Restaurant in Shanghai, China
Credentialed kitchen, deep wine list, serious view.
Sir Elly's sits on the 13th floor of The Peninsula Shanghai with a Bund view that justifies the reservation on atmosphere alone, but the French-Asian kitchen under Chef Charles-Benoit Lacour and a 4,010-bottle wine list with French depth make the ¥¥¥¥ price point defensible on merit. Michelin Plate 2025 and OAD Top 413 in Asia. Book for special occasions or when the room and the food need to work equally hard.
Sir Elly's is not primarily a Bund-view restaurant that happens to serve food. The view is real and the room is striking, but the kitchen under Chef Charles-Benoit Lacour is doing serious work with a French-Asian menu that earns its ¥¥¥¥ price point on merit, not just postcode. If you come expecting a tourist-facing hotel dining room, you will be corrected by the food. If you come expecting two Michelin stars, temper that too: this is a Michelin Plate (2025) and an Opinionated About Dining Top 413 in Asia (2025) venue, which places it firmly in the credentialed-but-not-stratospheric tier. Book it for the combination of room, cooking quality, and wine list depth. Do not book it if you want the cheapest fine dining in Shanghai — there are better value options at the ¥¥¥ tier.
The physical setting is the first thing that will recalibrate your expectations. Sir Elly's occupies the 13th floor of The Peninsula Shanghai on the Bund, and the dining room frames the Huangpu River through floor-to-ceiling windows in a way that makes other Bund restaurants feel like they are making do. The 1920s art deco interior is not theme-park pastiche: the proportions are generous, the ceiling height lends a formality that most Shanghai hotel restaurants have traded away for casual-friendly layouts, and the seating is configured to give most tables a meaningful sightline to the water. For an explorer who wants context with their dinner, the room does a lot of work before the first course arrives. Come at dusk if you can — the shift from golden light on the river to the full neon panorama of Pudong across the water is the leading version of the Sir Elly's experience. Weekend evenings book out faster than weekday dinner slots, so a Tuesday or Wednesday reservation gives you the same room with less competition for timing.
The menu sits at the intersection of French technique and Asian sourcing, which on paper sounds like a category that Shanghai has oversupplied. In practice, Chef Lacour's approach is more disciplined than most: the French-Asian framing at Sir Elly's leans toward sourcing decisions rather than fusion theatrics. Expect European classical structure with proteins and produce that reflect the regional larder. This is relevant to the value question because it partly explains why the cuisine pricing lands at $$$ (the OAD shorthand for a typical two-course meal above ¥66+ equivalent) rather than the mid-tier. The sourcing ambition is built into the price. For the food-and-wine enthusiast who cares about where ingredients come from and how kitchen philosophy connects to what arrives on the plate, Sir Elly's gives you more to engage with than the average hotel restaurant at this address.
Wine list supports the same argument. With 420 selections and 4,010 bottles in inventory, this is a serious cellar by any Shanghai standard. The declared strengths are France, Champagne, and Bordeaux, and pricing sits at the $$$ tier on the OAD wine scale, meaning many bottles cross the ¥700+ equivalent mark. That is not a list for casual drinking, but for the guest who wants a well-selected Burgundy or a properly aged Bordeaux to match a technically precise kitchen, this is one of the better-stocked options on the Bund. Compare it to the wine programs at Taian Table, which offers a more avant-garde pairing format, or EHB for a different price-to-glass ratio. Sir Elly's suits the guest who wants to order off the list rather than surrender to a set pairing.
Timing matters here more than at most Shanghai restaurants. The Bund view earns its keep at dusk and into the evening, so a 6:30 or 7:00 PM reservation captures both the late-afternoon light and the fully lit Pudong skyline. Weekday evenings in autumn (October and November) give you the clearest air and the most photogenic conditions over the river. Summer humidity can reduce visibility across the Huangpu. Booking difficulty is rated Easy, which means walk-in availability is plausible for weekday lunches, but do not test that assumption on a Saturday evening or during a national holiday window. The Peninsula Shanghai's concierge desk can handle reservations if you are staying in-house, otherwise book directly through the hotel.
