the fried noodles. It was fresh and enjoyable, but the broth literally wasn't seasoned. Salt please! My son's duck was also good but definitely overcooked and dry. The best by far was his friends Szechuan Beef, which would probably have me come back just for that. The restaurant is in a cute little strip mall and the interior was quite cozy and attractive. The service was also a letdown, as there was no friendliness, no smiles, just clinical service. Overall I would say there are many other restaurants I would choose over this, but we had to give it a try. Cheers, JimG read more

Shanghai Bistro - Inside - Chinese Near Me - Reno, Nevada

What an absolute gem in Reno. Easily the best, authentic Chinese food I've had in Northern Nevada, possibly ever. Tucked away in the back of an unassuming shopping mall is Chinese cuisine well worth making a trip for. I was immediately greeted when I entered, and started with some hot tea. I ended up ordering Garlic Cucumbers and Dry Stir Fried Pork Intestines. The cucumbers were light and refreshing with a punch of garlic. The intestines came out crispy and piled high with red fried chilis and szechuan peppercorns. I am a huge spice nut and this absolutely hit the spot! (If you have a low spice tolerance you may want to ask for less spicy as the server did not ask how spicy I wanted it). The cucumbers were the perfect accompaniment to balance the heat and numbing from the chilis. When I first looked at the menu, I thought the prices were a bit high. After seeing the enormous portion sizes, it all made perfect sense. There was easily enough for 2 full meals for me (245lb, 6ft3in man with an appetite). The portions are clearly designed to be shared. On that point they also feature traditional Chinese style banquet seating with the lazy suzan in the middle for family style eating. All told I was extremely impressed with the food quality, service, portion sizes and ambiance. I will absolutely be adding Shanghai Bistro to my regular rotation! read more

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Overall a solid Chinese food place in Reno. So happy to have found it! We were greeted immediately upon arrival, sat down and asked what we would like to drink, we had some nice hot tea. Very low key, chill place. Would return again to try many other dishes! read more

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My sister, her family and I headed to Shanghai Bistro for lunch. When we arrived at the restaurant, they had just opened for lunch service, so the restaurant was still empty but a few moments after our 5-person party was seated at a corner table, more customers started to arrive. The proprietress greeted each and every customer warmly as they walked through the door. It didn't take long for us to decide what to order (we're creatures of habit, we go with sure bets); so we ordered the same dishes from our last visit: the salt-and-pepper (fried) chicken wings, the potstickers, and the salt-and-pepper calamari appetizers. For our entrees we ordered the house fried rice, the honey garlic chicken, and the honey walnut shrimp. Our wait was very minimal, all the appetizers arrived at table almost immediately, followed soon after by the main dishes. The food was well-seasoned and expertly prepared similarly to our last visit (consistency is good), everything tasted delicious and we nearly finished all the food this time. The service was polite, friendly and attentive. After our meal, the proprietress graciously thanked us for our patronage-- that's always cool and we thanked them in return for the wonderful service and the great food. Once again, we left extremely satisfied and with full happy bellies; I look forward to our next visit. read more

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The quality service and down-to-earth decor screams local business which I love. However I do think the food photos on the wall is a bit much and distracting. The alcohol selection is limited even though you are greeted by an abandoned bar as you enter. The wonton soup is good but the flavor is very subtle. Salt-n-Pepper pork chop is thin cut, dry and a bit chewy. The honey walnut shrimp is fantastic! And the House Pan Fried Noodles dish is very good. This store seems to have a steady stream of customers with a loyal following and I know I'll be back again. read more

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Small locally owned and operated Chinese restaurant in a strip mall. Lots of parking with ADA access. Not a fan of the walls covered in photos of the dishes, especially since most don't have a name or description. Service was very good and attentive. They Our party of 6 had a number of dishes off the menu, Food served fast and fresh. My favorite is the House Pan Fried Chow Mein. Lots of vegetables and variety of proteins with a tasty stir fry that tops a dry pan fried noodle. read more

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Walked in for dinner, the ambiance is nice and casual, I was greeted by friendly waitress the service was quick, as I came in to order for take out. The food is amazing, I ordered beef chow fun. The chow fun was well balanced. Good texture, but too salty. Just right. The beef is good, not chewy. Well be recommended this place to family and friends. The restaurant is located behind black bear diner and next to a gym, and nutrition protein bar. read more

