Every now and then, it seems that Shanghai suddenly explodes with hot-off-the-presses news about food: everyone's opening something or closing something or doing some event that you absolutely have to attend. And for those confusing times, Shanghaiist helps YOU out with a food news round up. So heeeereee weeee goooo:
• Last year, That's Shanghai hosted a Baijiu bartender challenge, where drink slingers from a bunch of Shanghai restaurant staples came together to try and make the best tasting Baijiu cocktails. This year, they've got competitors from Mr & Mrs Bund, Jean Georges, Tara 57, Hof, Closed Door, Fountain, Chinatown, M1NT and Manifesto to shake things up before a panel of judges. Surprisingly, the only place I've actually ever come across a selection of Baijiu cocktails - Shanghai Tang Cafe - isn't on the list. Oh well, if you want to see how these guys do, head down to Mesa & Manifesto (768 Ju Lu Road 巨鹿路748号) on April 14. Schtuff goes down at Seven.
• Speaking of That's Shanghai, they've headed to David Laris's newly soft opened project, the restaurant for eco-hotel URBN. Called , it sources free-range chickens from Anhui, lambs from Inner Mongolia and organic produce from well, whereever they can find it.
• Also just kinda opened: Avalon on Changle Lu. It's a "wood grill and wine bar" that will be run by Hilary Ambrose Jr., who worked in Jean George's New York "Haute South Asian street food" restaurant, Spice Kitchen. When it opens, they've promised 88RMB Canadian lobsters. Whaaat, I know where I'll be April 20.

Roomtwentyeight, the restaurant at URBN Hotel, has suddenly closed up shop... even to the surprise of URBN. Apparently, the Wagas group owned dining location boarded up one day with "no notice, no nothing." Who'll be taking its place? Probably David Laris, maybe. Whatever it is, we hope it turns out to be better than what was there before: an oversalted, overpriced version of Wagas' already middling Bistrow franchise.
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As we stepped off bustling Jiaozhou Lu and through the large and heavy wooden gates of URBN, we felt as if we had left Shanghai. The hustle and bustle of Shanghai seemed to have disappeared and already we could feel ourselves loosening up, relaxing. Just through the threshold was a small cobble-stoned, tree-lined courtyard... and to our direct left, decorated with an artful take on bamboo scaffolding, the hotel. more ›

@timrider: "Save elevator/qi che power with roof based building2building ziplines! Super quick commute & likely reduced death defiance!" Sure it's not the most practical, but it's a fun thought and it caused us to have a good laugh. If there's anything we WOULD love to do to save the environment, it'd be to act like an urban Tarzan. @timrider wins a night at URBN, China's only eco-friendly hotel, located in the heart of Jing'an. The runner ups: @leirda with "mass broadcast of Captain Planet on public transport TVs to begin the recruitment of 1.3 billion planeteers. Go Planet!" (We loved Captain Planet as kids) and @cedric_c with "Save tons of CO2/month forbidding all media besides Shanghaiist. Less CO2, Greener city, only 1 media to spend green $ for ads." (because we're flattered). more ›

Ctrip is holding another tweet contest and they've invited us to be guest judges once again. This time around, the winning tweeter gets a night in the penthouse room of URBN Hotels Shanghai. URBN, located in Jing An, is China's first carbon-neutral hotel and uses green materials and technology to make your stay as environmentally friendly as possible. Just tweet Ctrip (remember to add the @ctripenglish) with the most creative way to make Shanghai's environment a little better. We'll announce the winners next Monday. Happy tweeting and an extra hurrah for minimizing the impact your love of luxury has on the environment! more ›

By Benjamin Cohen more ›

Cooler-than-thou hotel URBN on Jiaozhou Lu (Jing-An) is having licensing issues with its hotel bar, but the "room twentyeight" restaurant is in full swing serving moderately pricey (around 150RMB for a main) food and a good range of drinks. more ›

As mentioned before, US expatriates are, for the first time, able to vote in a global primary, meaning that they get their own set of delegates during the primaries, which decide each party's respective presidential candidate. This particular event, held on Tuesday at the ecologically sound and coolly designed URBN hotel, was well attended. Computers were set up to help people register, liquor and hors d'ouevres helped people mingle, and Barack Obama's victory speech from the South Carolina primary was played on a big screen. Melanie McGanney was there and wrote about it on the Huffington Post. Youtube has a video of the speech here, and you can see some more of our photos here. more ›