Planning a trip to Hong Kong? You’re going to need a few things. Firstly, this guide on the best places to eat and must-try foods. Secondly, a pair of pants with an elasticised waist… There is so much good food on offer in Hong Kong it’s just not funny, so prepare yourself and your taste buds accordingly. To help you navigate the many good food spots in HK, I’ve put together this guide of Hong Kong’s best restaurants and must-try foods.

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1. Hong Kong style breakfast

There are a number of delicious breakfast foods you have to try while you’re in Hong Kong, starting with the famous crispy bun. It’s a delicious, fresh crispy bun toasted and topped with butter and a generous drizzle of condensed milk. It’s crunchy, sweet, creamy and downright delicious! You should also get your hands on Hong Kong-style French toast, which is the same as your regular French toast but usually made using thin slices of bread and, where possible, topped or stuffed with Kaya (a sweet jam). You should also try an egg sandwich, which is just a scrambled egg served in-between two slices of white bread. Simple but delicious, especially if you’re craving a taste of home.

You’ll find traditional local spots serving up set menus with combinations that may sound a little strange. For instance, macaroni with ham and sausages served with 2 fried eggs. The macaroni is served in a bowl with some of the boiling water, meaning it’s more soup-like than pasta-like. It’s weird, but it’s definitely a must-try Hong Kong food experience!

Find a great traditional Hong Kong-style breakfast at Lan Fong Yuen at 2 Gage Street, Central Hong Kong or Matchbox Cafe at 2 Sun Wui Road, Causeway Bay

2. Freshly baked goodies

Don’t even think about going to Hong Kong if you aren’t planning to stuff yourself with baked goods. There are bakeries everywhere and they are filled to the brim with all kinds of delicious cakes, bread, biscuits and other wonderful things. In terms of must-try, your first point of call has to be a pineapple bun. It’s a deliciously fluffy, light bun with a crispy shell and a beautiful sweet taste. You also have to get your hands on as many egg tarts as possible. For something more traditional, try a sweetheart cake, a light and flaky pastry stuffed with a filling of sweet lotus seed, almond or red bean paste. If those aren’t enough, try a coconut tart or whipped cream bun.

Find Hong Kong’s best bakeries at Hang Heung Cake Shop at 579 Nathan Road, Mongkok or Hoover Cake Shop at 136 Nga Tsin Wai Rd, Kowloon City.

3. Delicious dumplings

If you try only one type of food in Hong Kong, let it be dumplings. Lots and lots of dumplings. There are so many great places to get them and the best thing is you have so many options. There are restaurants catering to every budget, serving up different types and flavours of lovingly prepared dumplings for your consumption. Luckily, there are a number of Michelin-Star restaurants in Hong Kong that serve incredible dumplings and are extremely affordable! Plan your entire Hong Kong itinerary around dumplings.

Find Hong Kong’s best dumplings at:

4. Hong Kong diner

There are lots of Hong Kong style diners dotted around the place and it’s easy to walk past them because they can be a bit naff looking. Bright lights, weird sliding doors and a very basic setup inside don’t exactly scream ‘dining experience to remember,’ but the truth is they’re actually pretty cool. There are loads of high-end restaurants and boutique cafes in Hong Kong, but for a more authentic experience, these diners are the spot to be. They serve a wide variety of food, including traditional HK breakfasts, and wonderful other dishes like Malay-style curries, Singapore-style noodles and more. They’re also pretty reasonably priced.

Find Hong Kong’s best diners at Tsui Yuen Restaurant at 21 Centre Street, Hong Kong or Matchbox Cafe at 2 Sun Wui Road, Causeway Bay.

Matchbox Cafe
Matchbox Cafe

5. Delicious burgers

Of course, you want to eat as much local, traditional food as possible, right? But it’s also kinda fun to try something you’re used to eating back at home and seeing how it compares. There are a number of really great hipster burger shops in Hong Kong and the cool thing is that they sometimes take traditional HK flavours and use them to influence their tasty burger creations. You can also get your hands on some pretty amazing milkshakes, hot wings, deep-fried catfish, onion rings and more.

Find Hong Kong’s best burgers at The Burger Shop by Shake ’em Buns at 76 Wellington Street, Central Hong Kong, burgeRoom at 7 Caroline Hill, Causeway Bay or The Big Bite at Kar Fu Building, Java Road, Northpoint.

6. The Hong Kong egg waffles

Chances are you’ll see quite a few street vendors selling delicious traditional egg waffles as you stroll around town, but what are they? Well, they’re basically just a waffle with spherical bubbles all over them. They’re an eggy batter cooked fresh and served hot, often plan or with fruit and other flavourings like strawberry, chocolate and coconut. These are one of the most popular street snacks you can find in Hong Kong, so you want to make sure you try them. If you don’t make a trip to Oddies while you’re in HK to try their out-of-this-world concoctions, you’re mad.

