https://www.scmp.com/rss/515974/feed Discover the unique history and culture of Hong Kong’s cha chaan tengs, local diners where delicious food and drinks with international influences thrive. en https://assets.i-scmp.com/static/img/icons/scmp-meta-1200x630.png https://www.scmp.com Angela Hui Angela Hui Imagine this: a thick slab of golden-brown toast, topped with a perfect knob of butter melting slowly into the middle, finished with a drizzle of sticky golden syrup. For many Hong Kong diners, this variation on French toast is a familiar sight and a staple on menus across many of the city’s cha chaan teng. But don’t expect Cantoast Bakery in London to follow the mould. “A lot of the time, I get questions from customers,” says Haydon Wong, chef-owner of the pop-up bakery, which specialises in an... https://www.scmp.com/lifestyle/food-drink/article/3349463/how-chinese-takeaway-kid-brought-hong-kong-style-french-toast-london-twist?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/lifestyle/food-drink/article/3349463/how-chinese-takeaway-kid-brought-hong-kong-style-french-toast-london-twist?utm_source=rss_feed Fri, 10 Apr 2026 04:45:07 +0000 Charmaine Yu Charmaine Yu Neon signs on a Mong Kok street, “ding ding” trams sounding their bells, milk tea at traditional cha chaan teng cafes – images such as these are what usually come to mind when one thinks of Hong Kong culture. During this year’s Hong Kong art week, indie collective N+ Museum are confronting how the city is increasingly caricatured by nostalgic tropes in “Hong Kong Nostalgia-Bait”, an exhibition that asks: what gets left when memory is treated as a commodity and turned into visual souvenirs? The... https://www.scmp.com/lifestyle/arts/article/3347658/what-hong-kongs-n-museum-and-why-it-calling-out-cringe-nostalgia-trend?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/lifestyle/arts/article/3347658/what-hong-kongs-n-museum-and-why-it-calling-out-cringe-nostalgia-trend?utm_source=rss_feed Tue, 24 Mar 2026 04:45:08 +0000 Joyce Yip Joyce Yip Architect Charles Lai Chun-wai still had not finished his pork chop rice – a signature dish at For Kee in Hong Kong’s Sheung Wan neighbourhood – when product designer Kay Chan Wan-ki lifted his melamine plate to read the inscription at the bottom. She shrieked when she saw the words she had been desperately seeking: “Made in Hong Kong”. Melamine tableware was a hallmark of cha chaan tengs – Hong Kong-style cafes like For Kee – in the 1970s, sought after for its ceramic-like appearance, low cost,... https://www.scmp.com/lifestyle/food-drink/article/3346969/hong-kongs-cha-chaan-teng-history-designs-and-legacy-celebrated-new-exhibition?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/lifestyle/food-drink/article/3346969/hong-kongs-cha-chaan-teng-history-designs-and-legacy-celebrated-new-exhibition?utm_source=rss_feed Thu, 19 Mar 2026 04:15:08 +0000 Ashlyn Chak Ashlyn Chak Hong Kong’s food culture has been an amalgamation of global cuisine since its development in the late 19th century as a colonised free port. Take the city’s cha chaan tengs (local Hong Kong-style diners), which sprang up in the mid-20th century, as an example: while partially inspired by southern Chinese dishes, their menus feature decidedly Western elements such as milk tea, macaroni soup, baked pork chop rice and corned beef sandwiches. The hearty take on borscht found in Hong Kong, on the... https://www.scmp.com/lifestyle/food-drink/article/3343262/where-hong-kong-style-borscht-soup-comes-and-restaurant-serving-real-deal?