French Concession
Despite the alarming name, there’s nothing remotely barbaric about the food here. Instead, you get fine MSG-free Yunnan cuisine served by friendly staff…
Must-see restaurants in China
Guilin
A good place to sample Guilin noodles is this canteen-style restaurant located near the junction with Zhengyang Lu. Order at the front, take your docket…
Hebei
There are restaurants and cafes dotted throughout Mix C, the city's snazziest shopping mall, but head up to the 6th floor to find the best-value offerings…
Wan Chai & Northeast Hong Kong Island
There are few reliably good restaurants around town that continue to serve dim sum late into the evening (it's typically eaten for brunch). Then there’s…
Henan
For years, this Zhengzhou stalwart has been drawing raucous crowds for its nourishing noodles served in deliciously oily mutton broth (烩面, huìmiàn).
Changsha
Not a romantic choice, this bright, bustling place specialises in the mellow cuisine of northern China. Dumplings (饺子; jiǎozi) are the speciality and come…
Hong Kong
Craving fresh fruit and veggies? Drop by this vegan and raw-food haven that whips up smoothies, salads and flatbreads (available gluten-free). The latter…
Wan Chai & Northeast Hong Kong Island
Resourceful, affordable Kasa tinkers with Chinese and Western classics inside its simple open kitchen. Grey mullet is served with fermented bean sauce,…
Lhasa
Charming English-speaking Pentoc and her sister opened this simple local restaurant after working in longtime favourite Tashi I for many years. The menu…
Lhasa
Dimly lit, well-appointed modern restaurant offering authentic Sichuan cuisine, such as Chungking spicy noodles (重庆小面, Chóngqìng xiǎomiàn, ¥16), as well…
Beijing
Middle Eastern–inspired sharing plates draw the crowds to this stylish, all-weather rooftop restaurant run by the Orchid boutique hotel. Roasted lamb ribs…
Gongcheng Yaofei Oil Tea Restaurant
Guilin
One for those seeking out regional specialities is this atmospheric restaurant just north from the Song dynasty South Gate. It's a fitting place to sample…
Ningxia
If you pine for Peking duck, Quánjùdé steps up to the plate. For ¥80 you get half a duck – a meal for one – served with cucumber, scallions and hoisin…
Forbidden City & Dongcheng Central
Order the namesake dish (一哥牛肉面; yī gē niúròu miàn; ¥38) at this mom-and-pop eatery and you'll get a whacking great bowl of chewy noodles floating in a…
Nanxiang Steamed Bun Restaurant
Shanghai Old City
Renovated to spanking modernity in 2018, this is Shanghai’s most famous dumpling restaurant – some love it, others see an overrated tourist trap. Decide…
Qinghai
This lovely upstairs 3rd-floor restaurant is a very enjoyable experience. Nab a seat in a curtained cubicle for privacy; English skills of the staff are…
Beijing
Aspiring to the Chinese notion that good health starts in the stomach, this graceful vegetarian restaurant serves fine-dining renditions of the meat-free…
Suzhou
Close to the Lion Grove Garden, this restaurant attracts a mix of locals and visitors for its subtly flavoured Suzhou cooking. The menu takes inspiration…
Beijing
The speciality at this hip canteen is règānmiàn (热干面; literally 'hot dry noodles'), a Wuhan breakfast gutbuster of chewy wheat noodles topped with sesame…
Yuen Long
The brainchild of celebrated chef Leung Man-to, Dai Wing Wah is a traditional banquet-style restaurant specialising in walled-village dishes. Leung…
Shanxi
The standard mutton soup (羊肉汤, yángròu tāng) or offal soup (羊杂汤, yángzá tāng) at this popular chain comprises mutton or offal in broth with noodles. You…
Hainan
This marvellous colonial arcade is the repository of many of the street vendors swept off the street in the clean-up campaign and is easily the best place…
Beijing
A beacon of foodie fun in a dismal shopping mall, this is Nanjing's best-loved restaurant chain, recreating with theatrical aplomb the dàpáidàng ('cooked…
Shenzhen
Here you'll find the best food from the Indian subcontinent in Shenzhen, if not all Guangdong. Tandoor-baked breads and succulent meats are complemented…
Měitiānsīyú Chóngqìng Xiǎomiàn
Nanjing
This noodle joint serves vast, steaming bowls of rice noodles with copious amounts of chicken, beef, pork or fish thrown in. The fish noodles (水煮鱼片米线,…
Wuhan
Not your typical noodle stand, this popular spot specialises in two things: seafood règānmiàn (sesame noodles) served in a huge bowl that will easily feed…
Guangzhou
Known for its roasted pigeon (金牌乳鸽, jīnpái rǔgē), this traditional garden-restaurant is nestled inside Lìwān Lake Park (荔湾湖公园, Lìwān Hú Gōngyuán). You can…
Shanghai
On the 10th floor of the Superbrand Mall, this branch of South Beauty is a little scuffed around the edges these days but it still cooks up classic dishes…
Nanjing
This place is reasonably elegant and certainly no dive, yet you can order up half a Peking duck (半只烤鸭; bànzhī kǎoyā) here for a paltry ¥39, including…
Macau
Located near the Macau Jockey Club, some distance away from Taipa Village, this simple cafe evokes Portugal with amber lighting and an old-fashioned…
Henan
Join the scrum weaving between stalls busy with hustling and hollering vendors cooking up chuan'r (串儿, things on sticks), náng bread, cured beef, hearty…
Beijing
Opened by a cultured crew of local Japanophiles, this enormously popular restaurant brings together refined, minimalist design, a beguiling hutong locale…
Dunhuang
Come to this small and friendly Muslim restaurant down Confucian Temple Alley (Wenmiao Xiang) for lamb kebabs (羊肉串, yángròuchuàn; ¥2 each), roast lamb…
Qingdao
Do as the locals do and escape the heat by taking the metro out to the city's most dazzling shopping mall where a 5th-floor food court is waiting to wow…
Qingdao
The drama stage inside Jiangning Assembly Hall has been a long-time draw for renowned performers in Qingdao, and they still perform for diners here…
Beijing
The Mosto lunch menu (two courses of modern fine dining for ¥95) is a Sanlitun rite of passage, best savoured on the terrace with a glass of vino…
Kowloon
Dine on tasty Northern Thai fare like khao soi noodles, larb (a Thai/Laotian meat salad), and fried fish with lemongrass at this cheap and cheerful eatery…
Xi'an
This smart food court serves a wide choice of food from each corner of China. There's everything from Sìchuān dàndàn noodles (dàndàn miàn) to roast duck,…
Hong Kong
Hong Kong’s top brass make pilgrimages to this local place for its claypot rice (HK$80 to HK$105, available only at dinner) – a meal-in-one in which rice…
Kowloon
Indecisive gluttons will scream at the mind-blowing hotpot choices here – 200 ingredients (the majority fresh or homemade), 20 kinds of broth (from clam…
