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Chongqing Foods & Restaurants

Chongqing is always the starting and ending point of Yangtze River cruise, so dining in Chongqing is a must experience for any cruise traveler.

As Chongqing lies in the heart of China's chili belt, local dishes are not for the timid tongue. Chongqing's specialty is the addition of the Sichuan Peppercorn, which produces a numbing heat, hence many dishes have the prefix mala, meaning numb and spicy. Many restaurants will tone down the spice count for tongues that have yet to be initiated.

"The food here made my tongue go numb and set my month on fire. Now I know why the people here have so much energy."                                                                                                    - From a Chongqing tourist

What to Eat in Chongqing

1. The most famous Chongqing dish is a spicy hotpot called Mala huoguo, a cauldron of red, bubbling soup in which diners cook raw meats and vegetables. The longer it simmers the spicier it gets and the custom is to save the leafy vegetables for last. Watch out – they pick up all the spices. If this sounds a bit too much, many restaurants also serve a yuan-yang hotpot with one side red and the other a clear chicken broth.
2. Many street vendors sell a cold noodle topped with cucumbers and drenched in a spicy sauce then sprinkled with chopped garlic.
3. Barbecue is a popular way of cooking and can be less spicy. Small rice dumpling in a hot soup (Shancheng xiaotangyuan) is usually filled with sweet sesame paste.
4. Chicken is cooked in a variety of ways and two popular dishes are spicy chicken (Lazi ji) and a spicy chicken appetizer (koushui ji) that are served cold. Chongqing's spring chicken (mineral water spring, not the season) is a local specialty. It is so good there is a whole street (nanshanquanshuiji yitiaojie) dedicated to serving it. The chicken can be found by Nanshan Park at Huangjueya in the Nan'an District.
5. Other goodies to look for include simple noodles (dandan mian), Sichuan five-spiced beef jerky (laosichuan wuxiang niuroumian) and huge pomelos (liangping you).

Where to Eat in Chongqing

1. Wuyi Road is well known as hotpot road and has numerous options.
2. Bayi Road by the Liberation Monument is a food market that teems everything from noodles to barbecue.

Restaurants in Chongqing

Chongqing Hotel: specialize in southern cuisine like barbecue and tofu with egg yolk; they have monthly specials like guoba yuzai and qingsun xiangla zaitu.
Address: 235 Minsheng Road, Yuzhong District
Tel: 6384 5888
Opening Hours: 24 hours

Chongqing Little Swan Bayu Restaurant
Address: 6/F, New Chongqing Square, 22 Minzu Lu, Yuzhong District
Tel: 6378 8811
Opening Hours: 11am to 9:30pm

Fuling Sichuan Restaurant
Address: 186 Minzu Road, Yuzhong District
Tel: 63826644
Opening Hours: 10am to 2pm, 4:30 pm to 9:30pm

Waipoqiao
Address: 7/F Daduhui Guangchang, 68 Zourong Road, Yuzhong District
Tel: 6383 5988

Opening Hours: 24 hours

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