Wandering Moon Teahouse Review

Wandering Moon Teahouse is arguably the flagship restaurant in Shanghai Disneyland. Thanks to a counter service menu of Chinese dishes and Chinese architecture in an environment with Enchanted Storybook Castle in the backdrop, it best exemplifies the park’s “authentically Disney, distinctly Chinese” mantra.

Shanghai Disneyland indicates that Wandering Moon Teahouse is an amalgamation of teahouses found throughout China, and it honors the restless, creative spirit of China’s wandering poets. With its different dining rooms, Wandering Moon Teahouse also represents the diverse and beautiful landscapes that inspired China’s poets.

Each room of Wandering Moon Teahouse recreates different, authentic Chinese architecture representative of China’s different regions, with symbols from the mountains, ocean, desert, forest and rivers in them. It’s the first time the story of “Wandering Moon” has been featured in a Disney park. (I’m not sure what this last line means–does anyone know if this is a traditional Chinese story? I can’t find anything via Google, but perhaps I’m not using the right terms…)

For its unique qualities alone, it would probably be one of our dining recommendations for Shanghai Disneyland. However, Wandering Moon Teahouse is elevated to must-do status because the food is also exceptional and the ambiance is really nice and subdued.

The theme here is inherently understated. Chinese teahouses themselves often use a less is more, subtle approach with the goal of capturing a peaceful sense of feng shui.

In the theme park world where ‘good theming’ is often synonymous with ‘more detail’ (for better or worse), this can put a place like Wandering Moon Teahouse at a disadvantage. However, I think the advantage here is that Wandering Moon Teahouse effectively conveys the peaceful sense of a teahouse, something that is a nice change of pace after a busy day in a theme park.

Here’s a look at one of the seating areas during the day. While the art is pretty and there’s some nice texture, it’s not all that thematically impressive.

Here’s another seating area, this time at night. Although it’s not entirely conveyed via the photo, the mood is considerably better, and the texture the lights add elevates the atmosphere considerably.

Suffice to say, do dinner at Wandering Moon Teahouse. The difference in atmosphere is considerable, making nighttime far more enjoyable.

Not only is the mood better at night, but you’ll probably be eager for a tranquil respite from the chaos of the park after a long day of attractions.

Now, let’s move on to the menu at Wandering Moon Teahouse…

We split two dishes: the Fujian Seafood Noodle and Shanghainese Pork Belly.

Since there’s no menu online, they also serve Wagyu Beef Noodle Soup and Eight Treasure Duck. All four items looked fantastic.

What we tried also tasted fantastic. The portions were hearty, and the meat in both dishes was high-quality and plentiful. By and large, food quality was exceptional at Shanghai Disneyland.

I’d expect that to remain the case, as I get the perception that locals are very cost-conscious, and will vote with their wallets if quality drops.

If you’re planning a visit to China, check out our Shanghai Disneyland Planning Guide. It’s a comprehensive guide to the park and beyond, covering everything from transit visas to airfare to WiFi to currency and much, much more. For more photos and an idea of what we did day-by-day during our first visit, read our Shanghai Disneyland Grand Opening Trip Report.

Along with Barbossa’s Bounty (which we’ve also reviewed), Wandering Moon Teahouse is our other dining must-do at Shanghai Disneyland. The combination of menu quality and originality makes it one of the best choices in the park. Don’t let the understated details fool, you–Wandering Moon Teahouse is a thematic gem, particularly at night.

YOUR THOUGHTS

What do you think of Wandering Moon Teahouse? If you’ve already dined at this restaurant, what did you think of the food? Thoughts on theme and ambiance? Now that we’ve covered our top 2 restaurants at Shanghai Disneyland, do you want us to continue these restaurant reviews? If you have any other questions or tips, please post them in the comments below!