Tianzifang 2024: Shopping, Café & Arts Alleyways in Shanghai

Let us lead through a walking tour of Tianzifang shanghai to help you. As it guides you through the arty places, food outlets, and shops of reputation and tries to give you the best experience of Tianzifang in a few brief notes on it. Shall we get started?

Here the boutiques and studios enshrine the fusion of legacy with a contemporary art and shopping area. With flashes of creativity and wit glinting through their wares ranging from hand-made novelty items, souvenirs, Chinese silk shops, jewelry, modern clothing ranges for men, women and their kids, the latest Shanghai pictures, posters, and much more.

Shikumen 石库门 means 'stone warehouse gate' in Chinese, and these shikumen residences are typical of the 1930s Shanghai’s form and style in housing. The restored buildings conserved for posterity using modern technology. Converting the lower floors into a vast shopping and commercial area, are just as done in the close by Xintiandi area. Embedded in the ambiance are the shikumen houses of legacy with stone arched and vaulted wooden doorways. The French concession fore-areas of yore, the hipsters, the expats, and fashion designers all appear fused into one big, explorative crowd. Looking for different things in the same area which once was unknown to the Shanghainese is today a tourist attraction of fame and renown.

Food is aplenty. You can indulge in the New York burgers and steak, Japanese sushi, Chinese high teas, French goose liver, the famed grill, melting cheese dishes, Thai ramen, or the Shanghai hot pot.

Some of the famous shops and outlets to visit are located in Tianzifang shanghai area and discussed below. The best cities for shopping are Taikang Road in Tianzifang and the East Pedestrian Street of Nanjing Road for the Chinese brands of clothing and other items, the Old Town Market Yu Garden for antiques, crafts, curios, accessories, toys, etc.

Here’s our pick of legacy stores.

Searching for the latest in clothes which are price worthy and quality conscious too? The Tianzifang’s Taikang Road is just the spot you have been looking! Visit the Insh Store on #200 of Taikang Road for the widest clothes array to bedazzle your senses with designer wear that come on a budget, are made-to-order and are fashionable too. Overhaul your wardrobe at Taikang Road and its wide variety of stores. The Insh Store means wish in Shanghainese and is the perfect destination for men, women, and kids clothing.

The Boutique Cashmere Lover will put an end to your search for sweaters, shawls, etc. Winter clothing made from wool and cashmere in typical styles and patterns that are inspirations from Chinese History and age-old culture. The elegant and everyday cashmere wool can stave off the cold, which does get extreme in northern China especially. Their guaranteed coats and sweater collections are available at Room #409 on #200 of Taikang Road

The Deke Erh Art Culture is owned by Deke Erh, who has the most remarkable book collection and exhibits his photographs, writing. Such creative pieces which make a great keepsake or souvenir to take home from your Shanghai Tianzifangvisit. Visit his other outlet called theOld China Hand Reading Room. The café is well-known and as popular as the author-cum-photographer Deke. The outlet is located at #2 Lane #10 of Taikang Road and is open from 9 in the mornings to 10 in the nights.

Want to discover Shanghai through posters? Check out the Unique Hill gallery where you can find Tianzifang shanghai through their astounding and fantastic collection of pictures, photographs, and advertisements. Their creative works cover some candid speaking angles of Shanghai, which is a vast place and hard to discover in a limited time. So browse through and enjoy the handpicked best shots of life in Shanghai displayed at the Unique Hill contemporary art gallery. They are located at #10 Lane #210 of Taikang Road.

Shi Yi Ji 石怡集 is one shop you must visit for that keepsake postcard assortment they specialized. They are so popular that they have a few branches right on Lane 248! They also deal in stationery, home accessories, and handicrafts. Another nugget of gold, here is the Bejing Fan located at #37 on Lane 248 with those handmade Chinese silk fans. The wall adornments you cannot help yourself in buying. Viral here are the magnets with the panda, soft buns, and Shanghai individual items. Soft toys shops are also a must-visit for the cuddly pandas, and teddy’s that more adults than kids appear to want. Novelty goods, pins, bangles, bracelets, and such also abound in the many arterial pathways where you learn the survival skills of loud haggling and bargaining. That way, the guide can help you bargain for the best price and ensure you snatch those steals!

When tired and needing a break to fret not! There are food stalls and restaurants galore to choose from at Tianzifang shanghai. And yes the selection of cuisines is also unlimited. There are also gumbos, cotton candy, and snacks on sticks that every other person seems to be eating while shopping. Want a coffee? Then try #41 Café Dan that blends and brews it right before your eyes. Sushi and ramen are also available on the menus of most food stalls. Even Starbucks has a shop at Shanghai Tianzifang!