Shanghai Bistro - Menu - Chinese Near Me - Reno, Nevada

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I unlocked a new favorite Chinese dish here. The salted egg tofu was absolutely mind blowing and easily the highlight of the meal. Their other dishes were also really good, including the chow fun, salt and pepper chicken wings, and the spicy wonton. Everything was flavorful and satisfying. Service is typical at a Chinese restaurant. I would definitely come back if I'm ever in Reno again. read more

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New owner and new menu and service, not bad! Not only Shanghai style dishes, more choices! Must tried their spicy dishes! They have a bar and TV ti watch live games! read more

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Excellent food. Nice decor. Extra large servings. The waitresses spoke very little English Everyone else in there was Asian. Our meal was superb. We would definitely go back. read more

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Delicious food, excellent service and nice ambiance! We love Shanghai Bistro! Wonderful welcoming atmosphere!

Third time is NOT a charm. This is the third time Shanghai has reopened--and unfortunately, it's the weakest version yet. The original chef is gone, along with beloved menu staples like the fish in wine sauce, steamed shrimp with garlic, and (from what I've heard) the once-excellent beef in chili oil, which has lost its former glory. Where the restaurant once stood out as a gem, it has now settled into mediocrity. What was once exceptional is now exceptionally average. A disappointing turn for a place that used to be something special. read more

I have no idea how this place got four stars. We ordered sweet and sour pork, orange chicken, spicy shrimp, and potstickers. It was all just plain lousy. Everything tasted cheap and old, even the fortune cookies! We ate some of it because we were hungry, literally spit out the fortune cookie, and threw all the rest out. A complete waste of $100 (including door dash fees). read more

Update : we went back for lunch. It was AMAZING. Had the Combination Fried Rice, Dry Beef Chow Fun and Salt & Pepper Pork Ribs. Everything was delicious. Here is how our first time at Shanghai Bistro went. My sister-in-law is Taiwanese and wanted some authentic Chinese. After a quick search on Yelp, we stumbled upon Shanghai Bistro. The restaurant is quite large with a good amount of seating. Our service this evening was by the owners, our server for the evening and her husband is the cook, of over 15 years. We started our meal with the Hot & Sour Soup and Egg Rolls. The Egg Rolls were "good" with lots of vegetables and a nice snap. The Hot & Sour soup was definitely hot and a bit too sour (for my taste). It was rich with tofu, bamboo shoots, mushroom and other niceties. For our mains, we ordered the Combination Meat and Tofu Clay Pot. Expecting more of a thicker gravy served over tofu and veggies, we were surprises by the soup that was delivered. Still quite flavorful and delicious, it was just different from what we expected. The star of the evening was the Garlic Green Beans with Minced Meat. O-M-G was this delicious. The Green Beans were fresh and cooked to perfection. the Beans were rich with flavor. A must order item! My sister-in-law ordered the Napa Cabbage Pork Rice Cake. A delicious order, she said that it "reminded her of home". My wife ordered the Salt and Pepper Pork Ribs. We had never had this dish served quite this way, but I must say, it was absolutely amazing. The pork was tender and full of deliciousness. My go-to dish is the Singapore Rice Noodles. Not exactly a dish from Shanghai, but the restaurant still delivered. While I would have preferred a bit more curry in my dish, overall, the Singapore Rice Noodles were a solid offering. If you are looking for a balance of authentic Chinese and a bit of Chinese adjusted for the American palette, Shanghai Bistro is your place. read more

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Foods , services, ambiance are super great!! Employees were friendly, clean and fast. Prices are fair.

I had fish cakes with vegetables and black fungus. The food was good. I don't know what else to write.

