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Restaurants in Hangzhou

Hangzhou, along with Shanghai, is an important part of the Eastern School of Chinese cuisine. It's particularly famous for its xiao long bao (soup-filled steamed dumplings), just look for the bamboo steamer baskets piled up at the entrances to small, hole-in-the-wall restaurants. But you can also dine out in style. The city has a number of quality restaurants, many of which are beside, or close to West Lake. There are also plenty of Western-food options these days, if you fancy a break from Chinese dishes.

The Hangzhou restaurants below have been hand-picked by our guide author and are grouped into three different pricing categories:
Expensive (over RMB 200)
Moderate (RMB 100 to RMB 200)
Cheap (up to RMB 100)

These prices are for a meal for one, including drinks. Tipping is not expected in Hangzhou and a service charge (usually around 15%) is only added at the very top establishments, or at the restaurants of top hotels.

Expensive

28 Hubin Road

Cuisine: Hangzhou

The signature restaurant of the Hyatt Regency is beautifully designed with slate walls, antique furnishings, and an ancient Chinese imperial courtyard ambience with a contemporary twist. It serves exquisite Hangzhou specialities and cuisines from neighbouring cities. The braised dong po pork with chestnut pancakes is so good, your taste buds will never get over it. Perfect for dining to impress, the wine cellar is held in illustrious esteem.

Address: Shangcheng, 28 Hu Bin Lu, Hangzhou, 310003
Telephone: +86 571 8779 1234
Website: https://hangzhou.regency.hyatt.com/en/hotel/dining/28HuBinRoad.html

Louwailou

Cuisine: Chinese

With a choice location on Bai Causeway, and fine lakeside views, the city's most famous restaurant has been going since 1848. It serves up expensive but delicious Hangzhou favourites such as Longjing shrimp and braised pork as well as reasonably priced standard Chinese dishes. There is an English menu available too, but expect to wait for a table.

Address: Xihu, 30 Gushan Road, Hangzhou, 310000
Telephone: +86 571 8796 9682
Website: http://www.louwailou.com.cn

Madam Zhu's Kitchen

Cuisine: Chinese

If you don't have time to visit Beijing on this trip, then come here for the capital's signature dish, Peking duck. Nestled in the manicured greenery along the north side of the Grand Canal, this upscale restaurant serves the most authentic roast duck in the city. If you don't want to wait about an hour for your duck to roast, ask someone at your hotel to call ahead and reserve one for you, so it's ready for your arrival. There's an English menu here, plus plenty of other delicious dishes, but not too much English spoken.

Address: Gongshu, 100 Lishui Road, Hangzhou, 310000
Telephone: +86 571 8802 1288

Panorama Signature Restaurant & Bar

Cuisine: International

Found in the Azure Qiantang luxury hotel, this restaurant features a lovely view of the Qiantang river. Perhaps the most expensive buffet in Hangzhou, the hefty price tag comes with the excellent service equally excellent food.

 

Address: Shangcheng, 39 Wangjiang East Road, Hangzhou, 310016
Telephone: +86 571 2689 6317

Moderate

Din Tai Fung

Cuisine: Taiwanese

This world famous Taiwanese dumpling chain never fails to delight, and the Hangzhou branch, housed inside Mixc Mall about 4km (2.5 miles) east of West Lake, is no exception. The dumpling skin is especially thin and delicate on Din Tai Fung dumplings, allowing you to savour the sumptuous fillings fully. There's an English menu, but if you're stuck for choice, you can't go wrong with the Special Xiaolongbao - five delicious delicate dumplings with pork and vegetable fillings.

Address: Jianggan, 701 Fuchun Road, Hangzhou, 310016
Telephone: +86 571 8886 9511.
Website: http://www.dintaifung.com.cn

Haidilao Hotpot

Cuisine: Hot Pot

Haidilao Hotpot stands out from the crowd thanks to its superior service. You can't reserve, so you'll probably have to wait to be served, but there are complimentary snacks, shoe shines, manicures, computers and board games to pass the time. Once shown to your table, you'll be given an apron to protect your clothes from any unwanted hotpot splashes. Waitresses will then patiently help you through the menu, which although in Chinese only, is categorised with pictures. We recommend the yuanyang guo (split pot) which is half spicy, half not, plus a bunch of raw ingredients to cook in your pot at the table.

