Shanghai's own cuisine (本帮菜, benbang) is sweet-leaning, homey and easy to miss between the tourist traps. These are the restaurants locals actually named when a foreigner asked — plus the street-level classics.
Distilled from recommendations Shanghai locals gave a French traveler — the places they don't bother posting about.
Renhe Guan (人和馆, Xuhui) for the full benbang canon; Yuan Yuan (圆苑) and Old Jesse (老吉士) for red-braised pork (红烧肉) done properly; Linglong (玲珑) near Huaihai Road — eat, then walk it off in Xintiandi 20 minutes away. Lailai Xiaolong (莱莱小笼) near Zhangyuan is the soup-dumpling stop if you're exploring the shikumen lanes.
Fengshouri (丰收日) is the reliable local chain when you just want benbang without research. Yang's fried pork buns (小杨生煎) are the street icon — locals rate the Sichuan-pepper prawn version. In summer, do as Shanghai does: cold noodles (冷面) and cold wontons for lunch. Adventurous? Order drunken shrimp (醉虾) once.
For roast duck in Shanghai, locals point to Huayueting wood-fired duck (花悦庭果木烤鸭, Pudong 96 Plaza) — better value than the famous Dadong chain, with good small dishes. Book or go early on weekends.