Looks like some negative reviews are attributable to former ownership. Also note, chef change so this is cantonese cuisine, not shanghainese. This is one of the few places in Reno to get actual real chinese food I can muster to eat and find edible here. Reno is not a destination for food, and certainly has little to no chinese food besides three places. The chinese food is either inedible to my taste or way overpriced here for mediocrity. It's one of the few downsides to living here but not a big deal since I just fly back to SGV for my food. But Shanghai Bistro can temporarily and somewhat adequately fill in the gaps for me in between trips. read more

Great food and great service. New management and new chef. Newly remodeled and cleanliness. Reasonable price and very authentic. Must give it a try. No bias. read more

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This Shanghai-style Chinese restaurant is actually pretty solid. The flavors are on point, and if you're into spicy food, they've got a few Sichuan dishes too. If you're in Reno and not feelin' Western food, this place is definitely worth checking out read more

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Quality/Quantity - Lunch Menu Combo Chow Fun - Soy sauce/salt forward, if you like that. The beef was tender. Fresh onions. It reminds me of my childhood, but I have outgrown this type of flavor. This was suggested to us as a better deal than ordering from the regular menu. So we decided to order both to compare. Beef Chow Fun - Regular full order, the owner was correct as the lunch special was almost the same size for $3 less. Similar flavors as above, except the above was a combo. Singapore Style Rice Noodle - Our guest commented that it tasted a little "grainy?" As if the curry powder was not mixed 100%...? It also had a puddle of oil in the bottom of the dish. Decent quantity and flavor. The combo version. Atmosphere - Small family run business. Open 7 days a week from 11am to 8pm. Service - Good. Price - $48 + tip. Owner Suggestion - Congrats on your success since 2019, wishing you the best. read more

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Best Honey Walnut Shrimp ever!!! When in Reno be sure to visit. You won't be disappointed!! read more

Shanghai Bistro - Chinese Near Me - Reno, Nevada

Food is delicious and tastes great. Fast and prompt service. Very clean establishment and price is reasonable for the portions. The food came out really quickly and was freshly made with good ingredients. My favorite dish was the deep fried tofu that was super crunchy on the outside and soft in the inside. The honey walnut shrimp was a hit with my kids. We are visiting from the Bay Area and it was great to see such good quality while traveling. read more

There is literal bugs in the war wonton soup you can see them all in the soup absolutely disgusting read more

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SOLID. Large menu with standards like beef & broccoli (TONS of vegies, meat was tender) and pan fried noodles. Could have used a little more noodles but lots of chicken and vegetables in a nice light sauce. Some more exotic entrees like pigs intestines, etc. Honestly was surprised to find such authentic food in Reno. :) About average pricing these days $16-20 per entree. $2 for a bowl of steamed rice Nice ambience, clean. We went mid afternoon and were the only ones there. The waitress was efficient and prompt. read more

We wanted something different then the normal Cantonese style Chinese food. The waiter was helpful in helping us select different dishes . Spicy is not a worry for us. All three dishes were flavorful and not overly spicy. Even the fiery red chili oil dish. It's a small mom and pop type of place. Not fancy but fresh cooked food . It comes out hot and quick. Wish they had a menu that explains each dish in more detail. So we can understand and get better educated on the differences of Chinese regional cooking. Will go back again to try more different dishes . They told us they even have a hidden menu. I'm sure it's for the more advanced adventuress diners. Authentic Shanghai food. read more

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In hopes of trying something new, we ventured over to Shanghai Bistro for a takeout order. I placed an order online at 5:30p, with the order saying it'd be ready at 6. I showed up at 6p to an almost empty restaurant, an odor of sewage that was clearly being masked by scented candles and an propped open door (it was 35° out) and was told to wait another 15 min. The host offered me water, to which I declined. Our food was packed into a box which was nice. Here's the issue, every single thing we ordered was awful. We got Mongolian beef, pork fried rice, sesame chicken, walnut shrimp, egg rolls and potstickers. The Mongolian beef had no flavor, aside from the green onion; shrimp was sweet and fishy; sesame chicken tasted like deep fryer oil and not sesame; fried rice was soggy, flavorless and lacking everything I'd hope for in fried rice; potstickers were overcooked, dry inside and came with vinegar sauce; egg rolls tasted like they came from a freezer burned bag. I've never been so disappointed in a meal, let alone Chinese food. It wasn't even worth saving the leftovers, even though I spent well over $100 for this spread. We will not be back. read more

