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Food and Drinks
LifestyleFood & Drink

Shenzhen’s international dining scene grows as Michelin-star restaurant chefs open up shop in what was once Hong Kong’s culinary ‘poorer cousin’

  • McDonald’s opened in Shenzhen in 1990 and since then its international food scene has only grown. Recently, top chefs from Hong Kong and beyond have moved in
  • These chefs find diners knowledgable about international cuisine and willing to try new things – for now, more in casual settings than fine-dining restaurants

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Iberico suckling pig at Mesa, a recently opened Spanish restaurant in Shenzhen. The Chinese city was once considered Hong Kong’s “poorer cousin” when it came to food, but things are changing as more Western restaurants open there. Photo: Mesa
Erika Na

One of the biggest cities in China, Shenzhen is often said to be a place that lacks history and culture.

True, it is a relatively young city – it did not become one until 1979 and owes its explosive growth since then to its being made a special economic zone in 1980. Yet the city has always had an interesting food culture.

“Sandwiched between Guangzhou and Hong Kong, Shenzhen comes across as a poorer cousin in many respects,” food writer David Yip says. “In terms of its culinary development, Shenzhen was traditionally ‘poorer’ in produce because of its geographical and economic limitations.”

A huge influx to Shenzhen of workers from across China that began in the late 1980s heralded a new era for the city’s food culture.

Chicken au torchon with preserved black truffle at French restaurant L’Avenue, in Shenzhen. Photo: L’Avenue
Chicken au torchon with preserved black truffle at French restaurant L’Avenue, in Shenzhen. Photo: L’Avenue

The changes were initially restricted to street food and “one-plate meals”, as most of these immigrants were low-income workers, Yip says.

But in 1990, one of the biggest players in the international food industry, McDonald’s, saw the city’s potential and chose it as its entry point to the massive mainland Chinese market (the Beijing branch didn’t open until 1992). Its first restaurant in China, in Dongmen, Shenzhen, is still operating.

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