Nanjing
Ever-trendy Element Fresh gives the iffy Nánjīng cafe culture a good kick in the pants. The setting is smooth, the ambient tunes funky, the lines clean,…
Must-see restaurants in Jiangsu
Suzhou
Upmarket Spanish restaurant and cocktail bar on the 37th floor of the W Hotel. As well as excellent food, drinks and service, this place also has a…
Nanjing
This hectic, fun and vast place, decorated like a Qing dynasty eatery, with waiters scurrying around in period garb and lanterns hanging overhead, is…
Suzhou
This institution has been serving up classic Suzhou-style soup noodles for 200 years. The delicious broth, which is made fresh each night from herbs,…
Suzhou
Downtown branch of this popular restaurant that specialises in dumplings but also offers a variety of tasty, locally inspired and classic Chinese dishes…
Nanjing
This restaurant is popular for its juicy and totally delicious beef 'potsticker' dumplings (牛肉锅贴, niúròu guōtiē). These golden, crispy wonders are easy on…
Nanjing
Cosy bakery located in the student area around Nánjīng University. As well as delectable baked goods like cakes and breads, they make their own nut…
Suzhou
Charming joint serving tasty western China style food, including roast lamb, kebabs, hotpot, and the standout Lánzhōu-style noodles (兰州牛肉面, ¥32). Located…
Suzhou
With great clouds of steam rising from the kitchen, this local icon has been flogging noodles since 1943, but its handmade shēngjiān bāo (生煎包, pan-fried…
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…
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,…
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…
Nanjing
This boisterous, two-level Xinjiang restaurant has a sizeable lamb-packed menu that runs that gamut from kebabs (¥5 each) and fried-bread-and-lamb (¥48)…
Nanjing
The stab at a classy ambience doesn't quite succeed at Taj Mahal, but the menu's a winner. The spiciness of the mutton vindaloo may be slightly moderated…
Suzhou
Often busy, this seriously cute little teahouse is perched beside one of Suzhou’s most popular canalside streets, serving up excellent dumplings and…
Suzhou
Reasonably priced, upmarket restaurant offering a comprehensive array of local and classic Chinese dishes. The dumplings here are especially good,…
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…
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…
Suzhou
Come to this friendly Buddhist restaurant for a modest-yet-filling vegetarian buffet that, at ¥10, will barely make a dent in your wallet. Etiquette…
Suzhou
Popular with locals, this red-wood-furniture-bedecked eatery, with several branches across town, has a long history and wholesome, filling noodles – try…
Nanjing
The best bakery in Nanjing, Real Bread Cafe serves its sandwiches in suitably crusty bread and its coffee (¥25) delightfully strong. Delicate and crispy…
Suzhou
Crowds pay and gather near the entrance to wait for the steaming fresh xǐaolóng bāo (小龙包; soup dumplings) to come out of the kitchen. If you don’t want to…
Nanjing
This small wood-themed restaurant with Japanese lanterns hanging inside does some excellent sets served with miso soup and a small salad. The curry shrimp…
Suzhou
Good quality, Chinese-style vegetarian food in downtown Sūzhōu, not far from the Garden of Cultivation. Friendly service, with a wide selection of…
Nanjing
Down along spruced-up Laomen Dong, New Zealander–owned Motu does a brisk trade in fine burgers and cold beers. Order at the till, take a numbered flag and…
Nanjing
A small cafe serving up yummy Italian-style gelato, made on-site. Friendly, English-speaking service. The salted caramel flavour is especially delicious…
Nanjing
Equal parts hectic and fun, Dàpái Dàng is decorated like a Qing-dynasty eatery, complete with waiters scurrying around in period garb and lanterns hanging…
Suzhou
Small and simple family-run restaurant serving up cheap, tasty Gānsù-style food, not far from the Garden of Cultivation.
Suzhou
With stunning views across the Grand Canal to Sūzhōu's old city walls, this restaurant serves no-frills Guìzhōu-style food that features liberal use of…
Suzhou
This romantic Italian restaurant is tucked down a canalside lane that runs parallel to Shiquan Jie. Run by an entirely Chinese team, headed up by the…
Suzhou
The rather gaudy Uighur kitsch atmosphere is entertaining and the Xīnjiāng staples – lamb kebabs (¥2.50) and nang bread (flat bread; ¥3) – all tasty…
Suzhou
Out in Sūzhōu's higher education district, on the eastern side of the Industrial Park area, this cafe is a hit for its Western-style food, good coffee,…
Jiangsu
This vegetarian restaurant serves flavoursome hotpots and noodles that draw on Chinese and Japanese Buddhist cooking methods. The simple set meal (¥68)…
Jiangsu
Serves tasty northern-style flatbread, cooked in a traditional oven – expect a small, chatty wait while the bread cooks, even if you don't speak Chinese.
