The 10 Best Chinese Restaurants in NYC (2026)

1. Hwa Yuan Szechuan — Chinatown, Manhattan

The revived East Broadway institution famous for its cold sesame noodles.

Hwa Yuan is a revival of the original Hwa Yuan, the restaurant credited with popularizing cold sesame noodles in New York. The large, polished dining room on East Broadway serves a long Sichuan and Chinese-American menu.

Order the cold sesame noodles, the Peking duck and something from the spicy Sichuan side of the menu — whole fish in chili sauce or dan dan noodles.

Good to know: It's one of the best Chinatown rooms for a group dinner — reserve on Resy for weekends.

42 E Broadway, New York, NY 10002

Google Maps Website

2. Wu's Wonton King — Lower East Side, Manhattan

Cantonese roast meats, wontons and big-table feasts on East Broadway.

Wu's Wonton King is a bustling Cantonese restaurant where the front window is hung with roast duck and char siu pork. The wonton soup and roast meats are the draw, alongside live seafood and banquet dishes that suit a big round table.

It opens early and stays open into the evening every day, so it works for anything from a quick noodle lunch to a celebration dinner.

Good to know: Come with a group — the menu is built for sharing, and roast pig and seafood dishes go further with more people.

165 E Broadway, New York, NY 10002

Google Maps Website

3. Joe's Shanghai — Chinatown, Manhattan

The soup-dumpling specialist that introduced many New Yorkers to xiao long bao.

Joe's Shanghai opened in Flushing in 1994 and in Manhattan's Chinatown a year later, and its pork and crab soup dumplings became a New York rite of passage. The Chinatown restaurant now sits on the Bowery.

Beyond the dumplings, the menu covers Shanghainese standards like scallion pancakes, braised pork and rice cakes.

Good to know: Bite a small hole in the dumpling and sip the broth first so you don't burn your mouth.

46 Bowery, New York, NY 10013

Google Maps Website

4. Szechuan Mountain House — East Village, Manhattan

Big, bold Sichuan cooking in an upstairs room on St. Marks Place.

Szechuan Mountain House serves serious, numbing-hot Sichuan food in a rustic-styled dining room above St. Marks Place, and it also has a location in Flushing. The signature dish is thin-sliced pork belly draped over a little rack with garlic chili sauce.

Mapo tofu, spicy fish in chili oil and dry-pot dishes round out a menu best tackled with a few friends.

Good to know: Ask for a milder spice level if you're not used to Sichuan peppercorn — the default is properly hot.

23 St Marks Pl, New York, NY 10003

Google Maps Website

5. Great N.Y. Noodletown — Chinatown, Manhattan

A cash-only Cantonese canteen that has fed Chinatown since 1981.

Great N.Y. Noodletown has held the corner of the Bowery and Bayard Street since 1981. It is a no-frills, crowded room serving wonton noodle soup, roast duck and pork over rice, congee and salt-baked seafood.

It is known for staying open late, which makes it a classic stop after a night out downtown.

Good to know: Bring cash, and expect to share a table at busy times.

28 Bowery, New York, NY 10013

Google Maps

6. Xi'an Famous Foods — Flushing and citywide, Queens

Hand-ripped noodles and spicy cumin lamb from a Flushing food-court original.

Xi'an Famous Foods began as a stall in Flushing and grew into a citywide chain serving the food of Xi'an in western China. The hand-ripped biang biang noodles with spicy cumin lamb and the cold liang pi noodles are the dishes to order.

It has counters across Manhattan, Brooklyn and Queens, including Flushing, making it one of the easiest ways to eat well and cheaply in a hurry.

Good to know: Order the noodles 'spicy' only if you mean it, and add a lamb burger on the side.

Website

7. Málà Project — East Village, Manhattan

Build-your-own Sichuan dry pot, made for groups.

Málà Project specializes in dry pot: you pick meats, seafood, tofu and vegetables from a long list, choose a spice level and get it all stir-fried in a numbing málà sauce. The East Village original has grown into several locations, including Midtown East, Bryant Park and Greenpoint.

Good to know: Go with three or four people so you can try more ingredients in one pot.

122 1st Ave, New York, NY 10009

Google Maps Website

8. Chinese Tuxedo — Chinatown, Manhattan

Contemporary Cantonese and cocktails in a dramatic Doyers Street space.

Chinese Tuxedo serves modern, banquet-style Chinese dishes and a serious cocktail list in a stylish room on crooked Doyers Street. It is the Chinatown pick for a date night or a dinner that feels like an occasion.

Good to know: Reserve ahead and pair dinner with a walk down Doyers and Pell streets.

5 Doyers St, New York, NY 10013

Google Maps Website

9. Bonnie's — Williamsburg, Brooklyn

Playful Cantonese-American cooking that's one of Brooklyn's hardest tables.

Bonnie's is a lively Cantonese-American restaurant in Williamsburg where chef Calvin Eng riffs on the food he grew up with — think char siu, fermented bean curd sauces and Cantonese takes on American comfort dishes. The cocktails lean into Chinese flavors too.

Good to know: It's closed Mondays; book on Resy as early as you can for Friday and Saturday.

398 Manhattan Ave, Brooklyn, NY 11211

Google Maps Website

10. Kings Co Imperial — Williamsburg, Brooklyn

Fun, modern Chinese food with a backyard and its own sweet soy sauce.

Kings Co Imperial (also known as Kings County Imperial) serves Chinese dishes like kung pao chicken, dry-fried long beans and soup dumplings in a relaxed Williamsburg restaurant with a backyard. It also has locations on the Lower East Side and in Park Slope.

Good to know: Pick up a bottle of the house sweet soy sauce on the way out — it's sold at the restaurants.

20 Skillman Ave, Brooklyn, NY 11211

Google Maps Website