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/lifestyle/food-drink/article/3343262/where-hong-kong-style-borscht-soup-comes-and-restaurant-serving-real-deal?utm_source=rss_feed Fri, 13 Feb 2026 04:45:08 +0000 Martin W H Wong Martin W H Wong It is that time of the year – January – the start of the legal year, marked by a decidedly Western ceremonial event. This month alone, the Bar has sent representatives to attend Opening of the Legal Year ceremonies in Singapore, Malaysia and, of course, Hong Kong. Similar ceremonies are also part of the tradition in other common law jurisdictions, such as England and Wales and Ireland, as well as civil law jurisdictions like France. Each jurisdiction’s ceremony has its own flavour, but one... https://www.scmp.com/news/hong-kong/law-and-crime/article/3340741/fine-brews-hong-kong-milk-tea-and-opening-legal-year-ceremony?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/hong-kong/law-and-crime/article/3340741/fine-brews-hong-kong-milk-tea-and-opening-legal-year-ceremony?utm_source=rss_feed Thu, 22 Jan 2026 01:30:13 +0000 Bernice Chan Bernice Chan Gongfu Cafe & Bao in Ottawa, Canada, is a cosy diner with a menu featuring twists on Hong Kong-style snacks – such as French toast with rhubarb purée – along with hand-pulled milk tea and pineapple buns. The space is inspired by the no-frills, open kitchens of Hong Kong’s traditional cha chaan teng cafes. But the chef and owner is not from Hong Kong. He is not even Chinese. Tarek Hassan is a 46-year-old Egyptian-Canadian who has only visited Hong Kong once, but fell in love with Cantonese food... https://www.scmp.com/lifestyle/food-drink/article/3335604/hong-kong-style-cafe-receives-top-recognition-its-owner-has-been-city-just-once?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/lifestyle/food-drink/article/3335604/hong-kong-style-cafe-receives-top-recognition-its-owner-has-been-city-just-once?utm_source=rss_feed Mon, 08 Dec 2025 23:15:09 +0000 Rachel Au Rachel Au On a sweltering October afternoon, the queue outside Pineapple Bakery snakes down Sheung Wan’s Wing Lok Street. Families, couples and retirees wait patiently in the heat for the next batch of what are arguably the city’s most elusive pineapple buns. The enticing aroma of butter and sugar drifts from underneath the bakery’s half-closed shutters. Inside, a young woman dressed in black begins to pull trays of plump, golden pineapple buns from the oven. This is Adele, the fiercely private founder... https://www.scmp.com/postmag/food-drink/article/3331749/how-young-chefs-obsession-created-hong-kongs-viral-pineapple-bakery?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/postmag/food-drink/article/3331749/how-young-chefs-obsession-created-hong-kongs-viral-pineapple-bakery?utm_source=rss_feed Sun, 09 Nov 2025 05:00:10 +0000 Chloe Loung Chloe Loung A shared love of photography and tea is the inspiration behind an exhibition of five artists now showing at the K11 Art Mall in Tsim Sha Tsui. Specifically, however, it is a Hongkonger’s idea of having tea – which is not much about the drink at all. “Having ‘tea’ is never really about tea as a beverage, however great it may be,” says Enoch Ho, a photographer and the designated spokesperson for the group, about the exhibition titled “Jo Cha Photography Club”, which runs until November 23 in the... https://www.scmp.com/lifestyle/arts/article/3329122/hong-kongs-classic-cha-chaan-teng-culture-captured-nostalgic-exhibition?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/lifestyle/arts/article/3329122/hong-kongs-classic-cha-chaan-teng-culture-captured-nostalgic-exhibition?utm_source=rss_feed Mon, 20 Oct 2025 08:15:07 +0000 Harvey Kong Harvey Kong Gold Garden Cafe, a cha chaan teng known for its egg tarts, will close one of its two branches and lay off some staff as Hong Kong’s food and beverage sector continues to face difficult market conditions. Davis Ng Kwai-ting, owner of the Hong Kong-style cafe, said on Monday that while the decision was mainly spurred by the departure of some kitchen staff, the poor economy and the desire to focus his efforts on the main branch were also reasons behind the closure. Tucked away in a residential... https://www.scmp.com/news/hong-kong/hong-kong-economy/article/3328834/gold-garden-cafe-shut-1-2-branches-hong-kong-amid-tough-market?