The word “café” in Shanghai Tianzifang is where the young at heart hang out, and you are sure to find the crowds of hipsters thronging around. Other than the Café Dan at Tianzifang that we just mentioned try out the Kommune Commune and Mojo Bar and Café depending on what you choose to have. They are both located on Tiankang Road. The Kommune Commune serves excellent Vietnamese cuisine on an English menu and is casual and fun as a people-watching spot. The Mojo Café is in the French Concession area and is an upbeat cake shop selling melt-in-the-mouth pastries though slightly expensive. The other notable ones in the same area are Esy Café, Ily, Onadore Coffee shop, and the Seattle famed Starbucks of course!

No, this outlet does not sell teddy bears. It is the restaurant complex with the teddy-theme! Enter the three-floored fairy-world where the women flock the first-floor bar. The second floor has the workshop for teddy bears and your DIY teddy-bear packages. On the third floor is the meals section the favorite dishes are the Fried Rice Noodles, Green Curry Sirloin, and the pineapple outer plated Rice with Seafood platter. Contact them at #23, Lane #348 of Taikang Road.

Street food is ever prevalent in Shanghai and available in plenty at Shanghai Tianzifang on or near the Taikang Road. Do try the crab shell pie aka Xie Ke Huang. Fried bun or Sheng Jian, rice balls or Ci fan, Chinese-style fried chicken, the soup dumpling Xiaolongbao, and the pork chop with rice cakes called Pai Gu Nian Gao. These are typical street foods of fame in Tianzifang shanghai.

Try the outlets like Andalus, Kommune Commune, the New York-style Steak and burger joint, Street View, East Eatery, and any of the other street vendors too. Watch out as the food is served scalding hot, menus are only in Chinese at most places, and the crowds large and queued. It doesn’t matter whether you are looking to eat pizza, burgers, steaks, ribs, or bloody soups. They all taste good and are available on order at the Tianzifang area, dotting the alleys as cozy restaurants or hole-in-the-wall homes serving street food.

This cake shop named Old Shanghai serves some of the best authentic dim sum pastries costing CNY 3 to 25/piece. Their ‘steamed buns’ come in all kinds of shapes ranging from the bees, hens, teddy bears and penguins while the deserts are takes on Chinese flowers. They are located at Lane #210 near Ruijin Er Lu.Arty Things to do in Tianzifang

If you incline the skills, then the Gate #1of Taikang Road is an excellent start point for exploring the art area of Tianzifang shanghai. It is the start point of Lane #210 and is walkable from the Dapuqiao metro station Exit #1. One of the Chen buildings still stands as an art studio at #2 of Lane #210. Take a quick look at his iconic sculpture at the Eastern end the 'Icon of Taikang Art Street' as well as the Steele inscription of Tianzifang over the Lane #210’s entrance which got there in 2002. Then study the conservation and restoration of the factory building into the commercial space it now occupies replete with paintings, sculptures, and artworks. The modern works can be discovered at the Lu Shanghai where the latest in photography, t-shirt printing, art exhibitions, painting workshops et all happens.

Okay, when you see the ‘She’ in English on the shop’s name-tag, it isn’t for women only! It means shop in the art area of Tianzifang shanghai. Home to the creative the number of craft shops, hand-made souvenir stalls, T-shirt and mug printing stores, and outlets with contemporary paintings, wall-hangings, home accessories, decorative items, etc. are to be seen to be believed. Though the M-50 or 50, Moganshan Road is officially the art hub of Shanghai the Tianzifang studios are no less! Try out the Silk King, Candy Lab, Yunling Art’s and Crafts Antique stores, the Leaf Yoga Studio, Nanxi Art Gallery, Wasai Virtual Reality Experience Hall, Jai Wine and the large number of galleries on the by-lanes of Taikang Road in Tianzifang.

Huang Yongyu, the Chinese dean of the painting circle coined the term Tianzifang from the name of the famous painter of yore Tianzifang. What changed was the last bit of the word 'fang', and it's meaning which meant workshop, mill or quarter. The stele and the name 'Tianzifang' above the Lane #210’s entrance got there in 2002 and bore testament to these proponents of contemporary art in Tianzifang shanghai.

There is also a fascinating tale behind the young Tianzifang. In 1998 the contemporary artist Chen Yifei converted 2 of the old factory buildings on Tiakang Lane #210 into a studio for oil-paintings, sculpture, photography and fashion design studio. When Shanghai wanted to modernize, he propounded that the Shikumen and old buildings are allowed to stand for posterity and the public popularly endorsed this movement. And, that’s how it remains today! Cheng Yifei’s sculpture titled as 'Art Door' can be viewed at the Taikang Road’s eastern end as the welcoming and iconic famed piece of art welcoming people to the area. The locals call it with deference the 'Icon of Taikang Art Street.' The community as a whole celebrated and would meet up at the once-a-month opera concert held at the Deke Erh Art Center. Deke himself is an author and artist of fame with his studio also on the Taikang street. The practice followed and was replicated by the resident artist groups from across the globe. Wow!

Shanghai Tianzifangsituated at #210 Lane of Taikang Road in Luwan District, and the entry is free and the working hours 24/7/365. Hooray! So let’s check out how one can reach Tianzifang. For information call 021*3425*0265. If in doubt reach out the tourist information center located on Lane #210. It makes perfect sense to pick up an area map here and turn on your Google maps app.

