In Hong Kong people eat in noodle shops and small cafés where you share a table with strangers: cheap and quick. This is a selection from my list of saved places: breakfast, noodles, congee and Cantonese barbecue. Where I left a note, those are my words; everything else is put together from Google Maps reviews. I added the Tim Ho Wan and One Dim Sum dim sum places on the advice of travel guides (34travel, Time Out and others), and those descriptions come from reviews too. For a bigger night out, The Chairman, Lung King Heen, Ho Lee Fook and Yardbird are added on the same guides' and rankings' advice.
Prices are Google's average spend per person, valid as of 1 October 2026. Rate: 1 HK$ ≈ $0.13.
In short
- Hong Kong breakfast: scrambled eggs on toast and milk tea at Australia Dairy Company. Closed on Thursdays.
- Cheap noodles: Mak Man Kee in Jordan (open until 0:30), Trusty Congee King in Wan Chai, beef brisket at Ying Kee.
- Cantonese barbecue: crispy pork belly, char siu and goose at Po Kee. Cash only, closed on Sundays.
- Dim sum: Tim Ho Wan and One Dim Sum in Kowloon, 50–150 HK$ (≈$6–19).
- A special dinner: The Chairman, named Asia's best restaurant in 2026, and Lung King Heen at the Four Seasons; book well ahead. For more fun, Ho Lee Fook and the yakitori at Yardbird.
Where to eat
Australia Dairy Company
Jordan · cha chaan teng (Hong Kong café) · 50–100 HK$ (≈$6–13) · Fri–Wed 7:30–22:00, closed Thu
Google Maps · website · 47 Parkes St
Great breakfasts. According to Google Maps reviews (4.0 from 6,400+): people order the fluffy, buttery scrambled eggs with thick toast, macaroni soup, French toast, steamed milk pudding and iced milk tea. The queue is long but moves fast, food arrives within minutes and you'll share a table. The waiters are brusque in the classic Hong Kong way: some shrug it off, others don't.
Mak Man Kee Noodle Shop(Jordan)
Jordan · noodle shop · 50–100 HK$ (≈$6–13) · daily 12:00–0:30
Google Maps · website · 51 Parkes St
An awesome, cheap noodle shop. According to Google Maps reviews (4.1 from 3,900+): a Michelin-listed shop with springy egg noodles, whole-shrimp wontons in a clear broth and braised pork knuckle. The room is small and you share tables; there's a queue at lunch, and it's quieter late at night. Some find the portions small and the broth a bit bland.
Trusty Congee King
Wan Chai · congee and noodles · 50–100 HK$ (≈$6–13) · daily 11:00–22:00
Google Maps · Facebook · 7 Heard St
Come here for the noodles. According to Google Maps reviews (4.1 from 870): a Michelin Bib Gourmand spot known for silky congee (rice porridge) with seafood or beef, braised pork knuckle, sticky rice in banana leaf and wonton noodles. Prices are low for a place this well known, and the staff are used to foreigners. It's cramped with an evening queue, and some find the broth a little salty.
Ying Kee Noodle
Sai Ying Pun · noodle shop · 50–100 HK$ (≈$6–13) · daily 9:30–19:00
Google Maps · 28 High St
According to Google Maps reviews (4.1 from 400+): a noodle shop on High Street above Sai Ying Pun station, reached by the street escalators. The thing to order is beef brisket noodles at about 53 HK$ (≈$7): big, meaty pieces without much fat; there's an English menu. Cash only. Some reviewers find the broth bland and don't get the hype.
Po Kee BBQ Restaurant
Shek Tong Tsui · Cantonese barbecue · 50–100 HK$ (≈$6–13) · Mon–Sat 11:00–19:00, closed Sun
Google Maps · 425 Queen's Rd W
According to Google Maps reviews (4.0 from 540+): a small shop for Cantonese roast meats (crispy pork belly, char siu, goose) and a wonton soup made with flatfish broth. Cash only, and by lunchtime there's a queue outside; the best time is when the meat has just come out of the oven. Reviews are split: some love it, others complain of tough meat and rude staff.
