To begin with, it can be hard to rip your gaze away from Liquid Laundry Kitchen and Brew’s industrial-chic decor and open kitchen. But once brunch arrives on slate slabs or wooden boards, the food takes centre stage. Weekend brunch is a feast of gastropub fare, from scones served with clotted cream and jam to flights of bacon and even an egg-white omelette cheekily called ‘The Skinny Bitch’.

By day, this modern gastropub appeals to families with its crispy pizzas and other delicious lunch and brunch favorites. At night, house-brewed beer, good cocktails, and Friday and Saturday DJ events attract a trendy party crowd.

The 200-seat Liquid Laundry is a lounge, cocktail bar, pizza parlor, brewpub and dining room rolled into one. Its now de rigueur industrial-chic style sets itself apart with customized playful touches such as flashing neon lettering above the bar and cheeky phrases stenciled onto the bathroom walls. Beer fanatics will flock to the gleaming tank where brewmaster Michael Jordan toils away, and to the craft beer wall’s 15 taps, where exclusive Liquid Laundry, Boxing Cat, imported and local craft brews will be on rotation.

Brewpubs like Boxing Cat and Kaiba Belgian beer bar (closed) have been going strong since 2008, followed shortly thereafter by Shanghai Brewery and Boxing Cat's sister gastro-lounge Liquid Laundry. Beer giant AB-InBev is betting on a growth market in Shanghai as well, having opened up its first-ever Goose Island brewpub in Mainland China. Filling in the gaps is a proliferation of small retail bottle shops that double as bars, like The Beer Lady, Beer Plus, and Brew Bear.

Former Time Out Shanghai associate editor Selena Schleh has a great write-up of this trendy spinoff of Boxing Cat Brewery, below, which opened in April 2014 on the second floor of KWah Centre. All in all, Liquid Laundry is the most well-rounded craft beer destination in Shanghai at the moment, a cool (almost to a fault) gastropub that thankfully eschews the tired sports-bar aesthetic in favor of something far more stylish and modern.

This Donghu Lu spot is so perennially popular that they had to open a second mini-me branch in the Shanghai Centre ( Lil Laundry). It's a place of dangerously versatile offerings, but before you get to the pizzas and craft beer, the pancakes (only served Sat-Sun 11am-2.45pm) are well worth getting there on a weekend morning for. The Sydney-inspired Bills Ricotta Pancakes (78RMB) come with pinenut-honeycomb butter and fresh bananas.

Address: 2/F, 1028 Huaihai Zhong Lu, near Donghu Lu 淮海中路1028号, 嘉华坊2楼, 近东湖路 Tel: 64459589Reduced Hours: 11:30am-9pmDelivery: Eleme, Meituan, Sherpa’s. Gastropub Liquid Laundry is back up and running with the full menu for dine-in. There’s only one sandwich I can think of when it comes to LL and it’s the Korean Fried Chicken Sandwich (¥98), made with crispy fried chicken, Asian slaw, Sriracha aioli, and pickled daikon.

Constantly rotating the taps, here you'll get homebrews from sister bar Boxing Catalongside other exciting local and international microbreweries. Adventurous imbibers will also be thrilled to find many Chinese craft breweries on their bottle list, which often don't get a look in when up against the BrewDogs and Brooklyns of the craft beer world. Good for: food and beer pairings, selection

For a local expat experience, start your evening with a margarita outdoors Cantina Agave at the "Corner," the place where local expats gather every night at the corner of Fumin Lu and Changle Lu, then wander down Donghu Lu for dinner at Spicy Joint, Liquid Laundry, Elefante, or any of the places on the 6th floor of the IAPM mall.

The Place: Liquid Laundry's craft brewery plus lounge concept has been knocked off by others over the years, but their brunch remains as trendy as ever. The menu is short and sweet and runs through a few classics like Belgian waffles and ricotta pancakes but also more imaginative fare like a breakfast pizza. The Deal: A la carte.

Found in the central hub between Jing’An and FFC, Liquid Laundry is a constantly buzzing brunch hot spot. A traditional omelet, steak and eggs, biscuits and gravy or breakfast sandwich can be found here but the menu doesn’t stop there. Try your hand at the Korean Fried Chicken Sandwich or a Thai Me Up spicy chicken salad.

The team behind Boxing Cat Brewery — one of Shanghai's first breweries — and Mexican favorite Cantina Agave has launched this gastropub concept on a bustling corner in the French Concession. It was the talk of the town in 2014, with the restaurant packed even on a Monday night.

We find Liquid Laundry has one of the best brunch menus in town. Coupled with their amazing cocktails, it’s an ideal spot for a breezy (and perhaps boozy) weekend brunch. Have you tried their roast chicken and waffle?