Soy milk and pan-fried bunsa Shanghai brunch.

Soy milk, fried dough sticks, buns and wontons are a familiar way to begin a Chinese morning. You can choose a few favourites without ordering everything. Warm soy milk and freshly fried dough offer a breakfast quite different from bread and coffee.

Shengjian buns combine a seared base with a soft top. Shepherd’s purse wontons, Shanghai siu mai and xiaolongbao offer other fillings and wrappers. A bowl of wontons is a lighter option; small steamers let you try several kinds of dumpling.

Spring onion oil noodles make a simple bowl, while pork trotter noodles add broth and meat. Kaofu, braised wheat gluten with a savoury-sweet seasoning, can start the meal as a small cold dish.

For a fuller lunch, there are sweet-and-sour ribs, Sichuan water-boiled beef and dry-fried green beans, along with kung pao chicken and fish with pickled mustard greens. These bring the menu from breakfast into homestyle cooking.

Large windows look out onto Fasanenstraße, and the friendly service helps explain unfamiliar dishes. If breakfast is the reason for your visit, check serving times; allow time for dishes that are made to order.

What stays with you is a particular combination: soy milk with a bun, or wontons beside a steamer. It is an everyday kind of pleasure, and a good reason to make time for a Shanghai brunch at the weekend.