Chinese Eating and Drinking

Eating

Café de HK

This unassuming café sells dumplings, noodles, soups, and one-dish meals. Don't miss the newly fashionable 'bubble teas' – fruit flavoured tapioca drinks that have recently been introduced to London by Fujian immigrants.
47-49 Charing Cross Road, WC2. Tel: +44 (0)20 7534 9898

Hakkasan

Top Chinese restaurateur Alan Yau's subterranean restaurant and bar takes Chinese food and dining to a new dimension, with its glamorous décor and truly superb dim sum and main dishes. Hakkasan is a treat of the highest order.

Hunan

One of the most raved about Chinese restaurants in London, this charming venue, owned by the cheerful Mr Peng and his son, is the sort of place where you should ignore the many set menus, sit back and let the staff feed you. You're guaranteed a memorable banquet.
51 Pimlico Road, SW1. Tel: +44 (0)20 7730 5712

Joy King Lau

Come here for great dim sum served from noon to 4.45pm daily. Joy King Lau is good value and the dishes are of a consistently high standard.

Lotus Floating Chinese Restaurant

A great place for parties and corporate hospitality (there are 500 covers), the Lotus is London's largest floating restaurant and is just a stone's throw away from ExCeL. Enjoy dim sum daily until 5pm, plus a wide range of mains and set menus – all at good-value prices.

Mr Kong

Popular with the area's many Chinese, Mr Kong is a no-frills eatery serves amazingly flavoursome pork belly with preserved mustard greens, as well as an array of astonishingly good vegetarian dishes on its tempting and unusual menu.

Wong Kei

One of Chinatown's most famous restaurants, Wong Kei has been enduringly popular for its long, wide-ranging menu and its lively atmosphere. Steer off the beaten track and try some of the more unusual dishes like crab baked in its shell flavoured with ginger and spring onion.

Yauatcha

Another exquisite venture from Alan Yau, Yauatcha serves gorgeous French-Oriental patisserie and a large variety of Chinese teas in the first floor tea house, and expertly cooked dim sum in the basement restaurant.

Drinking

Drunken Monkey

Attractively decorated with red lanterns, the Drunken Monkey is a buzzy bar (which has a restaurant at the rear), and a great party atmosphere. Dim sum – traditionally eaten only during the day – is served late into the evening, alongside a variety of Chinese beers and Chinese-themed cocktails such as Shanghai Sling.

Shanghai Blues

Silk panels and attractive electric blue furnishings adorn Shanghai Blues. This glamorous bar which serves serves wines specially selected to match with oriental food, and beguiling oriental cocktails such as mangosteen and lychee mojito.