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    Shanghai On Elm

    4.3 (154 reviews)
    Closed 11:00 am - 2:00 pm, 5:00 PM - 12:00 AM (Next day)

    Order Shanghai On Elm Takeout or Delivery

    Shanghai On Elm Photos

    SHANGHAI ON ELM ATMOSPHERE

    What's the vibe?
    Moderate noise
    Casual
    Trendy
    Classy

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    Recommended Reviews - Shanghai On Elm

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    Reviews With Photos

    Szechuan Steamed Wontons
    Austin S.

    Perusing the streets for 1 night and 1 night only. I perused, perused, and perused. Wasn't sure what I was craving. BOOM! A nice employee at a dessert shop recommended shanghai on elm, to that young human: thank you! It was pretty empty, but it was a tuesday at like 7:30. In any case, it appeared all of the patrons at the bar were locals--which I love! I got some szechuan wontons and sweet basil chicken--got it a 7 on the spice scale. Everything was great. The sweet basil chicken was savory, a bit sweet, and absolutely wonderful. Super complex and loaded with veggies too. It wasn't too spicy, i honestly was hoping it'd be spicier but the waiter said the spice level gets hot quick so i didnt want to overwhelm myself. The szechuan wontons were great as well. A homey, laid back, chinese diner with great service, great food, and easy going vibes. Definitely a spot id hit again.

    Danielle Y.

    I was excited to check out this place because they had really good reviews and it opened late since I wasn't able to grab dinner before 10 o'clock, so my options were limited. Unfortunately, this is not authentic Chinese/shanghainese food. I ordered the Taiwanese beef noodle soup and it basically was sautéed Mongolian beef put on top of the noodles. The dish was extremely salty and it did not taste like Taiwanese beef noodle soup at all. I also order the steamed shrimp dumplings, which tasted pretty much like the same ones I buy at the supermarket to steam at home, definitely not homemade. The service was quick. The space was large. Since it opens late, People come in especially after baseball games. unfortunately I won't be back.

    Crab Rangoon (4 piece) had already eaten one of them
    Jeffrey G.

    First of all, kudos to Shanghai for being open at 10:45pm on a Saturday night. I think they are open until 2am. We were looking for a place to have dinner after having a late lunch. We went to the Aronoff Center for a show and wanted to have a sit down dinner. This place was busy and hopping for late at night. Lots of young kids too! Quite a positive vibe. Now onto the food. My wife had the orange chicken dinner with fried rice. I had the bourbon chicken dinner with fried rice. Honestly, there are other "fast food" Chinese restaurants we frequent that are much tastier than the food here. One of the negatives for me was to get bourbon chicken dinner that was deep-fried chicken. EVERYWHERE else bourbon chicken is a marinated chicken NOT deep-fried. Now I'll know to ask. If I had known, and still wanted bourbon chicken, I would've gotten the bourbon sauce on the side to dip. The egg rolls were just ok. The crab Rangoon was just ok too! So egg rolls and crab Rangoon = deep-fried. The reason I would've liked a marinated chicken. Our server was really good and attentive. Everyone that greeted us was extremely friendly. This was not a bust, but things I wish I'd known before ordering.

    Taiwan Beef Stew Noodle
    Devin P.

    Needed some late night eats and was surprised to find a sit down Asian restaurant still open at almost 1am. The service was friendly and timely. I got the Taiwanese Beef soup and it was very good. A lot of flavor with a little spice but not too much and It came out piping hot. My friends enjoyed their dishes as well.

    Cold noodle salad
    Molly L.

    Came with a group of 6... Service was excellent, food was mediocre for me. I got the Szechuan Steamed Wontons and the noodles were nearly disintegrated. There really was not much flavor to them at all either. I did enjoy the cold noodle salad and spring rolls (which I DO NOT believe they were made in house)

    Wonton Noodle Soup
    Tracey W.

    Shanghai has been our go-to, late night spot for nearly a decade. From 6th St. to Elm, the vibe, the service and the food consistently delivers. I typically go for either the Sesame Chicken or Wonton Noodle Soup and always leave happy.

    Crab Rangoon
    Jayme H.

    I was in town on business and got in a wee bit later than I expected. As soon as I got settled into my hotel room, I went straight to ordering some delivery. I noticed Shanghai on Elm had great reviews, even from people I know personally, so I decided to give them a go. I ordered crab rangoon, veggie spring rolls, and shrimp pad Thai. It arrived right within the delivery window and the food was still nice and hot. My appetizers were fried to perfection and made great snacks later on during my trip. You could tell that they didn't come out of a freezer. The pad Thai was downright delicious. The portion size was good and it was super flavorful. It was a bit spicier than I expected and I can be sorta of a wimp when it comes to spice, but I couldn't put it down. I like how they really piled the nuts on top because texture is a big thing for me. All in all, I wouldn't hesitate to order from here again. The price point, portion size, and the fact that everything was super tasty did the trick for me.

    Egg Roll, Crab Rangoon, Potstickers Fried, Shanghai Noodles
    Haliee K.

