Inside the small shopping mall, Empire Centre, is Shanghai Station, one of several of the food court restaurants. You order from a menu by the cash register. It’s not a complex menu, but this is more of a fast food type of operation, so things are made quickly. There is no wall separating the kitchen from the cash register, as your typical fast food places would have: you can see a clean kitchen with a large wok, two pots and what appears to be a rice cooker and a hot tea dispenser.

Shanghai Station is a traditional Shanghai comfort food spot. Don’t expect to find the items on your typical Chinese fast food restaurant’s menu. The owner came in to make sure we tasted as much as we could. It felt nice, that whole mom and grandma, "Try this", "eat", "eat more", and the evident pride in what they make.

No doubt that the Shanghai Station has food to be proud of. Their dumplings are well known as a must go to on the dumpling trail. But before trying those, they had us try their millet porridge. I love congee, which is rice porridge, so this was a lot finer texture, and I did enjoy it. I could see having this at breakfast or lunch as I have done with congee.

Next came their award-winning dumplings, with spicy peanut butter sauce drizzled over top. It was total comfort food. Having a bad day, a rainy day, or a cold one, you go to Shanghai Station and order this to cheer you up. Spicy, but not overboard with heat, and the peanut butter sauce on dumplings was also a first for me. I wish I could have it more often.

Alongside of the dumplings they served us tea eggs. I have seen these before but never tried them. They are boiled eggs that are soaked in tea and soya sauce creating a marble pattern on the eggs when cracked. They are another comfort food that is sold by street vendors in China.

They gave us a sample of their ox stew, with large chunks of meat and potatoes. The pieces of meat were about the size of the chunks of potatoes, where you could only fit one piece on your spoon at a time. It was spicy too and the meat was very tender.

We were served an assorted mushroom and fungus dish, which had a nice sauce. You ate it with white rice. I love having these types of dishes because the mushrooms and fungi all have different textures and juice. Next came pan-fried dumplings, your typical dumplings you dip in soya sauce with chili oil or paste.

So much food was given to us to try that we had to walk away with containers, which became our breakfast and lunch the next day. The owner and the staff truly have something to be proud of. They make things that people want and recognize, but also the items that will become your next favourite comfort food.

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Contributor Steve Polyak |

Locale British Columbia | Richmond |

Topic Food | Travel |

Photo Gallery Richmond, BC |