Nanjing Restaurants

This dodgy shop is extremely popular with the locals. Dont be daunted by the long queues. It's worth the wait.

Favorite Dish: Tang Bao or Chinese dumpling with soup (direct translation) in it.

It's named tang (soup) dumpling because when you bite into the dumpling, the soup or juices will come spurting out. With pork fillings, this local snack is usually eaten with vinegar.

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Located in the Fuzimiao area, this stall sells local Nanjing snacks. Since fuzimiao is probably a must-see place in Nanjing, do make sure to drop by this shop and have a bowl of their famous chi dou yuan xiao.

Suitable for breakfast or breaks.

Favorite Dish: The chi dou yuan xiao, as shown in the picture, comes highly recommended!

It is a chinese dessert consisting of glutinous rice balls and many kinds of beans. With the right consistency and sweetness, it is very satisfying!

The restaurant is located in Lion's bridge of Hunan road. It is easy to be found. The ambience is not perfect, a little bit of crowded and noisy. Whereas, I think it is a good place for a few friends getting together. The plates are very very big. Actually, it is a feature of Northen Chinese food. And the price is cheap. We ordered 6 courses and paid less than 100 RMB for them. And three friends are I were full enough so we didn't finish all dishes.

Favorite Dish: 1) Eggplant with Chilli and Potato. Stir fried eggplant, chilli and potato braised with soy sauce. Northern dish.

2)stir Jue Cai with meat slices

Jue Cai named as "king of the wild vegetable", Jue Cai is very nourishing. It is abundant in protein and calcium.

I haven't got a photo or a specific address but I can tell you where the "in" place to go to is in terms of thousands of local Chinese.

We stumbled upon this eating hive of activity by accident but could not ignore it- imagine hundreds of Chinese queued up outside a number of restaurants and when you go in you are assaulted by steam everywhere and people hunched over small coal "BBQs" steaming an assortment of vegetables, fish, meat etc.

Where? The area near the Confucius Temple known as Fu Zi Miao

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This is a food hall that has a range of different food from noodles through to Japanese. You buy a voucher (for about 50 Yuan) and then use it to buy whatever you want. We ate noodles one day and Japanese curry the next day!!

Cheap but good!!

The Grand Ocean is next to the Central Department Store on East Zhongshan Road which did not appear to have a food hall!! (at least we did not find it!!)

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We found this restaurant in the basement of the "Healthy Eating" Grand Ocean food hall which is in East Zhongshan Road. There is a food hall as well but this restaurant is separate which means that you do not buy a voucher and use it to buy a meal. There was a queue to get in so we knew it was good and it did not disappoint!

Favorite Dish: Spicy Beef noodle 25 Yuan each!! Hot and spicy!!

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Somehow we stumbled into this restaurant near the Wende Bridge. It was filled with lots of Chinese so we went in. It seemed to be a bit more upmarket than our usual forays but we stayed.

We had asparagus and duck, fried spinach and hot spicy tofu with a coconut milk and large Tsingtao Beer. Delicious!!

Total 94 Yuan

The Blue Marlin is a bar/restaurant to be found in 1912. They have some of the best Western food available in Nanjing, and a menu that is sure to provide something that caters for every diner's tastes. From German food, to pasta, to traditional American food and of course Chinese food, The Blue Marlin is the restaurant that I visit most often. Live music on weeknights too.

Favorite Dish: Steak Toast