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/hong-kong/hong-kong-economy/article/3328834/gold-garden-cafe-shut-1-2-branches-hong-kong-amid-tough-market?utm_source=rss_feed Mon, 13 Oct 2025 11:31:14 +0000 Ashlyn Chak Ashlyn Chak The Hong Kong-style egg and beef sandwich is not just a sandwich, but a testament to how a seemingly simple snack, served quickly and conveniently, can stand the test of time and become a collective memory among busy city dwellers. Many restaurants have made it their own by adding salted (corned) beef and various inventive ingredients, infusing even more “Hong Kong-ness” into the dish and increasing the reverence it receives from locals and tourists alike. It has been speculated that the Hong... https://www.scmp.com/lifestyle/food-drink/article/3310282/how-hong-kongs-egg-and-beef-sandwich-became-so-beloved-and-best-places-eat-it?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/lifestyle/food-drink/article/3310282/how-hong-kongs-egg-and-beef-sandwich-became-so-beloved-and-best-places-eat-it?utm_source=rss_feed Thu, 15 May 2025 04:45:10 +0000 The pineapple bun – bo lo bao, or bo lo yau when sliced open and stuffed with a slab of butter – is a popular Hong Kong pastry found in many bakeries and convenience stores in the city, and in Chinatowns around the world. Contrary to its name, the pineapple bun does not contain any pineapple. It is so named because of its crumbly golden-brown crust, which vaguely resembles the exterior of the tropical fruit. The bo lo bao is sometimes likened to the British hot cross bun, but the two are... https://www.scmp.com/lifestyle/food-drink/article/3301174/where-does-hong-kongs-pineapple-bun-come-japan-mexico-or-creative-bakers-mind?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/lifestyle/food-drink/article/3301174/where-does-hong-kongs-pineapple-bun-come-japan-mexico-or-creative-bakers-mind?utm_source=rss_feed Thu, 06 Mar 2025 23:15:07 +0000 Hong Kong Chief Executive John Lee Ka-chiu wrapped up his recent visit to the Asian Winter Games in Harbin with a local breakfast that “warmed” his heart. He not only met Hong Kong athletes but also visited cultural and tourism spots, including the famed Central Street, to learn how Harbin, also known as China’s Ice City, built its tourism industry. Lee attributed the success of Heilongjiang, China’s northernmost province of which Harbin is the capital, to its focus on ice and snow, and lauded... https://www.scmp.com/opinion/hong-kong-opinion/article/3298786/harbin-hong-kong-should-focus-what-makes-it-unique?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/opinion/hong-kong-opinion/article/3298786/harbin-hong-kong-should-focus-what-makes-it-unique?utm_source=rss_feed Wed, 19 Feb 2025 01:30:07 +0000 Retail therapy was such a reliable driver of Hong Kong tourism that few in the business contemplated the need for diversity. Why fix a wheel that wasn’t broken? Luxury brands gobbled up prime space, muscling out local designers and innovation. Now, that well-oiled wheel is grinding to a halt and klaxons are sounding. Yet it is not too late for the city to end its haute couture strut. A strong Hong Kong dollar and the dwindling allure of monoculture shopping has seen retail drop from 51 per cent... https://www.scmp.com/opinion/hong-kong-opinion/article/3298120/hong-kongs-tourist-attractions-are-all-around-us?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/opinion/hong-kong-opinion/article/3298120/hong-kongs-tourist-attractions-are-all-around-us?utm_source=rss_feed Thu, 13 Feb 2025 01:30:08 +0000 Oscar Liu Oscar Liu A Hong Kong-style cafe has delighted culture enthusiasts by popping up in a famous Paris museum complex during the Art Basel fair in the French capital, with the Post learning a similar eatery will also appear at the US edition in December. The authentic cha chaan teng was erected at the Grand Palais in Paris – recognisable for its large glass dome – from Wednesday last week to Sunday as part of a partnership between the Tourism Board and Art Basel. Guests were able to experience part of Hong... https://www.scmp.com/news/hong-kong/hong-kong-economy/article/3283105/hong-kong-cha-chaan-teng-delights-paris-milk-tea-char-siu-during-art-basel-show?