Haiku by Hatsune 隐泉之语
28B Taojiang Lu,
French Concession
near Hengshan Lu, Metro Line 1 Hengshan Lu Exit 3
桃江路28B号
近衡山路，地铁一号线衡山路站3号口
6445-0021
www.haikushanghai.com
info@haikushanghai.com
Open Mon-Fri 11:30-2pm; 5:30pm-10pm; Sat-Sun 11:30-2pm; 5:30pm-10:30pm
Price Y300-Y399 per couple
Accepts International Credit Cards
- City Weekend
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"Itadakimasu!" never resonated like it does at this chic bistro. The first Shanghai branch of this popular Beijing restaurant attracts an enthusiastic expat and yuppie crowd that loves their California rolls as much as they love looking good against the minimalist decor. For love at first bite try the Moto-roll-ah and Clayton rolls.
- Contributor
Description -
Haiku´s style can only be accredited to its big brother restaurant, Hatsune in Beijing. In 2002 restaurant entrepreneur, Alan Wong opened his first Hastune restaurant on Guanghua Lu in Beijing and he has been pimpin´out sushi rolls ever since. In 2006 he partnered with Vincent Liu to bring California style sushi to Shanghai! Since then, Haiku has captured expat palettes and has served as a well-respected veteran in its category. This restaurant is not to be confused with traditional Japanese dining but with popular rolls such as, Moto-roll-ah, 119, Butterfly, and Princess Li, Haiku has changed the dining landscape of Shanghai ever since its inception.
So on your next visit to Haiku don’t forget to try some of our menu’s new arrivals like the Shichimi Roll, Sliced Pork Shabu Salad, Ika Shiso Tempura, and the Pisa Crab Tower!
Reviews Been there? Add a review!
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cityweekend
Most Recent Reviews
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Pretty good rolls... Tuna tataki and beef tataki was decent. Service was lacking though, especially for being mostly empty when I went. I was also disappointed that they were out of oysters. Pretty good selection of sake. I would give them another chance since I live in the area.
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So I was a huuuge fan (and frequent customer) of Hatsune in Beijing. I was excited to try Haiku, but the experience was just...lacking. The first floor was chilly and the second floor felt a little worn and past its prime. The service was indifferent. As for the food-- the rolls were good, but seemed smaller and a little less awesome than the same ones at Hatsune. The menu seems to have been expanded as well, but I prefer a well curated menu to the exhausting experience of reading 30 similar sushi roll descriptions. Ugh, I never thought I'd miss Beijing :)
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service is mediocre.. just "blehhh," normally its OK but when it gets busy thats when the waiters totally lose track of everything.
I link it for my blog because my reviews are normally 1-2 page single space... and theres a lot of good pictures so if ppl are interested then they can check it out if they want. But i'll always write a brief summary on cityweekend
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Hi Fattoro, most people who complain about this place complain about the service, what's your take on the service?
And for the love of god, stop linking to your blog. Post a full review on this site or don't bother posting.
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Its not Japanese, so lets not compare it to the likes of Oyama, Kappo Yu, Hisago, Miga ect. Moving forward, lets compare it to restaurant that serves california rolls in the west coast then Haiku does a really good job. They do the best job. Make sure to try the Alex Foie Roll and Motto Roll Ah. The service is OK, they are able to maintain the place ever since 2006. Sashimi quality is very mediocre and offers an overpriced chutoro. Lunch sets are reasonably priced. They have a few good hot selection as well. Overall a job well done. Probably the best place for rolls anywhere, heck restaurants treid to copy Haiku's "rolls" in Shanghai... Often imimited but never duplicated. Anyways for a full REVIEW and PHOTOS please visit my blog: http://fattoro.com/ Feel free to subscribe as well for the latest updates and reviews.
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for the level of japanese cuisine in Shanghai, Haiku is pretty good!
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Love the super Philly roll--had two in a meal last week
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Went to Haiku last week for a friend's birthday and was amazed at how delicious the food was. I quite simply have never tasted such good sushi before (although I've never been to Japan tbf). The service was top class, and some guy who I'm assuming was in a management position of some type came over after the meal to make sure everything was to our satisfaction. Of course, he may have been some random customer or maybe a soldier sent back in time by my unborn son in order to make sure that I didn't choke on the Motoroll-ah (sp?) therefore preventing my leading the charge against the machines in the year 2017, but either way he was very pleasant.
