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Restaurants in Tsim Sha Tsui district

Chinese love a good restaurant and so it's no surprise that Tsim Sha Tsui has a world class range of different dining options. Being the centre of the tourist area, housing the famous Golden Mile of Nathan Road, it also has a range of international options. There is no "Best" restaurant in Tsim Sha Tsui of course, the top restaurants cater to different tastes and so there is something for everybody.

From Two Michelin Star restaurants, there are five in Tsim Sha Tsui, through to authentic street style food there is every choice for every budget and taste.

Tsim Sha Tsui food can be grouped into a few major categories:

  • Fine Dining restaurants, mostly in the many luxury hotels in the region.
  • Chains both international and local
  • Independent restaurants

Each category of course has a wide range of different styles as well. This part of Hong Kong is truly a cultural melting pot and if you don't notice that from just seeing the faces on the road then it will evident in the differing types of food.  There are:

  • Chinese restaurants; and this category alone covers a huge variety of styles, from local Cantonese Dim Sum and seafood dishes through luxurious Beijing style, hearty Shanghainese food to spicy Chiu Chow.  As a society built up of many immigrants who migrated to Hong Kong during the last 100 years there are also many specialized regional foods not seen many other places including Hakka, Mongolian and Taiwanese styles.
  • European food; the big styles familiar around the world including French classical and Italian cuisine are of course well represented, but it is also not hard to find in Tsim Sha Tsui restaurants with Swish, or German food. Even the much maligned British food is well represented with Gastro Pub style seen alongside modern sandwich shops.
  • Asian; Outside Chinese there is of course a whole range of regional styles from Asia including Thai and Vietnamese, Korean and of course Indian and Pakistani

Categories particularly valued by the local community in Tsim Sha Tsui are:

  • Dim Sum - The heart of Hong Kong's dining culture these mostly steamed snack size servings have provided breakfast for the community since Hong Kong was established. Recently becoming first lunch and now all day dining as well you'll find Dim Sum, or "Yum Cha", literally "drink tea" to be the go-to meal for any small gathering be it office workers at lunch or family's at weekends. Tsim Sha Tsui has great  Dim Sum options.  The most highly rated must be the Hoi King Heen restaurant at the InterContinental Grand Stanford Hotel, but for more affordable options there are also many. Star of Canton in iSquare building is one such which has reasonable prices and a busy atmosphere at all times.
  • Halal - Because of the nearby Mosque and the large number of Indian and Pakistani find it a great place to eat. The famous Chun King Mansions, a residential block on Nathan Road, houses many small Halal eateries on it's lower floors.

 

Which restaurant is the Best Tsim Sha Tsui Restaurant is of course a matter of opinion and you too will form your own personal opinion after sampling the many delights on offer in the district.

 

Tsim Sha Tsui Tsimshatsui?

In Chinese the district is called 尖沙嘴, which literally means Tip Sand Mouth, and is a reference to the sandy river which once flowed here, long since covered by land reclamation.  The pronunciation is impossible to describe using Roman letters alone, some attempts include Jim Shar Joy and Chim Sa Choi but none are of course accurate, and it is very hard for a non Chinese native to pronounce the words correctly.  Hence the common abriviation into TST - sounded out as "tee-ess-tee".  Everybody in Hong Kong will understand if you say TST.

When it comes to writing you will see Tsim Sha Tsui and Tsimshatsui used equally, both are acceptable.  But not Tsimsha Tsui or Tsim Shatsui, that would be incorrect.  However you say or write it, TST is a fascinating place to be.

Pronunciation

 


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