Yunnan Hill Tribe Cuisine smacks of exoticism – much like the mist shrouded rice terraces that line China’s border with Vietnam, Laos and Myanmar. But what is it, really? At Lost Heaven, it means flavorful food with Southeast-Asian roots; a melding of Chinese, Thai and Burmese flavors (the menu also features several traditional dishes from Myanmar). The chef, who was born in Yunnan and cooked in Myanmar, has taken the fragrant herbs of the region (familiar if you’ve been to Vietnam) and cooking styles and updated them; try the spicy chicken salad (similar to Thai larb), the crisp wild vegetable pancakes (which with a smear of the tomato sauce tastes like a crisp Asian pizza), and the codfish topped with browned garlic and fermented soybeans (there isn’t a cod within a few thousand miles of Yunnan, but it tastes great). And the space is a perfect match for the food – deep red, with tribal masks, Buddhist art and plenty of dark woods. The lounge downstairs is a promising chill-out spot as well. Lost Heaven, for both its unique approach to cooking and tasteful decor, is most definitely worth a visit.

More Chinese restaurants in Shanghai