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/hong-kong/hong-kong-economy/article/3283105/hong-kong-cha-chaan-teng-delights-paris-milk-tea-char-siu-during-art-basel-show?utm_source=rss_feed Sun, 20 Oct 2024 09:08:07 +0000 Inside Ho Yuen Cafe in Vancouver, Canada, hangs a painting. The image is that of Hong Kong’s Lion Rock mountain nestled between Hong Kong’s and Vancouver’s cityscapes – an illustration of how the “Lion Rock spirit” links the newly opened cha chaan teng with its original in Hong Kong. The restaurant in Vancouver is bright and cheery, with large windows that let in natural light and a kitchen where the staff make char siu, or barbecue pork, from scratch, as well as pineapple buns and egg... https://www.scmp.com/lifestyle/food-drink/article/3251892/she-wants-make-pineapple-buns-popular-ramen-how-ho-yuen-cafe-brings-little-bit-hong-kongs-lion-rock?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/lifestyle/food-drink/article/3251892/she-wants-make-pineapple-buns-popular-ramen-how-ho-yuen-cafe-brings-little-bit-hong-kongs-lion-rock?utm_source=rss_feed Thu, 15 Feb 2024 10:16:11 +0000 The lifting of Covid-related restrictions has not been enough to stimulate Hong Kong’s beleaguered tourist economy, with visitor numbers last year just over half of what they were in 2019. Increasingly, Hongkongers are also going to the mainland for more affordable and even superior dining and shopping experiences, leaving the city’s hotels, shops and restaurants struggling for survival. Meanwhile, Macau appears to have surpassed Hong Kong in terms of having a more effective tourism campaign.... https://www.scmp.com/comment/opinion/article/3249657/how-boost-hong-kong-tourism-vouchers-now-and-vision-long-term?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/comment/opinion/article/3249657/how-boost-hong-kong-tourism-vouchers-now-and-vision-long-term?utm_source=rss_feed Sat, 27 Jan 2024 01:30:11 +0000 On a cold winter morning soon after opening, Sydney restaurant Hong Kong Bing Sutt is already filling up as I step inside to meet the owners, husband and wife team Jessica Chan Tin-wai and Kevin Cheung Chun-kwok. Cheung had always dreamed of becoming a chef; he spent his childhood and adolescence helping out at his family’s restaurants in Hong Kong. His parents ran a restaurant in Tsim Sha Tsui and his grandmother owned a canteen in North Point. His parents, however, urged him not to become a... https://www.scmp.com/magazines/post-magazine/food-drink/article/3242693/sydney-cafe-where-memories-old-hong-kong-live-through-milk-tea-loud-cantopop-and-bit-education-about?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/magazines/post-magazine/food-drink/article/3242693/sydney-cafe-where-memories-old-hong-kong-live-through-milk-tea-loud-cantopop-and-bit-education-about?utm_source=rss_feed Sun, 26 Nov 2023 05:15:07 +0000 Lee Hoi-wu took over her family’s decades-old restaurant business in Hong Kong in 2014, and within years, worked out the secret recipes that ensured customers would keep coming back. Ngan Lung Cafe, a Hong Kong-style restaurant, was opened in 1968 on a small street in Lei Yue Mun Fishing Village. The cha chaan teng is known for mouth-watering signature dishes such as Hong Kong-style French toast with egg white and fermented bean curd, as well as abalones steamed with sake. Feeding Hong Kong on... https://www.scmp.com/news/hong-kong/society/article/3237377/not-just-about-secret-recipes-traditional-hong-kong-family-run-restaurant-wins-customers-personal?