First of all - I've read some of the reviews and they are ridiculous. If you want Panda Express tasting Chinese food then go to Panda Express or PF Chang's or wherever you developed your sophisticated Reno Asian food palate. I stayed away from the orange chicken/walnut shrimp/sweet n sour pork/etc type of Americanized dishes because you can find them everywhere. Here are the legit stand outs. Hot and sour soup. This is one of my favorite soups and is done so well in Asia but tends to be diluted in the States. That's because it tends to be too spicy and too sour for most people but that is where the beauty of this dish is. The spicier and sour it is the better it is IMHO. I think the best hot & sour in town. Tasted like this famous hole in the wall joint in Taipei that I frequented on my last trip. Ah - the pan fried rice cakes. So delicious. As good as Thumbling in Covina, CA. The cucumbers were fresh and crisp. The sizzling beef was tender. When I go back - I'll try the wonton soup next. read more

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Best genuine Chinese food in Reno! They even serve egg foo young and sweet and sour pork for Westerners.

We were a group of 4 and came in around 6:50pm. They were quite busy with 4 other tables. The server came to get our drinks and my boyfriend asked for water and a beer and I just got water, but they never got him his water. It seemed like they had a difficult time understanding unless we had someone speaking Mandarin to help translate. We ordering the following items and they came in this order: 52: Shanghai Bacon rice: Never had something like this before. It had chopped bok choy and chopped pork belly mixed in rice. The rice seemed very wet/oily. 3/5 Special: Beef ribs (Lunar New Year Special): This was my favorite among everything we ordered! It was beef short ribs mixed in a savory sauce. The meat was very tender and went perfectly with the sauce and some rice. Unfortunately, this is not regularly on their menu. 5/5 46: Griddle Cooked Pork Intestine with Veggies: This was quite spicy, but good. The pork intestines seems to have been cleaned well. The veggies consist of broccoli, boy choy, and carrots. I thought it would have came in a larger bowl. 4/5 54: Steam Flounder Fish: The first round when it was served, we went into the meat and it was still very raw (pink!). The owner came by and we let him know and he brought it back to get it cooked some more. The second time it came out, it was cooked and not pink anymore. The fish was okay after it was cooked properly. 3/5 Special: Snow Pea Leaves: They forgot this item and brought it out in a hurry so it was undercooked. If it was cooked just 2 minutes longer, it would have been perfect. It is stir fried with garlic which is simple, but seasoned well. 3.5/5 43: Braised Pork Belly Shanghai Style: This comes with bok choy, the pork belly and a ball of egg yolk. The pork and the egg was good. The bok choy was still very raw since they were rushing. 3/5 X3 bowls of white rice: $1.50 each and tasted like regular white rice The owner recommended the two specials because they were not on the menu. All the dishes came out one at a time (about 10-15 minutes between the first 4 dishes). He wrote down everything we ordered, but the last two items on the list did not come out after over an hour and we had to flag down the owner. They thought we got the order, but forgot about them. When they realized, they cooked the last two in a hurry. Maybe the food would have been better if they weren't so busy and in a hurry. The interior decor looks very nice. There is a bar, but it is not being used. Each of the dishes were on the expensive side as well. Our total came out to $150. The staff seems nice and the owner constantly checked on us to ask how the food was. Based on this experience, I would not come back because of the quality of the food. read more

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As someone who has eaten a lot of Chinese food across the west coast, especially in So Cal, this has to be some of the best Chinese food I've had! Not only is it incredibly authentic, but it's also fairly priced, and with portions to match! So if you're looking for good, authentic, and quick Chinese food, come here! read more

Authentic Cantonese & Sichuan food in Reno. Wonderful service. Clean restaurant and bathroom. Highly suggest the Pineapple Fried Rice, and the Hot boiled fish was absolutely delicious. The owner is so kind and attentive. Don't miss this place while in Reno. read more

Shanghai Bistro - Pineapple fried rice - Chinese Near Me - Reno, Nevada

Awesome food and awesome service this women was a good server also answered all my questions and good portraits and came and check on how we were doing will come back read more

This is a little hole in wall gem in Reno. We were in a rush and pulled into the Black Bear Diner parking lot for lunch. We decided we didn't want to wait and spotted this place. The staff was friendly and the service was fast. All of the food was flavorful and well balanced. Nothing was too greasy, too heavy, or too salty like a lot of the Chinese places in Reno. The soup was packed with rich unctuous flavor and would've made a meal in of itself. They have lots of standard Chinese options, but many specialties for the more adventurous. We will definitely go back. read more