Will definitely be going back, even if I do have to ride up that bumpy-ass street on my bike.
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Excellent service :) We were fickle about reservation times and the amount of guests, and not an eyebrow was raised. The manager is SO kind, we were so impressed! He really is a darling. We ordered our usual and they were superb. Try the caterpillar, butterfly and princess lei rolls, they will not disappoint and no one will leave hungry.
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I stopped by Haiku today to purchase tickets for their Birthday Celebration tomorrow night (December 9th) it was 1pm and when I walked in the girl at the reservation desk, Wendy, was on the phone. I'm patient so that was okay, she at least looked at me to acknowledge I was there. Then as she got off the phone a group of three people walked in, and she helped them immediately. What if I had wanted to eat lunch there? Would I still have been helped second? She came back and I told her how rude I thought that was, and all she did was look at me. Possibly a language barrier. Anyway, I showed her the flyer for the party and told her I wanted to buy to tickets and she pointed me in the right direction. I've never eaten here before but have some friends who say it's really good, so I'm quite disappointed in my first experience. I hope tomorrow night makes up for this.
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this place refused to honor my birthday reservations because they were already full. giving away someone's table on their birthday because you already have enough customers is unfathomable.
i wanted to slap that fat dude with the glasses at the reservations table so bad. in hindsight, i wish i had.
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American-Japanese sushi cusine and i enjoy every time dinning there. Now they have a new spot on century avenue, just opposite to the Apple Shop!
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I first became acquainted with the Hatsune/ Haiku group while living in Beijing almost three years ago and have become a loyal follower since! When I found out there was a Haiku in Shanghai I was ecstatic! It definitely is not as good as the originals in Beijing but the mo-to-roll-ah roll is to die for and a must try! They have also mastered the simple salmon teriyaki dish, serving it medium well with a light teriyaki sauce this dish is yummy! If you crave western style Japanese cuisine this is a must visit place! Its the only one in Shanghai to serve cooked rolls that slightly resemble those in the west!
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The first sign of a declining Japanese restaurant is the temperature of the beer, when it's room temperature there is something not right. Someone is economizing, which folks, economizing with the fridge its never good news for a sushi restaurant specializing in raw food Possibly the place has new management, and still don't get that in Japan beer is served around 5 dg temp, not 20 dg.
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"Expensive price for mediocre service and better than shanghai average sushi. "
Agree with the first part, disagree with the second.
The service when we went there was just plain terrible: the staff were clustered around the till for most of the night, backs to everyone. It was hilarious watching people trying to grab their attention - well, hilarious until we were trying to get them to serve us, at which point the joke wore thin.
Ten minutes after being ready to order they finally took our order, which arrived in dribs and drabs over thirty minutes. We were surprised by the stinginess of the portions so we ordered some skewers... which literally came only minutes after we told them we were going to leave without paying for them. Nice try, but appetite and patience were gone at this point.
They tried to get us to pay for the dishes that didn't arrive, but there was no way that dog was going to hunt. To their credit, there was no wheedling and they took the late-delivered dishes off the bill.
The food itself was poor. Uninspired. Low quality.
I had the steak butteryaki, which... well, now here comes a rant:
Shanghai restauranteurs: STEAK and BEEF are two very different things. Yes, they both come from cows, but you would do well to note that they come from different parts ofthe cow and have ENTIRELY different textures and flavours. Simply labelling beef as "Steak" doesn't automatically make it taste better. WE CAN TELL IF IT'S NOT STEAK.
Essentially what I had was a cheap cut, tough rather than tender, about 15 pieces in a greasy buttery mess. 95 RMB.
For that I could have a had a REAL steak.
Anyway, the piece de resistance is supposed to be the sushi here... why? What is so allegedly awesome about the rolls? They are bland. Taste like fish. Not particularly fresh, no delicacy in the preparation and no subtlety in the flavours. The moto-roll-ah was pretty much the same as the cheap suspicious looking stuff you find in Lawson of a late evening. We had some crab stuff as well, but I'd debate with the chef if the rolls had actually been NEAR crabs, let alone had any crab in them.