Tim Ho Wan
Sham Shui Po · dim sum · 100–150 HK$ (≈$13–19) · daily 8:00–21:30
Google Maps · website · 9–11 Fuk Wing St
According to Google Maps reviews (4.2 from 6,200+): the original branch of the Michelin-recognised dim sum chain, roomier than the one in Central. The star is the baked char siu bun, followed by siu mai, har gow, rice rolls and chicken feet. You take a number and wait: up to an hour at peak times, often no wait on weekday afternoons. The tableware is melamine, and some feel the fame outruns the food.
One Dim Sum
Prince Edward · dim sum · 50–100 HK$ (≈$6–13) · Mon–Fri 9:30–23:00, Sat–Sun 9:00–23:00
Google Maps · website · 209A Tung Choi St
According to Google Maps reviews (4.3 from 7,300+): an inexpensive dim sum spot that's easy to order at, with an order slip in Cantonese and English and a photo menu. Reviewers praise the har gow with juicy shrimp, rice rolls, siu mai, steamed beef tripe, lo mai gai and the buckwheat tea. No booking needed, but come early: it opens in the morning and fills up fast.
For a special dinner
The Chairman Restaurant
Central · Cantonese · from 500 HK$ (≈$65) · daily 12:00–15:00, 18:00–23:00
Google Maps · website · 3/F, The Wellington, 198 Wellington St
According to Google Maps reviews (4.4 from 760+): a Cantonese restaurant named the best in Asia in 2026, and guests call it one of the most memorable Cantonese meals of their lives. They praise the camphor-wood smoked goose, the crab in Shaoxing wine, the fish with aged preserved lemon, the char siu and the sour beef soup. The room is calm and old-school and the service attentive, though glasses aren't always topped up on time, and the wine list is short. Tables are hard to get, so book as early as you can. Time Out recommends it too (article).
Lung King Heen
Central, IFC · Cantonese · from 500 HK$ (≈$65) · daily 12:00–14:30, 18:00–21:00, Sat–Sun lunch 11:30–15:00
Google Maps · website · 4/F, Four Seasons, 8 Finance St
According to Google Maps reviews (4.4 from 990+): a Cantonese restaurant in the Four Seasons with harbour views, and one guest calls its dim sum and roast meats the best in town. A dim sum lunch is the easiest way in: one reviewer paid about 900 HK$ (≈$115), less than expected. The service is warm and flexible, and they'll halve a noodle portion for two. The downsides: one table found the tasting menu underwhelming and the char siu too lean. Book far in advance.
Ho Lee Fook
Soho, Central · modern Cantonese · from 500 HK$ (≈$65) · daily 18:00–22:30, Thu–Sat until 23:30
Google Maps · website · 3–5 Elgin St
According to Google Maps reviews (4.3 from 1,300+): a buzzing basement restaurant down a golden staircase, with red lighting and a retro interior, serving Cantonese classics with a twist. Reviewers rate the char siu, the prawn toast done okonomiyaki-style, the salt and pepper tofu, the crispy chicken and the salted egg starter. The downsides: it's pricey and touristy, tables are limited to 90 minutes, the kitchen can be slow, and the corner seats get hot and stuffy.
Yardbird
Sheung Wan · yakitori izakaya · from 500 HK$ (≈$65) · Tue–Sat 18:00–0:00, closed Sun–Mon
Google Maps · website · 154–158 Wing Lok St
According to Google Maps reviews (4.5 from 1,900+): a yakitori bar guests call a Hong Kong institution, cooking the whole chicken from skin to offal. The must-orders are the chicken meatballs with egg yolk dip, the chicken and egg fried rice, the sweetcorn tempura and the wings, with cocktails and Japanese whisky alongside. Walk-ins can get a standing table. The downsides: it's expensive, some skewers (the breast, say) are bland, and service can be patchy.
One last thing
Noodle and barbecue shops like Ying Kee and Po Kee are often cash only, so carry a couple of hundred HK$. Turn up at Tim Ho Wan at opening time: there are no bookings and the queue forms early. Australia Dairy Company and Mak Man Kee are a few minutes apart in Jordan, next to Temple Street, so breakfast and a late dinner can happen in the same neighbourhood. For The Chairman and Lung King Heen, don't count on a table without booking several weeks ahead.
More on Hong Kong: what to see, bars and coffee.