My first experience with Cong You Bing (葱油饼), or scallion pancakes was in Shanghai a number of years ago. I was staying in one of the city's first boutique hotels, complete with a modern reclaimed wood interior. It was great, except within the confines of the hotel, I could have been in any city in the world. On my last day there I asked the front desk if there was a great place for scallion pancakes. The lady gave me a quizzical look as if sizing me up for the level of grit I was willing to put up with....