Eat like a local

Order like a regular

Cha chaan teng staff take drink orders in a few syllables: hot or iced, less sweet, no ice. Pick your drink and we’ll write the slip for you, in Chinese and in sounds.

The shorthand

奶茶 naai cha

Strong black tea strained through a cloth bag (the “silk stocking”), with evaporated milk.

鴛鴦 yuen yeung

Coffee and milk tea mixed in one cup.

茶走 / 啡走 cha jau / fe jau

Tea or coffee made with condensed milk instead of evaporated milk and sugar. Smoother and sweeter.

飛沙走奶 fei sa jau naai

“Fly the sand, lose the milk”: the sand is sugar. Coffee with no sugar and no milk.

齋啡 jaai fe

Black coffee, no milk.

檸茶 ling cha

Lemon tea. With the iced one, mash the lemon slices with the long spoon yourself.

檸樂 / 檸蜜 ling lok / ling mat

Coke with lemon / lemon and honey.

華田 wa tin

Ovaltine, hot or iced.

外賣 / 堂食 ngoi maai / tong sik

Takeaway / eat in.

埋單 maai daan

The bill, please.

At the table

1. Order as soon as you sit. Cha chaan teng run fast. Know what you want when the waiter arrives.
2. Sets come with a drink. Breakfast and lunch sets usually include a hot drink. Iced costs a little more.
3. Sharing tables is normal. Sit where you are shown, even if strangers are already there.
4. Tap two fingers to say thanks. At dim sum, when someone pours your tea, tap the table lightly with two fingers.
5. Want more tea? Open the lid. Prop the teapot lid on the rim and staff will top it up with hot water.
6. Take the bill to the till. Many cha chaan teng leave the bill on your table. Pay at the counter on your way out.

Cha chaan teng Dim sum Egg tarts First time in Hong Kong