Chinatown: Where to Eat

London's Chinatown is centred on Gerrard Street in Soho, marked by ornate gates and rows of red lanterns. It's small — a handful of streets — but dense with restaurants covering Cantonese, Sichuan, Malaysian and Japanese food, alongside bakeries and Asian supermarkets.

What to Look For

Roast meats hanging in restaurant windows are usually a good sign — char siu (barbecue pork) and roast duck are a reliable order almost anywhere that displays them. Dim sum is widely available for lunch, with several restaurants doing trolley or menu-order service. For something more specific, Sichuan restaurants in the area handle spice properly rather than diluting it for a general audience.

Best Times to Go

Weekday lunch is calmer and often has dim sum deals not available at dinner. Weekend evenings are the busiest, especially around Chinese New Year, when the whole street becomes a festival with lion dances and firecrackers — worth experiencing at least once, but expect queues everywhere.

Getting There

Leicester Square and Piccadilly Circus stations both sit within a couple of minutes' walk.

Tips for Visiting

• Restaurants displaying roast meats in the window are usually a safe, reliable choice.
• Weekday lunch dim sum deals are often cheaper than the same menu at dinner.
• Chinese New Year turns the street into a full festival — arrive early if you want to see the lion dances up close.
• Cash still works well here even as card acceptance has grown — some smaller bakeries prefer it.