Shisha in Shanghai tends to find its best settings away from the obvious. The city has rooftop bars with unobstructed views over Pudong, street-level lounges on the plane tree-lined roads of the Former French Concession, and Arabic restaurants in Jing’an that run late and take the pipe seriously. The variety is there if you know where to look.
This guide covers the best shisha in Shanghai across different districts, settings and budgets, for anyone looking to slow the evening down in one of Asia’s most dynamic cities.
Read more: Discover the Best Shisha in Kathmandu, Nepal
Rambler Bar and Restaurant
Rambler is the kind of bar Tianzifang was made for. Tucked into the lanes off Taikang Road, it takes some finding, but the effort is worth it.
The setting is intimate and full of character, the drinks list is broad and well priced, and the staff speak English and make newcomers feel immediately at home. A reliable stop for anyone spending an evening in the Tianzifang area.
- Address: Tianzifang, Taikang Road, Huangpu District, Shanghai
Koala Bar Italian Restaurant
Koala Bar sits in Meilun Mansion on Nanjing East Road, a short walk from the Bund, and pulls off the combination of a neighbourhood Italian kitchen and a proper bar with more ease than most.
The menu runs homemade pizza and pasta alongside a solid beer selection, and the ground floor location keeps it relaxed and accessible through the evening. It is a good option for anyone who wants to eat well and stay on for shisha without switching venues.
- Address: Meilun Mansion, F1, No. 161 Nanjing East Road, Huangpu District, Shanghai
A Thousand and One Nights Restaurant
A Thousand and One Nights sits somewhere between a restaurant and a cultural evening out. The kitchen runs a Lebanese menu with a broad shisha selection alongside it, and the venue brings in live music and dance performances that shift the atmosphere as the night moves forward.
It draws a crowd looking for more than just a meal, and the combination of food, shisha and entertainment makes it one of the more complete Middle Eastern dining experiences in Shanghai.
- Address: 10, Hengshan Road, Xuhui District, Shanghai
- Opening Hours: 10:30 am–10:30 pm
- Contact Number: +86 21 6473 1178
Panda Restaurant and Bar
Panda Restaurant and Bar is tucked into the Tianzifang art district in Huangpu, a short metro ride from most of the city’s central hotels.
The bar is small, the owners are hands-on and the value is genuine, with cocktails, shisha and snacks that hold up on their own terms. The cheese quesadilla and sweet potato fries come particularly recommended.
- Address: 155 Jianguo Road (M), Huangpu District, Shanghai 200031
Barbarossa Lounge Shisha in Shanghai
Barbarossa Lounge sits inside Plaza del Pueblo park alongside the lake, giving it one of the more unusual settings for a shisha bar in Shanghai. The room faces the water through wide windows and the view holds through the evening as the park quiets down around it.
The menu covers a range of hookah flavours alongside a food selection, and the crowd skews international. It is the kind of place that earns its reputation from the location as much as anything else.
- Address: Inside People’s Park, No. 231, Nanjing West Road, Huangpu District, Shanghai
- Contact Number: +86 21 6318 0220
Makan Arabic Restaurant
Makan Arabic Restaurant is run by a Jordanian owner and sits in one of Shanghai’s better dining corridors. The menu covers Arabic staples prepared with enough consistency to have built a loyal local following. Portions are generous and the kitchen takes the food seriously.
The room is comfortable without being overdressed, and the service reflects the owner’s own hospitality background. For Arabic food and shisha in Shanghai, it is one of the more dependable options the city has.
- Address: 45, Caoxi North Road, Xujiahui, Xuhui District, Shanghai
- Opening Hours: 10:30 am–10:30 pm
Earl’s Court Hookah
Earl’s Court Hookah sits on the third floor of a building on Yongjia Road in Xuhui District, one of Shanghai’s quieter residential stretches. The lounge runs a broad selection of shisha flavours, with a jasmine blend that has built a following among regulars.
The room is unhurried and the staff know the menu well. It stays open until 3am, which makes it one of the more reliable late-night options for shisha on that side of the city.