Address: Shangcheng, 135 Yan'an Rd, Hangzhou, 310001
Telephone: +86 571 8708 8050
Website: http://www.haidilao.com

Omar Cafe Indian Kitchen

Cuisine: Indian

A broad menu of reliable, flavourful Indian curries and rice dishes is served in this friendly restaurant. There are plenty of vegetarian options available as well, with soft, warm naan breads to soak up anything your fork can’t manage. A little extra atmosphere is provided by the video screens showing Bollywood movies, and by staff occasionally singing along. You might even be lucky enough to get a belly dancer turn up before desert.

Address: Shangcheng, 61 Nanshan Road, Hangzhou, 310000
Telephone: +86 571 8707 4777.

Cheap

Ajisen Ramen

Cuisine: Japanese

An array of spicy noodle dishes guaranteed to make your eyes water and huge fried-rice servings make this affordable Japanese chain an excellent lakeside Hangzhou restaurant choice. The service is quick and the setting is casual, but an English picture menu and free tea will help with any dining dilemmas. If stuck, try the Nanyang sour beef pho or crispy pork chop noodles. Pay up front.

Address: Shangcheng, 10 Hubin Lu, Hangzhou, 310003
Telephone: +86 571 8717 2496
Website: http://www.ajisen.com.cn/en

BaiLu Restaurant (XiaoShan Yin Long)

Cuisine: Chinese

A great choice for lovers of Chinese food, this restaurant is close to a number of bus stops as well as a shopping mall and the Post Office. Bailu is known for being cheap and full of traditional Chinese flavours. Arriving early is a must, as reservations do not guarantee a spot during peak hours.

 

Address: XiaoShan, 288 Shixin Middle Road, Hangzhou, 311203
Telephone: +86 571 8282 5587

Grandma's Restaurant

Cuisine: Hangzhou

With all the Hangzhou classics at unbeatable prices, this superb restaurant chain is a huge favourite with the locals. There's an English menu with photos of every dish, but if you can't decide for yourself, the braised pork and the chicken in Longjing Tea are both delicious. There's also a handy branch at the main train station for that final taste of Hangzhou cuisine before setting off.

Address: Xihu, 6-1 Macheng Road, Hangzhou, 310000
Telephone: +86 571 8805 1987
Website: http://www.waipojia.com.cn/WCMS/Index.aspx

Oriental Restaurant

Cuisine: Central Asian

Specialising in food from China's Muslim Hui minority, this friendly down-to-earth restaurant is located on one of Hangzhou's liveliest restaurant strips, Gaoyin Jie, and is just a stone's throw from the souvenir shops on Qinghefang Old Street. With a bit of a Turkish twist, the English menu includes juicy lamb skewers, freshly baked naan bread, hummus (a rare find in China) and falafel.

Address: Shangcheng, 101 Gaoyin Jie, Hangzhou, 310002
Telephone: +86 571 8780 5163
A digital image at https://illuminoto.com

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Hangzhou International Youth Hostel

Hangzhou's best youth hostel is on the eastern lakeshore in an area dotted with bars, cafes and clubs. There's a variety of basic but well-kept rooms including singles, doubles and dorms. Staff members speak good English and there are all the usual hostel facilities such as laundry room, self-service kitchen and Wi-Fi.

Hangzhou Xihu State Guesthouse

This large resort, set in stunning gardens on the quieter west side of the lake, has historically been the lakeside retreat of China's Communist Party elite. Spread across eight buildings, there are 178 rooms, a golf course, meeting facilities, tennis courts and an indoor pool.

Crystal Orange Hotel

Trendy Hangzhou hotel housed in a cool colonial-style building with cute balconies and set back across the road from the eastern lakeshore. Very popular so book ahead.

The New Hotel (Xinxin)

Don't be fooled by the name, this place goes back almost 100 years and is housed in three attractive European-style buildings on the northern lakeshore. Standard rooms are ordinary, but there are some nice lake-view options if you pay more.

Shangri-La Hotel

Amid spacious forested grounds on the northern lakeshore, this is possibly the most refined and romantic of Hangzhou’s five-star hotels. There's a selection of bars, restaurants and a fitness centre. Top-floor rooms have wonderful lake views.

Zhongshan International Hotel

About a 10-minute walk east of the lake, this Hangzhou hotel has clean, modern rooms which are surprisingly quiet. Better value than many of its lakeside rivals.