City, Chinese Restaurant Guide

“Really stunning panoramas of course” are a high point of this 35th-floor perch, high up The Shard, which is open all day from early on, and which fans say is “a brilliant breakfast venue”. English-style Afternoon Tea is also a feature, but by night the cuisine turns Asian. Fans say “presentation here is first class and if you get a view it’s worth every penny”. There’s not sufficient feedback, though, for a really wholehearted recommendation as a culinary destination.

“Brilliant, lip-numbing” northern Chinese cooking has put this Soho fixture from Wei Shao firmly on the map, and it serves a flexible menu of skewers, noodles and rice, wok dishes and other dim sum options. Some feel its Borough Market offshoot is “weak” by comparison (“it’s as if the Soho one benefits from the proximity of Chinatown but they don’t expect anyone with any discernment in SE1!”).

“Well-executed Chinese and Japanese fare (if at strictly expense account-only prices)” from Singapore-born chef Peter Ho, wins consistent praise this year at this plush dining room. Part of the Four Seasons hotel in the extremely imposing former headquarters of the Port of London Authority (built in 1922), near Tower Hill, this august chamber “very much feels like the high-end hotel restaurant that it is”.

“Arriving before sunset and watching London as it transforms from day to night is of itself superb and worth the visit”, say fans of this swish Chinese venue (part of Hong Kong’s Aqua group) on the 33rd floor of The Shard (“stunning if an important client is being entertained”, making it a favourite for schmoozy business occasions). Unsurprisingly it’s not a cheap meal, and does inspire the occasional accusation that it is “overpriced and average” – however, a majority of diners consider it “consistent” and “surprisingly good” for somewhere with such a “knockout view”. One hazard, though, can be “the number of other diners taking photos of anything and everything!”

“The food remains exceptional” – “cheung fun and venison puffs are still raging crowd-pleasers” – at this modern Cantonese-inspired pair: the “fabulously blingy” Soho original and its follow-up in the City’s Broadgate development (there are also international branches in India and Saudi Arabia). One or two uneven reports this year raise concerns, including about “ragged service” – though, to be fair, the latter has never been great. Founded in 2004 by Alan Yau following his success with Hakkasan, the brand now sits in the hospitality portfolio of Isle of Man-based online gambling billionaire Mark Sheinberg. Top Tip – “the Infinite Yum Cha brunch on Sundays is extremely good value – and delicious”.

“The definition of cheap and cheerful Asian food” – these hawker-inspired, ‘Siu Mei’ (meat dumpling) pitstops “show that you don’t have to traipse into Soho for a quick and tasty meal of great Cantonese roast meats”. Founded as a takeaway kiosk in Liverpool Street in 2019 by Hong Kongers, Chong Yew (Uncle Lim), Pui Sing Tsang (Uncle Sidney), and Mo Kwok (Uncle Mo), they now have six locations of which Brent Cross (open in March 2025) is the latest in the mall’s new District food hall. “No frills, but tasty, fast and cheap”, the specialities are Cantonese Roast Duck, Crispy Pork Belly (Siu Yuk), and Char Siu Pork. Top Menu Tip – Auntie Jun’s Char Siu Sou.

“Fantastic dim sum”, “excellent Peking duck” and “a surprisingly good (and good-value) set lunch menu” belie the “slightly sterile”, “hotel-restaurant” setting in the Hyatt Regency at Blackfriars (fka the Crowne Plaza). The unusual name commemorates the 2009 debut of China’s national cricket team.

2024 Review: “Authentically fiery dishes” light up the menu at this City Road restaurant where head chef Zhang Xiao Zhong hails from Chengdu, the capital of Sichuan – a third-generation chef, his grandfather was personal chef to Deng Xiaoping, China’s leader through the 1980s.

Hand-pulled ‘biang biang’ or ‘belt’ noodles in a choice of “nice and spicy” soups are the signature “pot-stickers” at this Spitalfields canteen from chef Guirong Wei (who made her name with the tiny Xi’an Impression opposite the Emirates stadium and has done much to popularise the distinctive cuisine of China’s Shaanxi province in London).

2023 Review: This “tiny place near Truman’s old brewery” serves an “excellent and authentic take on Sichuan cuisine, in a calm atmosphere, away from the agitation of Brick Lane”. Top Tip – “‘numb and spicy’ dumplings live up to their name”.

2023 Review: This modern pan-Asian in Covent Garden – an import from NYC – offers “playful dim sum”, alongside other “cut-above” dishes. There are “relaxed long tables for groups or cosy red-checked spots for two diners”, and the atmosphere is set by the “fun 90s playlist and friendly team”.

This “huge and buzzy Chinese restaurant” near Elephant & Castle is a South London institution, serving “superb” old-school Cantonese grub including “good dim sum at lunchtime”. “Staff are under pressure due to the sheer number of covers, but the excellence of the food makes it worth having patience”. It’s “very popular, so book a table at weekends”.

“The texture of the perfect hand-pulled wheat noodles is wonderful – toothsome and delicious with just the right amount of chew – and in fragrant and spicy sauces”, all “freshly prepared and swiftly served” at Wei Guirong’s “always busy and excellent value” Shaanxi canteen near Russell Square, which now has a lesser-known sibling in a modern unit just off Hammersmith Broadway (as well as Xi’an Impression and Dream Xi’an). Top Menu Tip – “don’t miss the simple deep, peppery and comforting beef pao-mo soup and the ‘burgers’ with Silk Road spice”.

2023 Review: “Top egg yolk buns” are a big draw at China-born architect Z He and chef Alex Peffly’s well-known Chinatown pit stop, which provides an “excellent bustling ambience and wonderful heart-filling food”.

2024 Review: “Fresh and very tasty dim sum” ensures that this 30-year-old Cantonese over three storeys on the edge of Chinatown “soon fills up with regulars”. “It may be a blessing that the ambience is not exactly chic – it keeps the tourists away”.

This two-storey Cantonese venue on the main drag of Chinatown (with a branch in Colindale) is many people’s pick for “really great dim sum” (“one of the best I’ve tasted outside Hong Kong”). The main evening menu also features “consistently above-average-quality food”. Top Tip – “go early or late to beat the crowds”.

2023 Review: A “very good” modern take on classic Cantonese cuisine from Z He and Alex Peffly (of Bun House) is presented in an atmospheric “neon-lit underground parlour in Soho, with the menus on newspapers, giving a gentlemen’s club/opium den vibe”.

“Blistering Sichuan food of a standard not found elsewhere” makes this well-known regional specialist “far, far better than the average Chinatown outfit”, and it’s “still going strong”. The “amazing spicy options are true to their middle China roots” – “don’t fear the chillis, just don’t eat them!”. “Service is fine – if the ambience is a little lacking, the food more than makes up for that”.