- Address: 570, Yongjia Road, Building 1, 3rd Floor, Yongjiating, Xuhui District, Shanghai
- Opening Hours: 3 pm–3 am
Reborn Shanghai
Reborn Shanghai runs its shisha nights on Fridays and Saturdays only, operating out of Found 158, the underground entertainment complex on Julu Road that has become one of the city’s better known late-night destinations.
The basement setting gives it a different energy from Shanghai’s rooftop lounges, and the crowd is mixed, international and LGBT friendly, making it one of the more inclusive shisha spots the city has going.
- Address: No. 158 Julu Road, B1, Found 158
Ambra Haus
Ambra Haus opened on Nanjing East Road in 2024 and has quietly become one of the more distinctive spots near the Bund. The concept brings Shanghai-made craft beer and Western food with a German lean together in a bilingual setting that manages to feel genuinely relaxed rather than contrived.
The staff are attentive, English is spoken throughout, and the location in the heart of Nanjing Road puts it within easy reach of most of the city centre. A good shout for an evening that moves from food to drinks to shisha without needing to move tables.
- Address: 1/F, No. 123 Nanjing East Road, Units Z104 and Z105, Huangpu District, Shanghai
Rich Shisha
Rich Shisha on Huaihai Middle Road pairs its hookah with a cocktail list, putting it in a slightly different bracket from the city’s straight Arabic restaurant setups.
The second floor location above WSSPACE gives it a remove from the street that works in its favour in the evenings, and the combination of good shisha and well-made drinks has built it a steady following among Shanghai’s after-dinner crowd.
- Address: 1298 Huaihai Middle Road, WSSPACE, 2nd Floor, Room 201
The Berry Shanghai
The Berry occupies the ninth floor of Zhengda Square in Lujiazui, directly across the river from the Bund with a clear line over the Pudong skyline.
The bar runs signature cocktails and shisha alongside live music daily, and the riverside terrace makes it one of the stronger sunset spots the city has. It draws a dressed-up crowd and the atmosphere builds steadily through the evening.
- Address: Zhengda Square, No. 168 Lujiazui West Road, 9th Floor, Pudong, Shanghai 200120
Mado Turkish Restaurant
Mado Turkish Restaurant on Hankou Road brings live music into the dining room alongside a menu of Turkish grilled meats and pies that has earned it a loyal following in Huangpu.
The combination of good food, shisha and live entertainment makes for a complete evening out rather than a single-purpose stop. One of the more atmospheric Turkish dining options in central Shanghai.
- Address: 740 Hankou Road, Huangpu District, Shanghai 200003
Bohemia Cafe and Bar
Bohemia occupies a corner spot inside Tianzifang where Taikang Road meets the lanes, which gives it one of the better people-watching terraces in the area. The setting is cosy and unhurried, with a Western bistro feel that sits naturally in this stretch of the Former French Concession. Come for drinks and shisha rather than the food, and you will have a very good evening.
- Address: Shop 42, Lane 248, Taikang Road, Huangpu District, Shanghai
Discovering Shisha in Shanghai
Shanghai’s shisha scene is more varied than most visitors expect. The city draws a large Middle Eastern and international community, which has quietly built out a network of Arabic restaurants, dedicated hookah lounges and late-night bars that take the shisha seriously.
You will find them spread across the city’s main districts, from the polished stretch of the Former French Concession to the busier entertainment corridors of Jing’an and the riverside streets near the Bund.
The settings range considerably. Some venues run rooftop terraces with direct sightlines over the Shanghai skyline. Others are street-level spots that fill up after midnight and stay open until the early hours.
Prices sit broadly in line with the city’s general cost of going out, which means you can spend modestly at a neighbourhood Arabic restaurant or considerably more at a hotel-adjacent lounge without the gap feeling unreasonable.
Get the good stuff first. Join Rolling Grace for the restaurants worth crossing a city for, the stays worth the upgrade, and the places to go before everyone else. Free, straight to your inbox.
Leave a Reply