How to Order Food in China as a Foreigner

The short version

You do not need a special app to eat well in China. There are three ways to order, and most travelers use all of them:

1. Point at the menu. Many restaurants have picture menus or photos on the wall. Point, hold up fingers for the number, and pay.
2. Scan the table QR code. In a growing number of restaurants, the menu is a QR code on your table. You scan it, order on your phone and pay with Alipay or WeChat Pay.
3. Use a delivery app, such as Meituan. These are powerful but built for Chinese users, so they are the hardest option for visitors.

Before you land, set up a mobile wallet that accepts your foreign card, install a translator that can read text through your camera, and save a few Chinese phrases. That covers almost every meal.

Ordering in a restaurant

Picture menus and pointing

Noodle shops, dumpling houses and canteen-style restaurants often show photos of every dish. This is the easiest way to order:

• Point at the photo, or at a dish on the next table, and say zhège (这个, “this one”).
• Show numbers with your fingers. Be aware that Chinese hand signs for 6 to 10 differ from Western ones, so check the number on the order slip or the screen.
• Check the total before you pay. Many menus list a price per portion, but seafood and some meat dishes may be priced by weight (per 500 g, called a jin).

When the menu is only in Chinese

Use your phone’s camera translation on the menu. Translations of dish names can be poetic or odd, so read the ingredients rather than the name. Ask staff to point at what is popular: tuījiàn (推荐, “recommend”).

Portion sizes are usually for sharing. For two people, two or three dishes plus rice is a sensible start. You can always order more.

Useful phrases to show staff

Save these as a screenshot or a phone note so you can show them without mobile data.

Scanning a table QR code

Many restaurants, especially chains and busy city-center places, replace printed menus with a QR code on the table:

1. Scan the code with Alipay or WeChat. It opens the restaurant’s ordering page inside the app.
2. Browse the menu. Some pages show photos, so you can order by picture. If the page is only in Chinese, take a screenshot and translate it.
3. Add dishes and choose options such as spice level or size.
4. Pay in the app. Sometimes you pay first, sometimes at the end. The order goes straight to the kitchen.
5. Wait for your food. Staff usually bring it to the table number linked to the code.

Alipay also offers Alipay Tap!, which Ant Group says lets users tap their phone on a restaurant’s device to order food. For wallet setup and card linking, see Alipay for foreigners.

If a QR ordering page asks for a Chinese phone number or ID, do not struggle with it. Show the menu to a staff member and order at the counter, or pay by showing your own payment code.

Food delivery apps: Meituan and others

China’s food delivery is fast and cheap, and many visitors want to try it. Here is an honest picture.

Which apps exist

The App Store listings show English among supported languages for Meituan, Dianping and Taobao Instant Commerce, but restaurant names, menus and reviews are mostly written in Chinese. We could not find an official guide from Meituan for foreign tourists, so check the sign-up and payment steps yourself before you count on it.

What makes delivery hard for visitors

• Your address must be exact. Riders need the building, entrance and room in Chinese.
• Riders call or message you when they arrive, usually in Chinese.
• Account and payment checks may ask for a Chinese phone number or real-name verification.
• Some hotels do not let riders go upstairs, so you may need to collect the order in the lobby.

The easy workaround

Ask your hotel front desk to help. Staff may be able to place an order for you, or show you where riders leave food. You can also pick up takeaway yourself: order at the counter and say dǎbāo (打包).

Finding good restaurants

• Dianping is China’s main restaurant review app, with photos of dishes and prices. Its release notes in late September 2026 mention a new “ACEDISH LIST” of recommended dishes. Even in Chinese, the photos and star ratings are easy to follow.
• Amap in English translates the names of restaurants, attractions and hotels and gives directions to them. See Does Google Maps work in China?
• Look for queues. A busy restaurant full of locals at noon or 18:00 is a reliable sign.

Ordering food on trains

On high-speed trains you can usually buy meals, snacks and drinks from the dining car or the trolley. The Chinese version of China Railway 12306 also has a meal-ordering service (餐饮·特产) for some journeys. The 12306 English website lists only ticket services (buying, changing, refunding and changing destination), so most foreign visitors buy on board or bring their own food. Big stations have plenty of food outlets before the gates. For booking tickets, see China trains.

Paying the bill

• Mobile payment (Alipay or WeChat Pay with a linked foreign card) works in almost every restaurant, from street stalls to hotels.
• Cash is legal tender and useful as a backup, but small places may not have change for a 100-yuan note.
• Foreign cards are accepted in international hotels and some large restaurants, but not in most small ones.

More on payments: How to pay in China.

Allergies and dietary needs

A food preference and a serious allergy need different conversations:

• Write your allergy in Chinese and show it before you order. Add the Chinese names of hidden sources, such as peanut oil (花生油, huāshēng yóu) or sesame (芝麻, zhīma).
• Ask about sauces and oils. Many dishes use shared woks, stocks and sauces that the dish name does not mention.
• Vegetarian is not always vegetarian. Vegetable dishes may be cooked with meat stock or lard. Buddhist vegetarian restaurants (素食, sùshí) are the safest choice.
• Carry your medication, such as an adrenaline auto-injector, and know the emergency number for an ambulance: 120.

Common problems and fixes

If you want every day to include food you will love, tell us in the free trip planning form which cuisines, dietary needs and food streets you are interested in. We can build meals and food-focused evenings into your route. For regional dishes to look for, see our guide to eating in China.