We went to this place as it has been voted "Best Sushi" in Shanghai consistently for years...
I can only conclude the people who rave about Haiku have never eaten real sushi, or tried sushi in any of the many and varied Japanese restaurants that are truly amazing in the city.
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Expensive price for mediocre service and better than shanghai average sushi.
When we went there for lunch, the waitress we had was the most negligent I've seen in a while. She was not on top of her job at all. We had to wait around to order, the order came extremely slowly, then we had to wait for a really long time to get our check. The waitress ignored us several times when we waived for her.
The quality of the sushi is good, but for the price, I could be getting better. I'd like to see more creativity put into the rolls as well.
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@Haiku
Forgiven, forgotten and...forceps.
At least you bothered to reply, the Marriott still hasn't gotten back after two weeks and several emails.
I don't risk phone calls just in case THEY are listening in... mutter
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Our sincere apologies to your sir and many thanks for the honour to consider Haiku for your wedding anniversary venue. No excuse for the tardiness but our internet system was down for the past couple of days. For a better response time, my humble suggestion is to reach one of our staff directly on 6445-0021 and they will redirect your request to the appropriate person-in-charge. Again, please accept our sincere apologies.
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Sent a couple of emails to these guys trying to get some info on booking our anniversary dinner, so far no response. Disappointing.
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Is it the same with Hatsune Beijing?
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Best Sushi in Shanghai!
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Love the spicy tuna rolls!
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I'm not much of a roll guy. Baby I like it raw and naked. They served up fat cuts of high grade ish here. You will get what you pay for. It is pricey but quality. The other dishes where great except for our noodle soup which sucked(Lost them the 5th star). Don't think this is the only spot in the city to get great sushi though(a lot of Shanghai sushi spots blow). You can get the same high grade ingredients and quality served by a Master Tamotsu Otani on Yan'an Lu by Hongmei Lu at New Otani for almost half the price of Haiku. This is not an advertisement. Simply a fact.
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Forgot the stars :O
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The rolls here were oral (not orally induced) orgasms!
Of late, the quality and service have slipped in my opinion, but not quite enough to deter me from going back for more.
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is a nice restaurant, the food is good, a little overpriced but is a fancy place, so you expect that. the service is nice, good atmosphere, is a nice place to go with friends or a date.
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Although I'm not sure how "authentic" the cuisine is, I think its good service, tasty food, and a great choice for a night out. The clayton roll is quite nice, and I'm a fan of their beef tataki as well as their Kimchi Beef noodles. Its a bit expensive but i applaud the ownership being around for me a good place to go on a night out in a foreign city!
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After all that hype I've heard, we were bitterly disappointed with Haiku. The moto-roll-ah which everyone raves about was an overkill with many ingredients and sauces that we could not taste anything in particular. Good Japanese cuisine is supposed to be simple (rather minimalist) so that you can taste the freshness of each ingredient and savor the natural taste. Their roll made me think of cheap restaurants that overdo the sauces to mask the freshness of their ingredients. The sashimi platter was decent, but not exceptionally fresh (i.e. not melt-in-your-mouth). The tempura set was again just decent. Their grilled cod was very average. We've had better Japanese elsewhere in town. Oh...when we asked for the hot green tea that is customarily served in all Japanese restaurants, the waiter said that their boiler was not working and therefore could not serve hot tea. After we insisted that we did not want alcohol or cold drinks on a cold winter night, green tea miraculously appeared at the table. We thought it was quite lowly of an expensive restaurant to 'pretend' not to serve tea to force people to order drinks. If I was in the mood for drinks, I would have ordered drinks regardless of whether they served tea...
In summary, we won't be back. We would go to Oyama which is more expensive but infinitely better in food (melt-in-your mouth fish freshly flown in daily from Japan, prepared with exquisite simplicity) and experience (friendly Japanese chef in an authentic sashimi bar setting and great Japanese service). Or go to Shoka which serves very similar quality food (all-you-can-eat from an a la carte menu) for less.
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Friends keep telling me to check out Haiku by Hatsune, originally in Beijing and now has a restaurant in Shanghai. It's a high-end Japanese restaurant that is surprisingly quite casual, perhaps because we went for lunch so it seemed more like a cafe. Despite being a weekday, it was a full house, which we took as a good sign ;) Their menu is pretty extensive but we zero'd in on the sushi rolls, which we've been told are their star dishes.