    We were spending a couple of days in downtown Cincinnati and I saw a ton of great Yelp reviews for this place. It did NOT disappoint! In fact, we went again the next night. Shanghai noodles are AMAZING. Loved the egg rolls, vegetable spring rolls, crab Rangoon, and potstickers (fried or steamed)! I could dip everything in the ginger soy sauce that comes with the potstickers. The service was fairly quick, and the place is very clean and well decorated. As someone who doesn't often review anything - I hope this convinces at least one person like us to give it a try. I'm going to be dreaming about those noodles when I'm back home missing them!

    General Chicken
    Lucy B.

    General chicken with fried rice was very good! My friends and I love to come hang out here late night on weekends. it is a great food spot but also a great place to drink and talk. House wine is up to par and affordable. Our server Luke was amazing! Will be back many times over!!

    Tofu Seaweed Miso Soup
    Christian B.

    Excellent and worth trying! With a great menu and fantastic food, this restaurant is a hidden gem. Service was friendly and quick. Relaxing ambiance, complements well the tasty food. Highly recommend trying it. Is not expensive and food is fantastic. Cheers and Buon Appetito!

    Teriyaki Chicken Side Brown Rice Broccoli, zucchini, asparagus.

    Went 15 minutes before closing on a Wednesday because it was one of the only places open. Looked good at first glance but boy oh boy are looks deceiving. Rice? Absolutely bland. I don't think a drop of lemon juice, seasoning or anything that would add flavor was completely absent. Chicken? majority broccoli, zucchini and asparagus. The mushy chicken(reminded me of microwaved Tyson chicken-DISGUSTING) was layered on top, thus making the portions look generous...but in reality, you've only got a few pieces to go with your what's seems like vegan bowl. The FOH lady was very kind and quick to get my order, the atmosphere seemed good. I liked the aesthetic. Wasn't able to dine in due to closing so soon, but seemed nice. 10/10 would not recommend

    Shrimp Fried Rice

    Food was very good and delightful. Service was good also had fun! The crowd after the concert nearby made it interesting.

    Date night with the bestie!

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    3 months ago

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    2 months ago

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    4 months ago

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    15 days ago

    The service is incredible, the food is authentic and the atmosphere is welcoming and not tacky or gaudy. 5 star for sure

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    2 months ago

    LOVE LOVE LOVE. My favorite dish is the Mongolian beef. Second is Singapore street noodles. Staff is friendly. Love the spring rolls too.

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    21 days ago

    I love this place so much. Go often and get new things. Everything rocks and they're open late!

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    11 months ago

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    Julia T.

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    11 months ago

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    5 months ago

    Number one in Cincinnati thus far!!! Open late, close to the River for dinner and a walk on the banks!!! I have my late nite spot again!!!

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    11 months ago

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    4 years ago

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    Julia T.

    Thank you for your review, John. We do hope to see you back!

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    Page 1 of 4

    Ask the Community - Shanghai On Elm

    Are the Shanghai Dumplings still on the menu?

    They are still on the menu per website.

    Don’t See Your Question? Ask Away!

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    Kung Food Chu's AmerAsia

    Kung Food Chu's AmerAsia

    4.1
    (760 reviews)
    1.3 mi
    $$

    Wow wow wow! That was some flavorful, delicious Chinese food -- and with a fun, funky ambiance!…read more We were seated quickly at one of 2 open tables on a rainy Thursday evening. Ordered green tea, a Jade Dynasty cocktail and pot stickers to enjoy while we perused the menu (including the picture book!). The pot stickers were delicious! More like meatballs inside, served with a I-don't-know-what-this-is-but-it's-delicious sauce. We ordered and were pretty quickly delivered our mains: How Fun noodles (level 2 spice) with chicken and Pepper Beef (level 3 spice). Both were outstanding! The sauces on both were savory and delicious. The noodles were great - not slimy like they can sometimes be but firm yet delicate. The chicken was tasty. The pepper beef was tangy and tender with a nice balance of peppers and onions. Serving sizes big enough for lunch the next day. Vibrant decor made the place really feel alive and servers were friendly and efficient. We found street parking but I assume this part of Covington gets busy on weekend nights so allow a few minutes to find a spot. Bonus tip: stop at DelGardo's down the street and get a couple cannoli for dessert. Perfect end to a delicious meal!

    Star rating between 3.5 to 4 stars…read more We visited downtown Covington and were looking for dinner - we passed several restaurants but found a great rating in Google and decided to stop in here, plus the lighting and colors were bright. Restaurant was crowded but we were sat immediately. Service was good - not super attentive but we were able to order quickly. I had to ask for more water throughout the meal and then they brought checks and boxes before we asked while we were still eating. We ordered the dumplings, orange chicken and how fun noodles. They have a spicy scale of 1-10, I opted for the 5 on the how fun noodles, and they were spicy!! Made me wonder what a 10 would taste like. Dumplings were good - though the bottom broke on them while we were eating them. Definitely homemade! My daughter loved the orange chicken / it also had cucumbers which she didn't love. My noodles were okay - nothing memorable in terms of flavor and very spicy. Overall a bright, well themed restaurant but I don't think I'd go back for the food.

    Photos
    Kung Food Chu's AmerAsia
    Garlic chicken
    Garlic chicken
    Kung Food Chu's AmerAsia

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    Shanghai On Elm - asianfusion - Updated July 2026

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