Halal Food in China: A City-by-City Guide for Muslim Travellers

China has more than 20 million Muslims and a halal food tradition over a thousand years old. Halal restaurants are easy to find in the big cities, and in places with fewer options a good travel company arranges halal meals in advance.

How to spot a halal restaurant

• Look for the characters 清真 (qīngzhēn, "halal") on the sign, often together with Arabic حلال.
• Many halal restaurants are run by Hui Muslim families and have green signs or a mosque symbol.
• The most common one is Lanzhou beef noodles (兰州牛肉面). You will find it in every Chinese city.

City by city

Xi'an

The Muslim Quarter next to the Drum Tower is the most famous halal food street in China. Try yangrou paomo (lamb soup with torn flatbread), beef roujiamo (China's "burger"), hand-pulled biangbiang noodles and lamb skewers. The Great Mosque of Xi'an, a mosque built like a Chinese temple with courtyards and pavilions, is a few minutes' walk away.

Beijing

Niujie (Ox Street) is the heart of Muslim Beijing, with the Niujie Mosque, first built in 996, and halal butchers and bakeries. Beijing's signature halal dish is copper-pot lamb hotpot, and Donglaishun is the best-known halal hotpot restaurant.

Shanghai

Shanghai has halal restaurants in every district, from Lanzhou noodle shops to Xinjiang-style lamb restaurants. The Xiaotaoyuan Mosque in the old city is the main mosque for visitors.

Guangzhou

Guangzhou's Huaisheng Mosque is one of the oldest mosques in China, linked to the early Arab traders who arrived by sea. The Xiaobei area has many Middle Eastern and Central Asian restaurants.

Hangzhou

The Phoenix Mosque on Zhongshan Road is one of the four great historic mosques of China, close to West Lake.

Yunnan, Chengdu and Chongqing

Yunnan has a long-established Hui Muslim community, and halal restaurants are easy to find in Kunming and Dali. Chengdu and Chongqing have halal hotpot and noodle restaurants.

Zhangjiajie and Guilin

These nature destinations have fewer halal restaurants. We arrange halal meals in advance with hotels and trusted local kitchens.

Praying while travelling

Your guide plans each day around prayer times and can stop at a mosque in most cities. Carry a compass or qibla app for the hotel room; we can ask hotels to provide a prayer mat.

Useful phrase

我只吃清真 (wǒ zhǐ chī qīngzhēn): "I only eat halal food."

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