The Moto-rolla sushi roll was by far the best, and one of the best sushi rolls I've had. Plump and super fresh, it was packed with ingredients and was just delicious. Beats a regular plain 'ol sushi roll any day. The other sushi roll we had was with with fresh scallops and caviar. The scallops were divine and had a fantastic mild flavour, but the caviar provided an unwelcome texture next to the smooth scallops - it was too hard and gritty and I ended up digging it all out with my chopstick. That done, the sushi roll was great :)
I couldn't resist the Deep fried soft-shell crab the moment I saw it on the menu. However, I was disappointed when there was just 1 small crab on the plate. For the prices they're charging, it sure was a let down. Fortunately, it was perfectly cooked - tender and moist inside, crispy and crunchy on the outside.
Their Cha Soba was also a winner. It came twisted upon a bed of soft crushed ice, and with a little saucer of condiments alongside it. Normally, I find most soba is about the same, and so was impressed with how delightful and tasty theirs was. I'd definitely order this one again!
Overall, I found their food very good, but rather overpriced. That's because we get amazing, super-fresh Japanese food in Australia for cheap, so I could be biased. I found their complimentary starter and dessert also rather odd (and generally not very nice) but since they were free, who was I to complain? :)
PHOTOS HERE: http://beverly.livejournal.com/765612.html
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I think this is not really the best japanese restaurant in town for what`s offer (i eat last time frozen sashimi and very oily ,soft tempura :( )the service staff is polite but not really good tranned...ambiance is nice
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I am still more impressed with the digs in the Hatsune at Beijing. Nonetheless, the restaurant "chain" has some of the best sushi either here or in the Northern Capital. Everybody toots the Moto-roll-ah, but I'm more a fan of the 119 roll.
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great food overpriced but always had great time overthere
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All time reliable favourite from years back but a lot of poor reviews turned me off lately. Went back for the first time in AGES just to check for myself and it was still great! Just as I remember............Moto-roll-ah. Butterfly rolls. Spider rolls. Mmmmmmm.
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very nice food, good service, excellent for bringing friends who come to travel here
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This California style sushi restaurant presents an alternative to all-you-can-eat gorge fests while keeping prices below those of high-end joints. Their signature salad with miso dressing is a good kick off to the meal and I like to follow with the Motoroll-ah, Princess Li, and Amy rolls. A decent selection of hot and cold sakes makes this place a suitable start to an evening on the town. For sushi lovers, Haiku is a must try.
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The food is still amazing so i won't go on about it (though I must slip in that the Beef Teppanyaki lunch set is to die for!).
Service. Ok, I have big issues with this. Don't get me wrong - I've always been a huge fan of Haiku and will still continue to go there and recommend to friends. However, lately, I noticed that the basic standards of staff servicing has dipped rather significantly.
We were there yesterday for lunch and we were served by the most grouchiest staff ever. She was abrupt, raised her voice aggressively at us when we tried telling her we wanted our beef "medium rare" and not "medium well" which she kept insisting on, and never once smiled or gave a positive reaction when we thanked her for pouring us tea or serving us our food. Surely, when a customer says "Thank You" and acknowledges you, one would at least try to give a smile - basic courtesy and Service 101 rule of thumb.
I'd never wish to be served by that lady or anyone similar to her ever again. She might be having the worst day in her life but this is Haiku, not some jing-jang dodgy restaurant. So if you can't put your moodiness aside for those few hours of service, I think you should think twice before putting on the uniform.
For this point, I'm giving Haiku a 1 star this time round. Just based on servicing.
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Moto-roll-ah.... yes please! Haiku does a wikid lunch set and dinner time, the ambiance, setting, service and food is perfect.
I'm going back there for the hundredth time this Friday with a visiting relative - can't wait to sink my teeth into the soft shell crabs and moto-roll-ahs!
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Overpriced ! Overrated ! Rolls are good but damn expensive, and the decor is already decaying. I had an awful peach martini blended by a hesitant bartender before dinner because we had to wait for our table for 20 minutes (despite booking ahead)...
