To be verified
Mid-range
中档
Price band to be verified on site.
Checking facts firstShenzhen · Chapter
Eat
Point at the characters. We name a restaurant only after a dated visit.
01
By cuisine
Six ways Shenzhen eats.
Guide
Cantonese & dim sum
早茶 · 虾饺 烧卖 肠粉
Har gow, siu mai and rice rolls. We only name a teahouse after we’ve eaten there.
Read →Guide
Chaoshan beef hotpot
潮汕牛肉火锅
Hand-cut beef, dipped for seconds. Baheli opened its first store outside Shantou near Nanyuan Road, Shenzhen, in 2014.
Read →Guide
Hakka
客家菜 · 客家茶果
Hakka tea cakes such as ai ban and ci ba, around Kuichong and in Ganken Ancient Town.
Read →Guide
Seafood
海鲜
Shekou seafood market, plus the Nan’ao and Shuitou seafood streets in Dapeng.
Read →Guide
Local specialties
沙井蚝 · 光明乳鸽 · 公明烧鹅 · 下沙大盆菜
Shajing oysters, Guangming pigeon, Gongming roast goose and Xiasha poon choi. Several are listed intangible heritage.
Read →Guide
Street food & night snacks
夜宵 · 小吃
We’re researching these on the ground before we recommend anything.
Read →02
By district
Where each dish lives.
Guide
Futian
福田
Chaoshan beef hotpot, morning dim sum and Xiasha poon choi.
Read →Guide
Nanshan & Shekou
南山 · 蛇口
Shekou seafood market, 49 Yucun Road (渔村路49号), open 5:30–19:30.
Read →Guide
Luohu
罗湖
Morning dim sum close to the Luohu border crossing.
Read →Guide
Bao’an
宝安
Home of Shajing oysters. The oyster-farming custom is provincial intangible heritage.
Read →Guide
Longgang
龙岗
Hakka food and Ganken Ancient Town.
Read →Guide
Dapeng & Nan’ao
大鹏 · 南澳
Nan’ao and Shuitou seafood streets, and sea-urchin zongzi (city-level intangible heritage).
Read →03
By budget
Price bands are set only after on-site visits.
Guide
Cheap eats
平价
Price band to be verified on site.
Read →To be verified
Special occasion
高档
Price band to be verified on site.
Checking facts first04
By occasion
Pick by moment, not by star rating.
Guide
Breakfast & yum cha
早餐 · 早茶
How a morning tea session works, from ordering to the tea charge.
Read →Coming soon
Late night
夜宵
After-dark food, still being researched.
Being writtenTo be verified
Vegetarian & halal-friendly
素食 · 清真
Options to be verified before we list them.
Checking facts firstTo be verified
With kids
亲子
Family-friendly places, to be verified.
Checking facts first05
How to order
The part no app translates for you.
Guide
Ordering when you can’t read the menu
点菜
Pointing, photos, and the phrases that help.
Read →Guide
How to order every cut of beef
吊龙 · 匙柄 · 五花趾
The Chaoshan hotpot cuts, in Chinese and English.
Read →Guide
Paying the bill
买单
Alipay and WeChat Pay with a foreign card add 3% on single payments over ¥200.
Read →Shenzhen · Eat
What to Eat in Shenzhen (and How to Order It)
A Cantonese city with a migrant kitchen: yum cha, Chaoshan beef hotpot, Shajing oysters, Gongming roast goose, Hakka tea cakes and market seafood. Dishes with their Chinese names, by district — no paid rankings, no invented reviews.
Shenzhen · EatDim Sum in Shenzhen: How a Morning Tea Session Actually Works
Yum cha is a Cantonese morning of steamers and a pot of tea. How to sit, what the tea charge is (it is not a scam), what to order first, and an approximate range for two people — without invented restaurant reviews.
Shenzhen · EatChaoshan Beef Hotpot: How to Order Every Cut
Shenzhen’s everyday hotpot: hand-cut beef in a clear broth, seconds in the pot, a dipping sauce you mix yourself. What the cuts mean, an approximate spend, and a historical note — not a restaurant review.
Shenzhen · EatCantonese Food in Shenzhen: The Cuisine, the Characters, and How to Order
A clear explainer of Cantonese (Yue) cuisine as you will meet it in Shenzhen: dim sum, roast meats, soups, seafood and claypot rice, with Chinese names, and no restaurant ranking.
Shenzhen · EatHakka Food in Shenzhen: The Other Guangdong Table, with Its Own Characters
A clear explainer of Hakka (Kèjiā) cuisine as you will meet it in Shenzhen: salt-baked chicken, stuffed tofu, braised pork, and lei cha, with Chinese names, and no restaurant ranking.