Hey everyone! I’m guest blogging over at Married Up With Wine, so please swing by and say hello! Mandy is a good friend, we met through Weddingbee where we both blogged about our wedding. She is also an Expat and is currently living in Spain with her husband and two adorable dogs. We have shared many IMs, video chats and emails about how our lives differ from when we lived in America. She has amazing reviews of restaurants, her travels, her life in Spain and who doesn’t love a girl who loves wine?

I previously blogged about Nanjing West Road’s pedestrian Street. Oh, honey! I was mistaken, the proper name is Wujiang Road Leisure Street. As I blogged before, it is located off the Line 2 subway stop Nanjing West Road, exit 3. Once you get out of exit 3, you are in the middle of the pedestrian street!

Remember that ramen place I ate at with my in-laws there? My husband and I decided to check it out again this past weekend and he loved it!

Once you get out of the subway, you’ll see Ramen Play. Their service is so-so but their deals are amazing. The food was tasty, I had a hot and sour ramen soup, hubs had black sesame fried rice. We shared two appetizers (cheese and pork fritters and lobster salad) and got drinks. It was only 138 RMB for the both of us and we were plenty full. If you’re looking for cheap eats and happen to love Japanese food (ramen, fried rice, omurice and so forth) then Ramen Play might be for you!

This was the set menu they had for 1, 2, and 4 people. It’s definitely a better deal than getting it separately but there are a lot of things on the regular menu that isn’t on the set. So have a look and see what you fancies your taste buds.

After you’ve finished, walk around! There are tons of other food places like the desserts I mentioned in my previous post, Happy Lemon, Krispy Kreme, Korean food and there’s a decent amount of shopping. Make sure you check out some shopping at Hot Wind (they are kind of like a Forever 21, cool accessories, clothes and shoes) and the mall that is attached to it. They have quite a few Korean shops, which surprised me and made me feel instantly at home. I miss being able to communicate easily, seeing Korean words made me feel a lot better!

We’re going to go back this week and give this Korean place a try. It looks like typical Korean snack food, I hope it’s good! I really miss authentic Korean food and I know we should venture out to Honqiao (which isn’t too far from where we live by cab) but I’ve been too lazy to go there. I’m also looking for a bookstore that sells Korean books (children and adult) to keep up with my Korean and to give books to my nieces since they are half Korean! 

Isn’t the window absolutely adorable? It made me smile and it was wonderfully sunny that day. I think I found my new hangout area!

What are your favorite hangout places? I usually like places with tea, a small snack and free wifi.

I discovered a pedestrian street off of Nanjing West Road by accident. I looked up another location for Yang’s Dumpling but unfortunately wasn’t there anymore. We took the line 2 and got off at exit number 3 and we popped onto a pedestrian street! 

It is a charming little street filled with places to eat and cafés. My in-laws and I were starving and ended up eating at a ramen place there and it was satisfying and affordable. I told the hubs about the Japanese ramen restaurant and he’s pretty excited to try it. Maybe we’ll go next week? 

On the same pedestrian street, I immediately noticed a Bon Matín. I am not quite sure if it’s actually a Parisian company or just has a French name (good morning). Nobody actually says “bon matín” as a greeting, everyone would simply say “bonjour”. Which makes me think that this is a Shanghai thing.

My friend Alina had bought me cheesecake from Bon Matín a week ago and she claims it’s her favorite cheesecake ever. Naturally, I believed her as she has excellent taste in food but I thought to myself “maybe the best one you’ve had in China”.  (Since I’m from NYC, where cheesecake is pretty awesome)

O……… M……….G.

It is SO GOOD. The crust is crispy and buttery, just like a good old NY cheesecake but the filling is what was most amazing. It’s not as sweet as a normal cheesecake and it’s so velvety smooth. The hubs and I finished it in two days. Delicious.  I felt a little bad because we ate the whole thing and didn’t share any with his parents. Oops. But it worked out because I bought a box while we were at the pedestrian street! It’s only 30 RMB and they have them in a box all on the counter. You’ll spot it right away when you go into the bakery. 

You’ll find that Shanghai has many branches. I’ve been seeing it in a lot of malls, I just saw one at Zhong Shang Park’s Cloud Nine mall in the basement food area.

A few steps down from Bon Matín, there is a Krispy Kreme doughnut shop. I drooled and my eyes were open like a deer in headlights. The first thought I had was “MY HUSBAND IS GOING TO GIVE ME THE BIGGEST HIGH FIVE EVER” and almost simultaneously thought “OH CRAP I BET IT’S EXPENSIVE”.

It’s only 6 or 7 RMB per doughnut! Pretty much the same price as the US! I got half a dozen for breakfast and we got the original glazed doughnut. The original glazed doughnut is the best, in my opinion. The family enjoyed it and it makes me so happy that it’s so nearby our home. 

I’m not a huge doughnut fan… there are only two companies that I love: Krispy Kreme and Doughnut Plant in NYC. I’m getting a little nostalgic thinking about DP in the LES with my girlfriends (NCMC). I can’t even count how many times I’ve been there with Meli. And I still remember the last time I went there with Jess, Qing, Meli, and Christina. Those doughnuts are gourmet, unique and delicious. So delicious that Meli got some to take back to Vivian! That is an awesome friend. haha

I went on a huge rambling fest. But… if you’re a little homesick (from America), swing by these two places and pick up some yummy sweets. I have to admit, the doughnut really made me smile and think of home. And thinking of home reminds me of my loved ones and just how much I miss them.

W and I are walking towards the bund to meet his friend, Paul! Paul is from Hong Kong and is a long time childhood friend.

I had to take these pictures before heading to the bund. All photos are on Nanjing Dong Lu (nanjing east road). This area is also a pedestrian area and reminds me of Time Square back home. Enjoy!

Thank you Apple (ping guo in Chinese) for being everywhere, providing me with free wifi!