Guangzhou Restaurants Where Locals Eat

Guangzhou is always regarded as food heaven. My first visit to Guangzhou was the year 2008. The Guangzhou Metro wasn’t even built back then. Rather than having street food that is always frequent by tourists, here I am bringing you an alternative best list of Guangzhou restaurants that I prefer to dine at whenever I visit Guangzhou. I have just returned from my recent trip to Guangzhou (also check out my Complete Guangzhou Guide) and I took some time to write what to eat at Guangzhou to share some of the delicious local food that is frequent by the locals. If you are looking for particularly authentic Guangzhou delicacies, check them out here!

Must Try Alternative Local Guangzhou Restaurant for the Best Local Food!

Ninety Nine Cent – Shan Xi Noodle House 九毛九山西面馆(Jiu Mao Jiu Shan Xi Mian Guan)

Ninety Nine Cent (NNC) is a franchise restaurant in China that is doing exceptionally well with over 50 branches in Guangdong province itself. They served delicious Shanxi Cuisine, where noodles are the main dishes. Besides noodles, there is plenty of selection ranging from meats to appetizers and desserts.

Address : Level 4, Suncity Plaza, Baiyun District, Guangzhou, China

Price Range : 50RMB +/- per person ($7.25 +/- per person)

Overall Rating : 8.5/10

How to get there : Metro Line 3, get off at Exit C JingXi Nangfang Hospital station. Walk the opposite direction of the exit staircase for approximately 400meters. Suncity Plaza will be on your left. This restaurant is on level 4 (the highest floor).

Yu Pin Shunde Home-cook Restaurant 誉品顺德私房菜

Hidden away from tourists as the surrounding are all cooperate offices. They served pretty authentic Cantonese cuisine. For a quick note, most old-timer famous Cantonese chefs in Hong Kong are from the Shunde City of Guangdong Province. I would suggest you diner here instead of filling your stomach with street food around the tourist area.

Address : No. 89, Lin He West Road, Tianhe District, Guangzhou, China.

Price Range : 60RMB +/- per person ($8.71 +/- per person)

Overall Rating : 8/10

A Qiang Pickled Vegetables Fish Restaurant  阿强酸菜鱼

A Qiang Restaurant served delicate Sichuan cuisine, the best in Guangzhou I’ve tried so far. If you love spicy food with a complex flavor, this is the place to go! This location is nearby the Yu Pin Restaurant but far deeper within the cooperate zone! Anyhow, they do have many more branches all around Guangzhou.

Address : No. 421, Lin He East Road, Tianhe District, Guangzhou, China

Price Range : 60RMB +/- per person ($8.71 +/- per person)

Overall Rating : 8/10

Tai Er Restaurant 太二

They specialized in freshwater fish with pickled vegetables, a Sichuan cuisine. Expect to queue during lunch hour as I waited for 1 hour for my lunch this time.

Their fish slices are cooked to perfection! Each slice is not overcooked, very good texture, smooth and slightly chewy to your mouth, one word – Great!

Address : Level 3, Suncity Plaza, Baiyun District, Guangzhou, China

Price Range : 40RMB +/- per person ($4.8 +/- per person)

Overall rating : 7/10

How to get there : Metro Line 3, get off at Exit C JingXi Nangfang Hospital station. Walk the opposite direction of the exit staircase for approximately 400meters. Suncity Plaza will be on your left. This restaurant is on level 4 (the highest floor).

Qiao Mei Noodle Restaurant 巧美面家 – Wanton Noodles

They serve pretty decently Hong Kong Style Wanton Noodles, located at the other end of Food street next to Beijing Road. Read on to find out more!

I usually visit them just for a bowl of shrimp wonton only, though they offer two selections of wanton – shrimp wanton and five flavors wanton. Generous amount of wanton(s) in the superior soup is a must for wanton lovers!

Address : No. 2, Hui Fu East Road, YueXiu District, Guangzhou, China

Price Range : 20RMB per person ($2.9 per person)

Overall rating : 7.5/10

Yin Ji Steamed Rolled Rice Noodle – 银记粉肠店

They served delicious local staples such as their best seller steamed rolled rice noodles, porridge, and some other sides. They do have plenty of branches all over Guangzhou and this picture was taken at the well known Beijing Road 北京路步行街. I really recommend you to try out their steamed rolled rice noodle!

Address : Hui Fu East Road, No. 519, Yue Xiu District, Guangzhou, China.

Price Range : 10RMB – 25RMB ($1.45 – $3.36)

Overall Rating : 8/10

HEYTEA 喜茶

HEYTEA is now a phenomenon is China, the last food trend in Guangzhou. People are going frenzy over it, frenzy, and I mean it much more than crazy. Their best seller – cheese tea. When I come across them, I was wondering what so good about them? There is literally another tea seller who have this on their menu. So I went forth to try it out myself to see if they are worthy of my time.

The queue starts at 9.30 am whereas their opening hours are 11.00 am. Pretty scary huh? It took me more than 2 hours just to get myself a cup of cheese tea. (Read about my experience with HEYTEA)

I got myself a cheese green tea and I was amazed by it. One word – excellent! The combination they manage to pull off is fantastic. The white layer of cheese is rich, creamy, and yet not too thick – just right! Their cup of cheese tea packed with punch and is a benchmark above the other cheese tea. If you have the time, it is worth the wait. (Learn Cheese Tea recipe here)

Address : Hui Fu East Road, YueXiu District, Guangzhou, China.

Price Range : 9RMB – 28RMB ($1.31 – $4.06)

Overall rating : 8/10

Jiu Long Cafe 九龙冰室

A Hong Kong cafe with all the classic decors and ambient of how a Hong Kong cafe should be. Well known for their milk tea and I think they do serve one of the best milk tea in Guangzhou.

Whenever I visit Guangzhou, Jiu Long Cafe in Liwan District would be my favorite cafe to have an in-between break during my trip around Guangzhou. I would say their milk tea was commercially done right, from choices of tea powder to evaporated milk – delivering a rich and creamy cup of milk to that tinglings your taste bud. Probably the best milk tea in Guangzhou!

And this come across me, like kinda interesting, Ice cream milk tea flavored dipped in milk tea. But just as I expected, not great to have milk tea cold or iced.

Address : Dong Ji Xin Tian Di Shopping Mall, Level 1, Shang Xia Jiu Pedestrian Street, Liwan District, Guangzhou, China

Price Range : 40RMB +/- ($5.8 +/-)

Overall rating : 7.5/10

Ren Xin Desserts 仁信甜品

They serve a very unique Chinese dessert – double boiled milk pudding 双皮奶. The rich, creamy, thick, and smooth texture of this milk dessert is a must-try! They do have numerous branches all around China and Hong Kong.

Address : No 550, Hui Fu East Road, Yuexiu district, Guangzhou, China.
Price Range : 15RMB +/- ($2.18 +/-)
Overall rating : 7.5/10

Questions

Where can I eat wanton noodles in Guangzhou?

Qiao Mei serves decent Hong Kong style wanton noodles with shrimp wanton, on Hui Fu East Road in Yuexiu.

Where can I try rice noodle rolls?

Yin Ji near Beijing Road; steamed rolled rice noodles are their best seller.

What is a good noodle chain in Guangzhou?

Jiu Mao Jiu serves Shanxi noodles and has over 50 branches in Guangdong.

Where can I stop for milk tea in Liwan District?

Jiu Long Cafe, a Hong Kong style cafe on Shang Xia Jiu Pedestrian Street.