Sir Elly's makes most sense for the guest who wants a single dinner that combines a credentialed kitchen, a deep French wine list, and one of Shanghai's better dining-room views without having to choose between them. It is the right call for a special occasion dinner where the setting needs to do as much work as the food. It is less compelling as an everyday fine-dining option at ¥¥¥¥ when the city offers strong alternatives at ¥¥¥. For a deeper look at how it sits in the broader Shanghai dining context, see our full Shanghai restaurants guide. If you are planning around a broader trip, our Shanghai hotels guide and our Shanghai bars guide cover the surrounding context. For European Contemporary at a similar standard elsewhere in Asia, Zén in Singapore is the regional benchmark worth comparing against.
For other European Contemporary dining at a comparable level across Greater China and Asia, see Zén in Singapore and Schwarzer Adler in Hall in Tirol. For fine dining elsewhere in mainland China, Xin Rong Ji in Beijing, Xin Rong Ji in Chengdu, Ru Yuan in Hangzhou, Chef Tam's Seasons in Macau, Imperial Treasure in Guangzhou, and Dai Yuet Heen in Nanjing each represent their city's fine-dining conversation at a level worth comparing. For Shanghai specifically, our Shanghai experiences guide and Shanghai wineries guide round out the planning picture.
| Venue | Price | Booking Difficulty | Value |
|---|---|---|---|
| Sir Elly's | ¥¥¥¥ | Easy | — |
| Fu He Hui | ¥¥¥¥ | Unknown | — |
| Ming Court | ¥¥¥ | Unknown | — |
| Polux | ¥¥ | Unknown | — |
| Royal China Club | ¥¥¥ | Unknown | — |
| Scarpetta | ¥¥¥ | Unknown | — |
What to weigh when choosing between Sir Elly's and alternatives.
Solo diners are a reasonable fit here, particularly at the bar or a window seat where the Bund view does a lot of the work. The formal European Contemporary format and ¥¥¥¥ pricing mean you are committing to a full dinner spend, so solo visits make most sense if you want to focus on the wine list — 420 labels with depth in France, Champagne, and Bordeaux — or the kitchen's French-Asian menu without compromise. If the solo spend feels steep, Polux offers a comparable French register at a lower price point.
Bar seating at Peninsula properties of this tier typically allows for dining, but Sir Elly's specific bar policy is not confirmed in available venue data. check the venue's official channels via The Peninsula Shanghai to confirm whether bar or lounge ordering is available before arriving and expecting it.
Sir Elly's holds a Michelin Plate (2025), La Liste recognition at 76.5 points, and a ranking of #413 in Opinionated About Dining's Asia list — credentials that indicate a kitchen operating at a consistent standard rather than coasting on the view. At ¥¥¥¥ pricing, the tasting format works best for guests who want both the full French-Asian progression from Chef Charles-Benoit Lacour and access to the serious wine list. If you want a la carte flexibility at a similar level, Ming Court is worth comparing.
Specific dietary accommodation policies are not listed in the venue data. For a kitchen operating at this price point inside a five-star Peninsula property, advance notice of restrictions is standard practice and strongly recommended. Contact The Peninsula Shanghai directly before booking to confirm what the kitchen can accommodate.
Yes — the 13th-floor Bund view, 1920s art deco room, and Michelin Plate kitchen make it one of the more complete special-occasion packages in Shanghai. Book for 6:30 or 7:00 PM to catch the view at dusk. For a more intimate or private setting, check whether a private dining option is available when reserving through The Peninsula Shanghai.
For French-leaning fine dining in Shanghai, Polux (Paul Pairet's brasserie) delivers French cooking at a lower price tier without the hotel formality. Fu He Hui is the comparison for Chinese fine dining at a similar spend level. If the Bund view is the priority and you want to trade down on kitchen ambition, there are several hotel rooftop options along Zhongshan East Road, though none carry Sir Elly's OAD or La Liste recognition.
At ¥¥¥¥, Sir Elly's justifies the spend if you are pairing the food with the wine list — 4,010 bottles of inventory, France and Bordeaux strength, $$$ wine pricing — and treating the Bund view as part of the evening rather than a bonus. Guests who want a pure kitchen-focused meal without the hotel premium will find better value-per-plate elsewhere. The OAD Asia ranking (#413 in 2025, #369 in 2024) and La Liste placement confirm the kitchen is credible, not just the address.
Keep this venue in your Pearl passport, rate it after you visit, and track it alongside every other place you collect.
