Cha Chaan Teng

Typical everyday Hong Kong food!

If you would like to get the beat of the Hong Kong culture and try what it feels like to eat like a real local, I can think of no better way than to visit a nearby cha chaan teng. Although the name means "tea restaurant", you really don't have to drink tea when you come here. Some might call it a "Chinese diner", and actually it's not entirely unlike some of the diners in America. To be fair, what they sell is more fast food than gourmet dining, but the prices are very affordable! A normal meal set should set you back around 20-25 HKD.

The food is usually offered in the form of a menu of set meals that rotate depending on the time of day. Popular offerings include simple dishes such as different types of noodle soup, fried rice, and toasts. Meats are also popular, including braised port, chicken wings, sausage, pan-fried fish and more. The mornings in particular also offer English breakfast fare like eggs, bacon and beans.

Although my primary suggestion with regards to food is that you must try out some dim sum, this is actually more typical everyday food. At this type of restaurant you may find school children in their neat uniforms at one table and stressed business people at the next.

Indeed, many Hong Kongers completely rely on these establishments - for breakfast, lunch and dinner! The food is cheap enoughb that they don't see much reason to cook for themselves! One of the great things about living in a city that's so crowded is that there always are restaurants nearby pretty much no matter where you go. You should see lots of these eateries as you walk down the street.

Cha chaan tengs are central to the Hong Kong food culture, but not all of them get very many non-Chinese customers. Hence some of them have English menus while others do not. Some of them will happen to have English-speaking staff, others will not. But that's all part of the adventure! As usual, the general rule would be that you will stand a better chance of making yourself understood in the less Chinese areas.

Locals also love to go to these places for "afternoon tea". People will show up in the middle of the afternoon for a drink and some snacks. The main drinks are tea, coffee and chocolate, and they are served hot or iced (iced drinks are slightly more expensive, but sooo nice on a hot day!).

To give you an idea of what to expect I have put in some pictures of things you could order in a cha chaan teng. Below are two typical examples of afternoon tea fare (and two of my personal favourites!): iced yuenyeung, which is a mix of tea and coffee, and Hong Kong style French toast - a delicious calorie bomb!

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