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Lunch is pretty good here - decently priced and food is fresh. The sushis are innovative but way too expensive for what it is. Dinner here is at the high end and this place caters only for expats. Did not see a single local customer on the 3 times I dined here. There are better Jap deals in town and unless you want to rub shoulders with other fellow expats - can't really think of any reason to return.
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Actually, i forgot to put stars up in my last post. Anyway, fabulous place. And you really can't feel bad at the end of the meal, because you're satisfied, and everyone convinces themselves that japanese type food is healthy. So, ya leave with a better than average feeling :)
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One of my favorite places. Unfortunately, I have to treat this place as a special occasion only, because I would more than tend to order a decent amount of food here (the rolls are delicious). I only wish they would have lunch specials, espescially or sherpas for delivery. Something like a bento set, or cheaper rolls, I would order there everyday. Additionally, this place would be SPECTACULAR for Sunday brunch recovery, if only they had a brunch program.
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Still going great after 2 years. Reckon they have the best value lunch sets (monday to fridays) - good price, quality food. Service has also improved - back 6 months - the lunch sets was very slow at times - well done team!
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First time wasn't impressed with the M-roll or others we tried. But recently was back for special function and was wowed by the imaginative sushi creations. Excellent creation and execution. Done with love.
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HBH was all in all a good experience. After having heard all the praises abouthis place we decided to head there ourselves in a group of four last saturday. First impression, nice decor from the outside, easy to find on the re-re-renovated Taojiang Lu. 2nd impression, no staff at the door, just one busy completely helpless receptionist on the phone.Noto to self: BAD. Ok, we got a great table at the many windows but no real attention by the not scarce staff. What is WRONG with you people? I sit, i need a wet towel, and a tea. Not rocket science, but comon courtesy in OTHER upper class joints. The Sake infused Martini-like Cocktails were nice though. So was the ice cold draft (asahi) after. The choice of rolls is incredible. Even the pickiest diner will find something to his or her liking. If rolls don't do it for you (well, why are you here in the 1st place ?)-there is sushi/sashimi and hot japanese food to choose from. The Beef Tataki for example was sublime (even though we tried the 'normal' variation and not the 288RMB Wagyu one). All in all a very pleasant evening, if you have the right seat AND get the attention of the waitstaff. Still, after the place filled nicely up after 21:00 it got rather noisy. Nevertheless, we will be back for more delicious roll-tasting.
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Yeap, best western/CA style sushi in Shanghai. 119 I wasn't a big fan of but the Ninja, Motoroll -ah and Butterfly were great.
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Easily some of the best Western-style sushi in Shanghai. The Clayton Roll is a must-try. Packed to the ceiling on the weekends - so make sure you book a table in advance.
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The 119 roll is frankly, delicious. For those who haven't been here yet, this is a rendition of spicy tuna, and a damn good one. The tuna was of melt-in-your-mouth quality. Definitely, in a word, delish.
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Look out, this one is expanding across the river to Lujiazui. That's right Pudong dwellers, you will have your very own Haiku to call home very soon. But if you still want to come over to ours, we understand.
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This place is packed in Beijing We'll see how they come off in Shanghai against all-you-can-drink/eat joints and really swanky Japanese restaurants
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Loved It!! I have dined at Haiku for dinner and lunch and enjoyed myself both times. The food, staff and ambiance are all superior. It reminds me of the Japanese-fusion restaurant I frequent at home in the US. Loved it!!!
A sanctuary for the senses There have been many attempts to pair style and substance in recent eateries sprouting around town. Haiku balances both perfectly. Muted colors, concrete architecture, and a gigantic mural splashed a zenful, chic welcome. To start, their signature salad with plum dressing (¥38) was just tangy enough to awaken our taste buds. The assorted sashimi combo (¥158, small) offered fresh, meltin- your-mouth slices that pass the ultimate Japanese restaurant test with flying colors. The Motoroll- ah (¥75) with deep fried spicy tuna, snow crab, maguro, avocado and "secret sauces," left us speechless – and not only because we'd stuffed our mouths full. Needless to say, the batteredto- perfection assorted tempura (¥62) and marinated (for three days!) grilled silver cod (¥68), kept on delighting. We shall be back to dine on the second floor to take advantage of its floor to ceiling windows. Itadakimasu! - Emily Chu