Introduction

This food itinerary list has been curated by me, a person who has worked part-time for 8 years in Chinese restaurants and takeouts in a European country.
Yes, I’m from a restaurant family. 👨🏻‍🍳
I am back in China permanently and frequently explore new dishes, with an aim to recommend them to family and friends. A lot of friends ask me about cuisines and food combinations to look out for.
I have hand-picked these dishes to cover a range of tastes for visitors to China. Most of the dishes are top choices for the locals.
You should be able to find great versions of all dishes in any major city. 🍜
The cuisines and dishes cover different regions of China but doesn’t cover every single province.
Wishing you an amazing food journey throughout China! Do your best to “collect” all of these dishes during your trip! 🥢

Set A

Morning: Classic breakfast

pan fried crepe | jiān bing | 煎饼 OR
buns | bāo zi | 包子 (see this article for a full selection) OR
meat or vegetable dumplings | jiǎo zǐ | 饺子
Afternoon: Sichuan Hotpot 四川火锅
(for other Sichuan dishes, see this article)
Top ingredients - sliced beef or lamb, meatballs, tofu, mushrooms, any leafy vegetable
Evening: Cantonese dinner 粤菜
(see this article for a full selection)
roasted meat | shāo wèi | 烧味
sweet and sour pork | gū lǔ ròu | 咕噜肉
steamed fish | qīng zhēng yú | 清蒸鱼

Set B

Morning: Cantonese dim sum 广式早茶

(see dim sum list here for more choices)

Afternoon: Xi’an lunch 陕西菜

meat flatbread | ròu jiā mó | 肉夹馍
hand pulled noodles in spicy sauce | biáng biáng miàn | 𰻞𰻞面/油泼面
Evening: Shanghai dinner 上海菜
(see this article for a full selection)
soup dumplings | xiǎo lóng bāo | 小笼包
red braised pork | hóng shāo ròu | 红烧肉
Shanghai fried noodles | shàng hǎi chǎo miàn | 上海炒面

Set C

Morning: Traditional breakfast

Afternoon: Lanzhou lunch 兰州菜

Example Food Itineraries for Tourists Visiting China (2026)

YenKid In China