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/hong-kong/society/article/3237377/not-just-about-secret-recipes-traditional-hong-kong-family-run-restaurant-wins-customers-personal?utm_source=rss_feed Tue, 10 Oct 2023 03:55:02 +0000 Since moving to Sydney in 2022, I have made it my mission to explore the city, and one weekend I went to check out the markets in Burwood, a multicultural suburb in Sydney’s Inner West. On my way there, I swear I spot a red Hong Kong minibus … inside a cafe. I double back, and confirm that I’m not seeing things – there is indeed a red minibus in a restaurant called Kowloon Cafe. I ditch the plan to head to the markets and excitedly slide into a booth next to the minibus. The menu features all... https://www.scmp.com/magazines/post-magazine/food-drink/article/3232315/how-sydneys-hong-kong-style-cafes-provide-nostalgic-taste-and-feeling-home-city-migrants-australia?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/magazines/post-magazine/food-drink/article/3232315/how-sydneys-hong-kong-style-cafes-provide-nostalgic-taste-and-feeling-home-city-migrants-australia?utm_source=rss_feed Sun, 27 Aug 2023 03:15:17 +0000 On Sunday, Financial Secretary Paul Chan Mo-po announced the government’s intention to work with various sectors to boost Hong Kong’s nightlife, including organising night bazaars to increase spending. While it is admirable of the government to try and keep the momentum of economic recovery going, Chan’s proposal has drawn questions about the profitability of new businesses and increased competition for already struggling restaurants. The proposal’s biggest drawback is that it seems to have... https://www.scmp.com/comment/opinion/article/3231199/boost-nightlife-tourism-why-not-promote-hong-kongs-dai-pai-dong?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/comment/opinion/article/3231199/boost-nightlife-tourism-why-not-promote-hong-kongs-dai-pai-dong?utm_source=rss_feed Fri, 18 Aug 2023 00:15:20 +0000 “We’re not modernising or trying to change the cha chaan teng, it’s perfect the way it is,” co-founder of Hoko Cafe, Nicole Ma, tells me over the phone. “To me, Hong Kong diners encapsulate so much of what makes a place like this such a nostalgic, deeply unsubtle joy.” That is the ethos behind Ma’s business. The former floral designer’s newly opened cha chaan teng, in Brick Lane in East London, is a love letter to the simple pleasures of a Hong Kong diner. A place to meet friends – or strangers... https://www.scmp.com/magazines/post-magazine/food-drink/article/3228439/hong-kong-style-diner-london-hoko-serves-milk-tea-french-toast-and-slice-nostalgia-exiles-and?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/magazines/post-magazine/food-drink/article/3228439/hong-kong-style-diner-london-hoko-serves-milk-tea-french-toast-and-slice-nostalgia-exiles-and?utm_source=rss_feed Sat, 22 Jul 2023 08:15:17 +0000 Louisa Mak Ming-sze, a former Miss Hong Kong, turned heads recently with her fashion choices. Stepping out in an A-line Zimmermann High Tide Picnic dress with an abstract orange and yellow design melting down the bustier, Mak wasn’t being praised for her sartorial sense – but her uncanny resemblance to a takeaway paper cup of milk tea. Once seen, it can’t be unseen. “OK, she represents Hong Kong,” wrote one user underneath an Instagram post by digital platform HolidaySmart, which was among the... https://www.scmp.com/magazines/post-magazine/food-drink/article/3219730/not-just-ordinary-cup-mystery-takeaway-paper-tea-cup-design-became-symbol-hong-kong?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/magazines/post-magazine/food-drink/article/3219730/not-just-ordinary-cup-mystery-takeaway-paper-tea-cup-design-became-symbol-hong-kong?utm_source=rss_feed Mon, 08 May 2023 04:45:17 +0000 Businesswoman Maria Lee was Hong Kong’s first female hotel general manager in 1987 (of the Asia Hotel). She then founded The Rosedale Hotel Group and is now developing an elderly living concept in Happy Valley. She spoke to Andrew Sun. I like any kind of authentic cuisine prepared in traditional cooking style but with a creative setting. As a hotelier, I’ve operated and opened different restaurants including Korean and Chinese cuisine. I was quite proud of a healthy Cantonese concept I created... https://www.scmp.com/lifestyle/food-drink/article/3216045/milk-tea-crispy-chicken-her-favourite-congee-where-hotelier-and-restaurateur-goes-eat-hong-kong?