Must-visit restaurants in Chaozhou for an authentic Chinese feast

If you’ve crafted a meticulous food itinerary for Chaozhou, be ready to abandon it upon arrival. This seaside city in the Chinese Mainland’s eastern Guangdong province is filled with enough enticing restaurants and eateries to tempt you to change your plans and expand your appetite.

With a 1,600-year history, the city has long been celebrated for its culinary charm and influence. The cuisine of Chaozhou, also known as Chiuchow or Teochew, is one of the nation’s great regional food traditions. As waves of migrants settled across South East Asia and beyond, they brought their culinary heritage with them. Today, you’ll find Chaozhou restaurants thriving throughout the world – often run by second- or third-generation families preserving age-old recipes.

As a Unesco Creative City of Gastronomy, Chaozhou continues to attract visitors. Fresh seafood is so abundant that one of the most popular dishes is called “fish rice” (fish blanched in salted water and cooled to room temperature), proof that fish is as essential to locals as rice. You’ll also find lion-head goose from Raoping, tofu from Puning and Fenghuang Dancong tea – a prized oolong from Phoenix Mountain – to name a few other delicacies.

Ready to tuck in? These top Chaozhou restaurants showcase the beauty of the region’s cuisine.

1. Chaosheng Claypot Congee

While eateries serving rice rolls, noodles and cakes abound in Chaozhou, nothing is as quintessential as a steaming bowl of claypot rice. Chaosheng is a family-run gem operating from 4.30pm till late. Each pot of rice is crafted from scratch, with the chef laboriously scooping out and replacing boiled rice with fresh rice several times during the cooking process. This technique maximises fragrance while retaining the succulent texture of the grains. The roe-filled crab congee and partridge congee with mushrooms are the ultimate comfort dishes.

G/F, Beiguan Industrial Building, 18-20 Chunrong Road

2. Tupi

In a city rich with traditional eateries, Tupi stands out as a modern oasis. Opened late last year, this light-filled restaurant – with its serene courtyard – offers a rare, contemporary take on classic Chaozhou cuisine. Do’t miss the stir-fried crispy Puning tofu with shredded dried scallops, grilled conch from the region’s NanAo Island and pork dumplings with wrappers made from greater lizardfish meat.

G/F, Shop A, Jinxiu Garden, Middle Section, Chaozhou Avenue

3. Paifang Street

Stretching along the ancient city wall and Guangji Bridge – one of the earliest open-close bridges – Paifang Street is Chaozhou’s busiest pedestrian thoroughfare. Come hungry, as the street is lined with snack shops serving classics like beef balls, sugar crusted taro fries and steamed red peach-shaped rice cakes (filled with sticky rice, ground peanuts, dried baby shrimp and chicken offal). Highlights include Le Song Tang’s Instagrammable yashi xiang (duck dung-fragrance oolong tea) and sweet rice balls with peanut fillings at Bayi restaurant.

Paifang Street, Xiangqiao District

4. Lu Ji Beef Shop

Operating a wholesale beef butchery nearby, the family behind Lu Ji Beef Shop promises the freshest cuts of beef for every meal. The restaurant serves beef butchered in the morning for lunch, with another round of fresh cuts delivered for dinner. Here, meatballs are made fresh each morning.

Shop 2, 9 Nanrongyuan, Nanjiao Road

5. Shang Xi Goose Banquet

Chaozhou’s braising stock is typically made from galangal (a ginger variety with hints of cinnamon and citrus), rock sugar, star anise and fish sauce, but each shop has its own secret recipe. A bite into Shang Xi’s braised goose and you’ll understand its fame. It strikes the perfect balance of sweetness and saltiness. The basic platter features more must-try bites, including juicy goose meat, liver and egg.

46 Huangcheng West Road

6. Zaiyang Tea House

Hidden in an alley off Paifang Street, Zaiyang is the first traditional tea house in Chaozhou with a stage. It’s the perfect spot to try your hand at brewing Kung Fu tea – a Chaozhou tea ritual – while enjoying live performances of Chaozhou string music and opera. Shows run daily at the beginning of every hour from 2pm to 5pm, lasting about 30 minutes.

6 Yingju Lane (between Tai Ping Road and Yian Road)

7. Fengchun Seafood Diner

Visiting a local diner like Fengchun is an experience. Diners place orders at the “market area”, where appetisers, braised dishes and fresh seafood are on display. Be sure to try the fish rice and oyster omelette – filled with juicy oysters, the right amount of potato starch and a perfectly cooked egg mixture that yields crispy edges and a tender middle.

Intersection of Fengchun Road and Rainbow East Road

Getting there

Chaozhou is 2.5 hours from Hong Kong via high-speed railway , with Chaoshan Station the closest stop.

Bring something home

Fuyu (savoury fermented bean curd cookies) are great souvenirs, as are the “three treasures of Chaozhou”: aged, pickled Buddha’s hand citron (a citrus fruit with protruding “fingers”), kumquat and wampi. Drinks-wise, Dancong tea leaves or a bottle of amla (Indian gooseberry) juice make for equally thirst-quenching gifts to bring home.