Find Hong Kong’s best egg waffles at Oddies at 149 Wan Chai Road, Wan Chai or LKK North Point Egg Waffles at various locations all over Hong Kong.

'Night Wolf' at Oddies.... get in my belly!
‘Night Wolf’ at Oddies…. get in my belly!

7. HK Milk Tea

If you love tea then there’s a chance you’re going to love HK style Milk Tea! What is it? Well it’s black tea served with condensed milk and it’s really delicious. It originated during the British Colonial rule over Hong Kong and came about because of the Brits, of course, who love afternoon tea. Milk Tea is an evolution of this, except the tradition milk and sugar, was substituted for condensed milk. it has since become famous, so much so you can buy small bottles from bakeries, which are brewed and packaged daily. It’s definitely a must-try!

Find Hong Kong’s best Milk Tea at Cheung Hing Coffee Shop at 9 Yik Yam Street, Happy Valley or Hoi On Cafe at 17 Connaught Road, Sheung Wan.

HK Milk Tea & Silk Stocking Coffee

8. Silk stocking & espresso coffee

There are a few different types of coffee you can get your hands on in Hong Kong. The first is traditional silk stocking coffee, which is served strong and sweet using condensed milk in place of regular milk. You can have it served hot or iced, both are great. The second is your regular barista-made espresso coffee. There are a number of great coffee shops all over Hong Kong, traditional spots serving your silk-stocking stuff and the more hipster-inspired cafes serving up your espresso. It’s definitely worth trying both.

Find Hong Kong’s best coffee at:

  • Lan Fong Yuen at 2 Gage Street, Central Hong Kong for silk stocking coffee
  • Matchbox Cafe at 2 Sun Wui Road, Causeway Bay for silk stocking coffee
  • 18 Grams at 10 Johnston Road, Wan Chai (and other locations) for espresso, or
  • Cafe Corridor at 26A Russell Street, Causeway Bay for espresso

9. Spicy Crab

If you find yourself walking past a spicy crab restaurant you’ll definitely smell it before you see it, it just smells so dang good. Truth be told, some of these restaurants can be a bit of a scam. When you get your bill you may find you were charged for four seats at a table when only two of you sat there. You’ll also be surcharged for all manner of things and find the cost of your crab quite high, but if you know all of this before you go and you expect it, it’s not so bad. So, what is it? It’s perfectly cooked crab in the shell served with a mountain of deep-fried garlic and chilli on top. It’s sweet and spicy and crunchy and all the other wonderful things you want it to be!

Find Hong Kong’s best spicy crab at Under Bridge Spicy Crab at 421-425 Lockhart Road, Causeway Bay.

Under Bridge Spicy Crab
Under Bridge Spicy Crab

10. Traditional congee

A fantastic traditional breakfast doesn’t come much better than traditional congee. The scary thing about congee is that sometimes they can be made from entrails and, if that’s not something you’re into, it can be a massive turn off. Thankfully it isn’t the only kind of congee available and you can get your hands on some really delicious salty fish congee. There are a few accompaniments you can order to go with it, including an absolutely delicious fried dough stick, also know as youtiao, and rice noodle rolls which are served with a peanut, sweet and sour and soy sauce. They are, freaking delicious.

Find Hong Kong’s best congee at Mui Kee Congee at 4th Floor of the Yuen Street Market, Mong Kok.

11. Weird & wonderful desserts

When I think of desserts I imagine things like chocolate cake, tiramisu and brownies topped with ice cream. That isn’t exactly the same kind of way they think about desserts in Hong Kong. In place of big chunks of chocolate cake, you’ll find gelatinous bites flavoured with coconut, scoops of home-made ice cream that isn’t as sweet as you’re used to, sago puddings and tapioca pearls topped with fresh fruit and shaved fruit ice! It’s a whole new world out there and you should definitely eat as much of it as possible. Mostly because it’s pretty much guilt-free compared to what we usually eat for dessert. Find Hong Kong’s best desserts at Chung Kee Dessert at 15 Canal Road West, Causeway Bay.

Chung Kee Mango Shave Ice!
Chung Kee Mango Shave Ice!

12. Claypot rice

This incredibly tasty traditional dish is usually cooked over a charcoal stove, which gives it a really distinct flavour. In Hong Kong, you’ll find these beautiful big clay pot bowls filled with delicious rice and delicious, well-seasoned meat like chicken, salty fish or even beef or Chinese sausage, which are added later in the cooking process. Find Hong Kong’s best claypot rice at Hing Kee Claypot Rice at 15 Temple Street, Kowloon.

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