Based on the collective opinions of 2,037 surveyors, the multi–city English–language guide has ratings and reviews for 618 restaurants and 106 hotels, of which 208 restaurants and 35 hotels are in Shanghai. For travelers serious about immersing themselves in Chinese culture, the guide provides travel tips on how to take advantage of the city's leading shopping and tourist attractions. For anglophiles, the guide also supplies helpful terms and phrases to use when navigating the city’s regional menus.

Supreme Cuisine: Shanghai's dining scene is as fast changing and eclectic as the city’s skyline. From Moroccan (Marrakech) to Nuevo Latino (Azul), cuisines from all over the world are now represented in Shanghai, just as the city prepares to host the six-month-long 2010 World Expo. A slew of luxurious hotel restaurants such as Palladio at the Ritz-Carlton, Danieli's at the St. Regis and the Pudong Shangri-La's Yi Café and Jade on 36 provide visitors with a myriad of world class eateries to choose from.

Of the guide's 208 Shanghai eateries, sushi-specialist Hanagatami takes the honors for both Top Food and Service. Surveyors voted Shintori as "one of the most stylish places in town" awarding it Top Décor. M on the Bund, followed by Jean Georges and T8 ranked 1, 2, and 3 as the city’s Most Popular restaurants. Earning Best Bang for the Buck accolades is Dongbei Ren for its "hearty" dumplings.

"This is the perhaps one of the world’s fastest growing cities," said Tim Zagat, CEO of Zagat Survey. "Not surprisingly, restaurants and hotels have kept pace with diverse and worldly new offerings for consumers."

Diners Habits: By a 68% margin, surveyors report spending more per meal than they did two years ago. However, 92% state that in that same period, they ate out just as much or more. Not surprisingly, Chinese food (24%) is surveyors’ favorite cuisine followed closely by Italian (22%) and Japanese (16%). When asked to get specific among regional Chinese cuisines, Sichuan was tops, followed by Cantonese and Shanghainese.

Haute Hotels: Shanghai's booming growth has made it a powerful magnet for international chains. Le Royal Méridien and Hyatt on the Bund are two of the more recent chain arrivals with many more scheduled to open before the 2010 World Expo including deluxe hotels like the Conrad, Jumeirah, Peninsula, Park Hyatt, W and Banyan Tree. Chic boutiques are also making their mark with Jia Shanghai and the Mansion Hotel making a home for themselves in old, renovated mansions.

The Four Seasons was surveyors' Top Overall hotel, also earning honors for Top Dining and Top Facilities. The St. Regis came in second with Top Room and Top Service accolades and the Grand Hyatt is the Most Popular hotel among our survey participants.

According to this year's survey, the top-rated hotels are as follows:

When asked how they book travel to or within China, surveyors were somewhat split, with 41% using a travel agent, 43% going online and 16% calling the airline directly.

Zagat Survey's Hong Kong, Shanghai, Beijing Restaurants & Hotels guide ($15.95) was edited by Bill Corsello, Curt Gathje, Yoji Yamaguchi, Rory Boland, Angie Wong, Jen Lin-Liu, Paul Mooney, Gary Bowerman and Tina Kanagaratnam. It is available at all major U.S. bookstores. In addition to the multi-city guide, Zagat has published individual pocket guides for Hong Kong and Shanghai. Zagat's guide to Beijing covers restaurants, hotels, nightlife, shopping, sites and attractions. Content is also available online at ZAGAT.com and on mobile devices via ZAGAT.mobi.