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/lifestyle/food-drink/article/3216045/milk-tea-crispy-chicken-her-favourite-congee-where-hotelier-and-restaurateur-goes-eat-hong-kong?utm_source=rss_feed Fri, 07 Apr 2023 03:15:14 +0000 As Hong Kong weathered the social unrest in 2019 and more than two years of the coronavirus pandemic, cracks have appeared in its economic landscape, with some of the city’s old businesses, seen as heritage pillars that hold the memories of generations, buckling under pressure. They are the icons of old Hong Kong – from cha chaan tengs to traditional bakeries – that have bowed out and called it a day, marking the end of a way of life for some residents. Hong Kong’s beloved Happy Cake Shop to... https://www.scmp.com/news/hong-kong/hong-kong-economy/article/3187949/end-era-5-hong-kong-food-and-beverage-icons-have?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/hong-kong/hong-kong-economy/article/3187949/end-era-5-hong-kong-food-and-beverage-icons-have?utm_source=rss_feed Sat, 06 Aug 2022 06:01:50 +0000 Mido Cafe, one of Hong Kong’s oldest traditional cha chaan teng – cafes that serve Chinese-Western fusion food – has announced its closure in an ambiguous message posted outside its premises. The farewell note is written mostly in Chinese, and includes a photo of a shop cat perched on one of Mido Cafe’s iconic Formica tables. The brief message struck a poignant note with its opening: “Life has its share of decades, and without knowing, 72 years have passed since Mido Cafe began here. “So let’s... https://www.scmp.com/lifestyle/food-drink/article/3185804/one-hong-kongs-oldest-traditional-cha-chaan-tengs-mido-cafe?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/lifestyle/food-drink/article/3185804/one-hong-kongs-oldest-traditional-cha-chaan-tengs-mido-cafe?utm_source=rss_feed Tue, 19 Jul 2022 10:17:58 +0000 Wander down any street in Hong Kong and you’ll eventually come across a cha chaan teng. This culture of dining is a welcome assault to the senses. The interiors are clamorous – plastic stools scrape on tile floors, steaming dishes clang on the tables, hungry people chatter and waiters shout to be heard over the cacophony There is no official data to suggest how many cha chaan teng are in Hong Kong, but it is safe to assume there are thousands across the city. Many closed down over the decades as... https://www.scmp.com/news/hong-kong/society/article/2187164/best-cha-chaan-tengs-where-find-bustling-cafes-serving-hong?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/hong-kong/society/article/2187164/best-cha-chaan-tengs-where-find-bustling-cafes-serving-hong?utm_source=rss_feed Sat, 23 Feb 2019 02:04:25 +0000 For as long as Hong Kong food writer Emily Tong Lai-fong can remember, she’s been eating at Wai Kee Noodle Café near her childhood home in Sham Shui Po. Wai Kee started serving the community as a dai pai dong (open-air food stall) in the 1950s. Although it has evolved over the past six decades – moving off the street and into a more permanent home – one thing that has stayed the same for Tong is her regular order: a cup of Hong Kong-style milk tea. “We have grown up together,” she says, taking a... https://www.scmp.com/lifestyle/food-drink/article/2119111/how-hong-kong-style-milk-tea-became-part-local-culture?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/lifestyle/food-drink/article/2119111/how-hong-kong-style-milk-tea-became-part-local-culture?utm_source=rss_feed Thu, 09 Nov 2017 12:00:45 +0000