THE EATING IN CHINA JOURNAL
Food, with a story.
Field notes, local flavours and a little help at the table.
Food guides for your next trip.
What to eat in China on your first trip
A familiar favourite. A local discovery. A meal worth remembering. Start your journey here.
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A taste of somewhere
Every destination has its own appetite.
Beijing food guide: breakfast, classics & snacks
Start the morning with a flatbread, a fried ring or a bowl of chaogan. Save roast duck or lamb hot pot for a shared meal, and compare pea cakes with candied fruit for a smaller sweet bite. The breakfast guide explains douzhi and how to choose your first morning order.
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Shanghai food guide: breakfast, dumplings & local dishes
Compare Shanghai breakfast staples, shengjian bao, xiaolongbao and dishes for a shared meal. Save Chinese names and use practical ordering tips.
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Sichuan food for a first visit: more than a chili test
Get to know mapo tofu, dan dan noodles and ants climbing a tree. Understand chili, Sichuan pepper and hidden meat before ordering.
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Cantonese food: roast pork, wonton noodles and steamed buns
Explore Cantonese dishes by ingredients and texture, from char siu to wonton noodle soup and sweet custard buns. Know what you are ordering.
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Hong Kong food guide: breakfast & street food
From a warm bowl of congee to curry fish balls, choose a Hong Kong meal by what you feel like eating. Use the Chinese names to make sense of the menu.
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Guangzhou food guide: breakfast & yum cha
Explore Guangzhou through congee, rice noodle rolls and a table of dim sum. Compare textures and fillings before you choose.
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Chengdu food guide: street snacks & choosing your heat
Chengdu food is more than a single idea of spicy. Compare noodles, wontons and shared dishes, then ask about chili and Sichuan pepper separately.
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Chongqing food guide: noodles, breakfast & hot pot
Start with Chongqing xiaomian, compare a tofu-and-rice meal, then plan a hot pot order. There is more to choosing a meal than its chili level.
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Shenzhen food guide: breakfast & Cantonese favourites
Use rice noodle rolls, congee and wonton noodles as a starting point for eating in Shenzhen. These shared Cantonese traditions are not all foods that originated in the city.
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Xi’an food guide: noodles, breakfast & street snacks
Discover Xi’an through stuffed flatbread, wide noodles and bread in soup. Keep the Chinese name with the dish you want to try.
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Hangzhou food guide: breakfast, local dishes & tea
Plan a Hangzhou meal around the food itself: compare a rich pork dish with a cup of local green tea, and keep breakfast choices separate from a shared main meal.
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Beijing breakfast: what to eat and how to order
Choose a sesame-paste flatbread for a layered bite, chaogan for a garlic-rich bowl with pork offal, or douzhi with a crisp jiaoquan ring for a distinctive fermented taste. Douzhi is made from mung-bean liquid; it is not soy milk. Start with the texture and flavour you want, then use the Chinese names below.
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Shanghai breakfast: the four staples, buns & bowls
Dabing, youtiao, cifantuan and doujiang are Shanghai’s four breakfast staples: flatbread, fried dough, a filled sticky-rice roll and soy milk. They are choices to combine, not a compulsory four-part order. Compare sweet and savoury styles, or choose pan-fried buns or soup dumplings instead.
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Hong Kong breakfast: what to order at a cha chaan teng
A cha chaan teng breakfast can be a bowl, bread and eggs, or a bakery choice with a drink. Compare ham macaroni soup with congee, then decide whether you want a pineapple bun or French toast. The latter is egg-coated and fried; it is different from scrambled eggs served with toast. Ask what a set includes before adding a drink.
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Hong Kong street food: savoury bites, sweet snacks & drinks
For a savoury bite, compare curry fish balls with a spoonable bowl of wun zai chi. For something sweet, choose between an egg tart and a pineapple bun. These foods come in different portion sizes: start with one, then add a drink or another snack if you want. The cards explain what each name means.
Read the storyAt the table
A little knowledge makes every meal more rewarding.
Chongqing Hot Pot 101: Read This Before You Order
Your first Chongqing hot pot? Learn how to choose the broth, decode the ingredients, mix a dipping sauce and order with useful Chinese phrases.
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Ants climbing a tree? What Chinese dish names really mean
Ants climbing a tree, wife cake and husband-and-wife lung slices: understand the food behind confusing translated Chinese names before you order.
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Vegetarian and vegan food in China: ask beyond the main ingredient
Learn what to check in tofu, vegetables, noodles and pastries in China, with practical Chinese phrases for meat, broth, eggs, dairy and cooking fats.
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Chinese food with kids: choose by texture as well as flavor
Build a family food shortlist with familiar textures, clear fillings and adjustable seasoning. Understand what a kid-friendly label can and cannot tell you.
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Is Chinese food spicy? How to ask for the heat you want
Understand chili heat, Sichuan pepper and mild-ordering phrases. Learn why ‘less spicy’ may not remove chili from a prepared sauce.
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Chinese tea and drinks: choose what you want in your cup
Start exploring Chinese tea, understand Longjing and jasmine tea, and compare brewed tea with a sweet-tart sour plum drink before ordering.
Read the storyChinese street food: choose the bite behind the name
Understand fillings, portions and seasoning before choosing Chinese snacks and small dishes. Make a practical food shortlist without relying on a crowd or photograph.
Read the storyPlan a China food trip around dishes you want to try
Build a flexible China food shortlist by region, save Chinese dish names and make room for different textures, drinks and dietary needs.
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Shanghai 3-Day Itinerary: Sights, Routes & Local Food
Plan three full days in Shanghai: Yu Garden and the Bund, a Pudong museum day, Wukang Road, local meals and practical closure-day swaps.
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Hong Kong 3-Day Itinerary: Harbour, Neighbourhoods & Food
Three full days in Hong Kong: Central and the Peak, a harbour crossing to Tsim Sha Tsui, then Sham Shui Po and Mong Kok, with meals along the way.
Read the storyChoose your mealChina entry preparation: from official checks to your first meal
Start with your passport, purpose of travel, arrival route and dates. Check the responsible official authority before making non-refundable plans, then organize your arrival day around transport, rest and one easy meal.
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How to use chopsticks: a practical first-meal guide
Keep the lower chopstick still and move the upper one. Practice opening and closing the tips before picking up food; a relaxed grip works better than squeezing hard.
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Taiwan travel planning: choose a base and build meals into your route
For a short first visit, choose a base rather than trying to circle Taiwan. Taipei works as a starting point for a city stay: combine one daytime area with one evening food stop, then add other cities only when you have time for the transfer.
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Taiwan night markets: choose one evening route, not a checklist
Start with the city where you will sleep. A night market is an evening food stop, so compare the route back, weather and how much walking you want before choosing one. The two Taipei examples below offer a concrete starting point; they are not a ranking of every market in Taiwan.
Read the storyRaohe Night Market: a Songshan walking and eating plan
Build the evening around Songshan, Ciyou Temple and Raohe Street. Arrive with room for a small meal, walk before choosing, and keep the return route simple.
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Taipei 101 visit planning: tickets, arrival and the meal afterward
Decide whether you want the observatory or simply time in Xinyi. An observatory visit needs a ticket decision and a weather check; a neighborhood walk gives you more flexibility. Use the building's official information for the current visitor entrance.
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