The best Chinese restaurants in the UK

Chinese food lovers will understand. When you have to have it, wherever you are, you just have to have it. The longing for a juicy dumpling or some crispy, sticky ribs has no respect for geography.

With that in mind, here are the Chinese restaurants that locals recommend in some of the UK’s most populous cities. Most of these destinations have active Chinese communities and usually make a big fuss during the Chinese New Year, so they are great places to have a great street party and enjoy some explosive food at the same time.

01
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New Sum Ye, Birmingham

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+44 121 622 1525

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The Arcadian is a multipurpose entertainment venue linking Birmingham’s Southside, Chinatown and Theater district. It is also the location of several highly recommended Chinese restaurants. New Sum Ye in the Arcadian, is an unassuming place with utilitarian decor but a raft of rave reviews for its Cantonese roast meats. The pork, chicken and duck are lacquered to perfection and the place is packed all the time so the food remains moist and juicy. This is not the place to take a sensitive vegetarian.

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Miscellaneous, Bristol

Bristol may have a small Chinese community, but it has been around for about 100 years. The census recorded five Chinese families who lived there in 1914. Today, the community is large enough to support a good selection of authentic Chinese restaurants, as well as a shopping center, Eastgate Oriental City, with a covered oriental mall. , an open air market and one of the largest oriental supermarkets in the Southwest. Wai Yee Hong, a family business, supplies restaurants and the general public with fresh and packaged Chinese food and ingredients, as well as a range of Chinese kitchen tools. The people of Wai Yee Hong rate their neighbor Water Sky for its dim sum; well known Bristol Mayflower city center favorite for Cantonese classics; and North China food at Wongs.

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Hakka Seafood Chinese Restaurant, Cambridge

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+44 1223 568988

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The Hakka Seafood Chinese restaurant in Cambridge doesn’t look like much from the outside and is hidden behind the Cambridge City football field, which isn’t much either. But appearances can be deceptive and the word on the street is that this little place is worth a little trip.

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The happy reunion, Cardiff

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+44 29 2039 7531

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Food writers at The Independent and The Times have been impressed with The Happy Gathering in Cardiff. Again, the location isn’t the best – it’s on a kind of backward main street, tucked between takeaways and local discount stores. But it stands out for its great dim sim and a menu that includes a good selection of vegetarian and vegan options.

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Cantonese restaurant Kweilin, Edinburgh

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+44 131 557 1875

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Kweilin takes well-done Cantonese food to several levels by presenting absolutely fresh Scottish seafood. Not only is it the best Chinese restaurant in Edinburgh, but the Guardian rated it one of the top ten restaurants of all kinds in the city. Higher-than-typical prices are the result of this high praise, but if you like the Chinese way with seafood, head here. They are open for lunch and dinner, closed on Mondays.

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Restaurante Opium, Glasgow

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+44 141 332 6668

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Opium Restaurant in Glasgow describes itself as an ‘Oriental Fusion Restaurant’. It brings together all the Asian cuisines that have been absorbed into Britain through its former empire. Here you can dine on Chinese, Malaysian, Singaporean and Thai cuisine under one roof. The restaurant, on Hope Street, also offers an extensive dim sim menu. The atmosphere is elegant and the location in the city center is convenient for visitors. There is a good two course menu for lunch.

07
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Red cold, Manchester

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+44 161 273 1288

Manchester has one of the largest Chinese communities outside of London and hosts a huge Chinese New Year celebration around its spectacular Chinese archway. Therefore, it is strange to recommend what is essentially a chain restaurant as the best in town. But locals and local food bloggers have been complaining lately about rude and inattentive service as well as conventional food at some of Manchester’s most venerable establishments. And red chili is just a small group of restaurants, after all, with two branches in Manchester and a branch in York and Leeds. What sets this place apart is that it is one of the few places specializing in Sichuan cuisine in the whole of the UK. The menus have chili indicators to indicate how hot and spicy you can expect your dish to be and there are enough unusual dishes: jellyfish with spring onion and crushed garlic; Sliced beef heart, beef tongue, beef tripe in chili sauce with crushed peanuts, layers of glass pig ears to cheer up the more adventurous of diners. The extensive vegetarian menu features Ms. Spotty’s beancurd recipe.

08
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Landmark Oriental Restaurant, Newcastle

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+44 7815 606597

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The Landmark Oriental Restaurant seems to be every Geordie’s first choice in Newcastle-upon-Tyne. Local and London food writers and food bloggers name this two-story restaurant, located on the ground floor of a multi-level city parking lot, as one of the best in the city. The restaurant’s decor is a mix of modern and Chinese utilitarian sheen – some of the round tables have sheer curtains around them, locking diners into festive tents. The menu is Cantonese and comprehensive, with Chinese banquets for just two or three people.

09
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Baby Buddha Chinese Teahouse, Norwich

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+44 1603 490889

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Try the dim sim at Baby Buddha Chinese Teahouse in central Norwich and you’ll understand why this place is a favorite for shoppers, students, and faculty at the Norwich University College of Arts, a 10-minute walk away. Glossy walls and a touch of carved Chinese woodwork offer a kind of Chinese-style minimalism to showcase the house’s specialties.

10
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Mi Sichuan, Oxford

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+44 1865 236899

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Expect a college town to have sophisticated and adventurous diners, as well as a contingent of Chinese students and professors, so it’s no wonder Oxford has a Szechuan restaurant that people are talking about. My Sichuan has a minimally decorated dining room that looks a bit like a very strict old school refectory, perhaps because it occupies The Old School Building, about five minutes from Oxford train station. Perhaps the cool interior is meant to counteract the spicy hot chili peppers that lavishly season dishes here. This is authentic food that takes no prisoners. If you doubt that, just looking at the house specials will bring tears to your eyes.

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London

London has some of the best Chinese restaurants in Europe, with new ones open all the time. You can go to expensive, high-concept places like one of the capital’s two Michelin-starred simulation venues, Yauatcha or Hakkasan, where simulation colors and wine for two could cost £ 150 or more. An unusual place to try is Hunan on Pimlico Road on the edge of Belgravia. Despite its name, this place has nothing to do with Hunan food: the name honors the birthplace of the owner’s uncle. Hunan serves Taiwanese food in a 16-course menu-less banquet that can be sublime or nothing depending on what’s cooking and what you like. At first, your waiter asks a few questions about food sensitivity and preferences, then the courses keep coming to your table. The portions are small but it can be kind of a marathon. The cost is approximately £ 50 per person.

Some other London favorites are local discoveries like The Royal China on Fulham Road in West London. The Dragon Palace, across the street from Earl’s Court Tube Station, in an area of budget and mid-priced hotels, is always packed with visitors from China. Their lunchtime dim sim, prepared by a Hong Kong chef, is divine and the claypot tofu with chicken and enoki mushrooms might be the best you’ve ever had.