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I'm sorry to write this review as we're former Chinese restaurant owners (we're retired now) and know what I'm talking about as our restaurant was written up in the Wall Street Journal. We always like to support restaurant owners as we know very well how difficult it is to run a business and to put out quality food and most of all, to give great customer support. We ordered the following: 1) Salt & Peppered Tofu - there was NO salt or pepper to this dish. It was VERY bland. This dish was a favorite of our customers and I wanted to try this to see how they made it. (picture shows 3 pieces but there was more - picture was taken after we had eaten some). 2) Kung Pao Chicken - it appeared to me that the taste was overrun by the peppers. Plus there was sliced celery in the dish which I've never had before. Sauce was goopy and VERY oily (you can see it on the container). Peanuts were just thrown on top of the dish (they weren't cooked along with the dish). Picture shows that it was mixed up in the dish which I did that before I tried it and took the picture. Normally the peanuts are quickly cooked along with dish, not just thrown on top uncooked. 3) Sauteed Green Beans with Ground Pork - I've made this dish and this was not ground pork or who knows what this was, it wouldn't look like what this picture portrays. The green beans were overcooked, not plump and crispy. Granted I took this home as takeout and I'm sure it was still cooking in the container but the green beans were pretty soggy and didn't taste fresh. 4) Singapore Noodles - I wasn't expecting this, I thought it would be pan fried noodles but apparently it was rice noodles. Again this was VERY oily that it was leaking through the container and into the plastic bag that held the rest of the dishes I ordered. It wasn't anything special but apparently I ordered the wrong thing and so this dish didn't appeal to me in appearance and taste. Again, it causes me heartache to write this review as I always like to support restaurant owners and local businesses. If perhaps only 1 dish out of 4 didn't appeal to me, I would have given it another chance and eat in instead. Typically dishes tastes better when eating at the restaurant rather than take-out where the hot steam continues to cook the dishes. But in this case, it wouldn't have matter as the sauces for these dishes weren't unique enough for us. Lastly I asked for a take out menu and they didn't have any; I was given the impression that they don't normally have them as the wife of the owner informed me to look on the web but the web site wasn't working that day. The only saving grace was that the wife was very pleasant when I met her and she was surprised and happy that I left a good tip for take out. Again, it's because we like to support our local businesses and most of all especially if they're restaurant owners. read more

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Great flavor especially the Wor Won Ton soup and the Salt and Pepper Shrimp which we got without the shells. Very quiet and light and bright inside. Lots of food for the money. We will be back again. read more

Super friendly waitress and nice family run business. It's hard for me not to give a great review as I have owned a restaurant before and understood how difficult it is to run. Im a bit biased as we have great chinese restaurants in the sfbay area and that definitely influenced my taste buds. The black bean chow fun had way too much sauce and very little flat rice noodles and very oily. The salted fish fried rice was wet and not dry. The chicken wings needed seasoning and shouldn't have garlic on it. read more

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Quite an elegant little Chinese restaurant near the movie theater. We decided to go on an off day and we were the only customers at the time, so we were able to have intimate service. The staff is friendly and attentive. But, they also gave you enough space to enjoy their food without disturbance. I got the sizzling beef platter, which was served on a hot skillet at the table. Although the presentation was impressive and the beef platter was full of flavor, it seemed kind of unnecessary to put that kind of dish on a skillet. It didn't turn it crunchy as I would expect on sizzling plates, so I found it unusual. But that could just be their unique spin on their food! Since Chinese food is comfort food for me, I inevitably will return to try more of their dishes. read more

Shanghai Bistro - Beef Sizzling Platter - Chinese Near Me - Reno, Nevada

The chef here ROCKS! Everything we've ordered here has been so flavorful and delicious! The chef really knows how to make sure that the food is prepared to perfection! Highly recommend that you eat here if flavor is your priority. You won't be disappointed! read more

The owners are the sweetest human beings ever and I loved everything I got which included tomato tofu soup and deep friend flounder