Here is how to get to Tianzifang shanghai area which connected to the city center.

By bus:

Several buses ply the route to Shanghai Tianzifang. Use buses # 24, #96 from the Jianguo West Road, coaches #17, #41, #146, #786 from Shaanxi South Road, or the buses #36, #786, #869, #932, #933, #986, the Bridge Line #1 or the Tunnel Line # 8 from Chongqing South Road to get to Tianzifang. You can also use bus #304 and alight at Jianguo Zhonglu Ruijin Erlu Stop. The buses #104, #301, #864 or #955 takes you to the Ruijin Hospital stop nearby.

By Metro:

Use the Line # 9 to alight at the Dapu Road station and walk to the right to Tianzifang.

When you get the time to do, a spot of sightseeing does visit the Shanghai Zoo, Shanghai Botanical Garden, St Ignatius Cathedral, and the Zhujiajiao Old Town. The shops here may have different operating hours but are usually open between 10 am and 11 pm. Bars generally work late and well into the morning.

Planning and time management is the secret key to use for a hassle-free holiday at Shanghai Tianzifang. The fastest and easiest route to take is the subway line #9 to get off at Dapuqiao station through the Taikang Road’s Exit #!. Start exploring from the 3-lane intersection or Lane #270-Tianzifang here as it is close to the subway station, easy to identify and makes an ideal start point because of its location. You can also use the alleys of Lane #248-Tianchengli and #274- Pingyuanfang. These are the three primary lanes of Tianzifang shanghai at the intersection, and you can plan which way to go and cover the area. Right next to Lane#248 to its left is the main entrance to Tianzifang through Lane #270.

From the most popularly used Lane #270, you can explore the area of the art-vendors, galleries, designers, and artists of 1980s. It is full of studios, craft stores, shikumen-designer houses, bars, cafes, vendors of the creative industry, and restaurants. Chen Yifei, the famed artist, had his studio here and opted to preserve this traditional area. When shopping is not your choice in Tianzifang, enjoy the crowds thronging the streets rather than fight them. Enjoy the architecture of the old-world place with its stone-vaulted entrances. Narrow interconnected lanes and alleys that twist and bend but always return to one of the three main streets mentioned above. Start early and polish your bargaining skills well. Photography is allowed though respect the privacy of the dwellers who still may be living just above the floor of the commercialized area. A clean toilet is just opposite the Starbucks outlet.

Sinan Mansions are a group of old Shanghai style residential complex that are now served as Cafe and art spaces like Tianzifang. You can get to Sinan Mansions from Tianzifang on foot.

Xintiandi is the fashion-stop for the hipsters and the best shopping pedestrian street located in Shanghai City’s downtown area south of Middle Huaihai Road and the city center. The portion to the North is full of the old Shikumen residences and architecture style of Chinese tenements of the 1900s while the southern areas are modern and upscale. Don’t be surprised if you see the overhead wiring. OFC cables hanging low or if you find clothes hung out to dry from the windows in the narrow alleys just over the shops. The old history, culture, shopping, dining, and arts found here. You can walk south to the modern Xintiandi Style Shopping Mall and shop till you drop at the street markets outside for handbags, clothes, food, accessories and artistic crafts. If street food is not appealing, try the fine-dining options with their global cuisines from the world over. You can also find the best of the nightlife outlets here with clusters oof hotels, clubs, and bars with the hipsters, foreigners, and locals.

By walk:

From Shanghai Tianzifang to Xintiandi is a brisk 15 to 20 minutes of brisk walking to cover the 1.8km route. You can take the short-cut across the French Concession and use Google maps for directions.

By Metro:

Use Line #10 or #13 to alight at Xintiandi Station. You will have to use the Madang Road Exit #6 to and walk awhile northbound. You can also take Line #1 and alight at the South Huangpi Road Station using Exit #3 and then walking back on South Huangpi Road southwards to Xintiandi.

By bus:

Use the City sightseeing buses #1 to the Yida Huizhi stop at Xintiandi. Or, take the #146, #805 to the Madang Road station at Xingye Rd. Xintiandi or the Metro station. If you have the time, visit the nearby attractions of Sinan Road, Fuxing Park and the former home of Zhou Enlai from Xintiandi.

Closing this brief article on Tianzifang shanghai is full of fun and kitsch. You weave through the traditional labyrinth of alleyways full of art shops, cafes, trinket shops, restaurants, and bars. If you want to see, the more pricey and modern options visit Xintiandi for shopping. A variety of options to the landmarks and cultural attractions of Shanghai are accessible from the city center suburbs. Enjoy the crowds, narrow alleys, and bargaining on the streets of Tianzifang, which are an integral part of this place. We hope to see you soon strolling around at Shanghai Tianzifang and browsing at the walk-able Xintiandi areas of Shanghai.