Suzhou
This small restaurant has a lovely setting overlooking the canal that runs alongside Pingjiang Lu, right next to a picturesque stone bridge and a…
Must-see restaurants in China
French Concession
Al’s is a smart casual spot bringing you classic American diner dishes (burgers, biscuits and gravy, tuna melt) and hangover favourites (fried kimchi…
Chengdu
Carefully presented, tasty western dishes such as chili con carne or Hungarian goulash as well as crisp, refreshing salads are served to a largely local…
French Concession
This fine bistro will impress your dining companions with its creative home cooking. Choose dishes like half Boston lobster and asparagus lemon cream…
Yangshuo
Like its sister operation in Guilin, this is a top choice for first-rate Indian food, with pleasant Indian staff and chefs. MSG-free and with all its…
New Territories
Along Castle Peak Beach, this busy working seafood market sits adjacent to rows of dai pai dong (food stalls), as well as fancier enclosed establishments,…
Nanjing
Wagas is everyone's darling. The setting is all industrial chic: concrete floor, patchy and distressed white painted grey brick, staff in snappy but…
French Concession
Shanghai cuisine can be cloyingly sweet when improperly prepared, but this elegant restaurant hits the mark with its delicate flavours. It has a wonderful…
Macau
This glass-walled patisserie in the MGM lobby belongs to award-winning pastry chef Janice Wong. The display is lovely – matcha-licked croissants, rainbows…
Wan Chai & Northeast Hong Kong Island
Master Low Key's eggettes, aka egg waffles (雞蛋仔), are among the town's best. These fluffy balls of goodness with a golden exterior and a melty, eggy…
Shenzhen
A mural of the Su Causeway crossing Hangzhou‘s West Lake greets you as you enter this classy restaurant. The 11th-century creator of the causeway, Su…
Kowloon
Real Thai cooks, heads twirled in bandannas, sling yellow and red curries and authentic pad Thai at this rough-and-ready budget eatery that even sells…
Fuzhou
The antiquated spelling of Fuzhou hints at the old-world chic that's obvious as soon as you plonk down on the green leatherette booths and use a pencil to…
Pingyao
This eclectic and fun cafe-bar attracts both locals and foreigners with its daily food and drink specials. It does decent, if pricey, pizzas (from ¥65),…
Chongqing City
A trendy Sichuan, 123 Coco goes beyond the same old, same old with a bit of modern culinary flair (and questionable interior design). There's no English,…
Forbidden City & Dongcheng Central
The good: delicious Hangzhou-style dishes are astonishing value at this popular chain restaurant. The bad: it's in Beijing's busiest shopping mall and the…
Beijing
What appears at ground level to be a petite bakery selling Parisian-grade baguettes and perfect pâtisserie is in fact a sophisticated, spacious rooftop…
Shandong
You find jiānbing (savoury pancakes sprinkled with chives, coriander, spring onion and a light chilli sauce) all over northern China, but Tai Shan folk…
Zhejiang
Far more upmarket (and with prices to match) than a typical temple canteen, Zǎozǐshù serves up vegetarian delicacies like stir-fried tea mushrooms (干煸茶菇,…
Xi'an
Founded in 1898, the speciality dish at one of Xi'an’s most famous restaurants is steaming bowls of yángròu pàomó. The catch is that the diner is…
Hong Kong
Serving elegant European cuisine in the unexpected environs of a wet market's food court, ABC Kitchen is an experience you won't find elsewhere. And the…
French Concession
Even with the smart banquet halls and classy presentation, this is still one of Shanghai’s more affordable (and delicious) chains. First-rate dishes…
Macau
One of the precious few places that serves affordable and authentic Portuguese fare. A decent portion of suckling pig, fried steak or sausage and beef,…
French Concession
Peruvian restaurateur Eduardo Vargas specialises in hip fusion food slanted towards South American flavours. On the top floor of the art deco Ferguson…
The Bund & People's Square
Umberto Bombana's two-star Michelin restaurant ranges from standout homemade pastas, including seafood cannelloni filled with a mix of blue lobster, snow…
Lhasa
This hole in the wall ('Yebche Gartse Suertob' in Tibetan) is a good place to get an authentic vegetarian lunch. There's no English menu, so consider…
Shanghai
Meat-heavy, satisfying Australian dishes served in a modern white-and-wood space inside the popular Zhang Garden lòngtáng, near Tap House. Try the…
Wan Chai & Northeast Hong Kong Island
Whimsical Match Box is a hip shrine to the bing sutt of the 1950s (literally 'ice room'), the Western-style cafe predecessor of the cha chaan tang…
French Concession
One of the best places in the city for a sandwich pit stop, this affordable French-style bakery comes from the folk who created the successful Café des…
The Bund & People's Square
Afternoon heritage tea for visitors in smart-casual attire in the sumptuous Peninsula lobby is a decadent delight, with gorgeously presented scones,…
Hong Kong
Opened by a former Four Seasons chef, Tim Ho Wan was the first-ever budget dim sum place to receive a Michelin star. Many relocations and branches later,…
Shenzhen
For a cheap and easy meal, this canteen-style restaurant invites you to help yourself to petite bowls of freshly prepared (and spicy) Hunan dishes from…
Shanghai
For those needing refreshment after an art appreciation session in the adjoining Long Museum, Cafe du Dragon is just the place. This colourful hangout…
Aberdeen & South Hong Kong Island
From the heavy blue-glass tableware to the strictly seafood menu, elegant Ocean is devoted to epicurean delights from sustainable sources. The food is…
Hong Kong
The only foreign outpost of the over-the-top New York Italian-American joint, Carbone makes you feel like Frank Sinatra having dinner in 1963. Walls are…
Kashgar
This lavishly decorated restaurant inside the Eden Hotel is one of Kashgar's best, and it oozes atmosphere and is always full of locals. The menu is…
French Concession
Turkish food gets a swish French Concession revamp at smart Garlic. The hunkar begendi (tandoori lamb with charcoal-grilled aubergine; ¥160) is delightful…
Henan
A huge place behind a colourful green, red, blue and gold traditional facade. If you can rustle up a large group, this is the place to come for a water…
Kowloon
This 40-year-old shop has retained its Michelin commendation and fan following. Now the al dente egg noodles, bite-sized wontons and silky congee that…
Macau
In Macau's Three Lamps district, an area known for its Burmese immigrants, this popular greasy spoon with two adjacent shops dishes out home-style Burmese…
