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The best Chinese food in Lisbon is only 5 min from Tings
Looking for authentic Chinese food in Lisbon? Forget the fancy fusion spots and follow the real locals—just five minutes down the hill from Tings Lisbon in Mouraria. Some call them secret or even illegal, but we just call them what they are: the best Chinese restaurants in Lisbon.
The myth of Lisbon’s illegal Chinese restaurants
Red Lamps are good signs – most likely you find one of the Chinese restaurants
Guests sometimes ask if we know about the “illegal” Chinese restaurants in Lisbon. The term always makes us smile. A while back, a guest even showed me an old VICE article titled “Secret and Illegal Chinese Restaurants in Lisbon.”
We know those places well. And trust us—there’s nothing illegal or secret about them.
They’re simply family-run eateries that remind us of the places we used to eat while traveling through China. Unpolished, authentic, and quietly thriving inside apartment buildings around Martim Moniz.
Have you heard about the illegal restaurants?
If the guest had asked me about legal restaurants I would have been surprised.
The Chinese ones….?
The guest continued and showed me his tablet with a story from Munchies last year: secret and illegal… the heading said. It was about Lisbon’s real Chinese restaurants.
We know them very well – and if there is something these restaurants are not then its being secret. And I doubt they are more illegal than most other restaurants in Lisbon.
I’m here because I’ve recently heard about Lisbon’s “illegal” Chinese restaurants, known by locals as Chinês clandestinos. Family-run joints operating from the homes of local Chinese residents, these spots were once genuinely illicit operations. Although most are now above board...
Why locals love them
LOOK UP! Red Lamps are good signs – most likely you find one of the Chinese restaurants
We’ve traveled extensively in China—sometimes lost in cities where no guidebooks or English signs could help us. So when we first went looking for authentic Chinese food in Lisbon, we did what we always did in China: we looked up.
Behind apartment windows we spotted the telltale red lamps—humble eateries filled with locals eating steaming bowls of noodles. Back then, the menus were written on the wall in Chinese characters; now, they come with colorful photos. What hasn’t changed is the food: comforting, straightforward, and deeply authentic.
Authentic Chinese food near Martim Moniz
Two years ago Menus were unheard off. Today you get them at the table (in Chinese only) – and on very rare occasion at the entrance.
If you’ve traveled through China, you’ll recognize the difference immediately. Many “Chinese” restaurants mentioned in guidebooks offer generic international dishes with a dash of soy sauce. Not here.
The small Chinese-run restaurants around Martim Moniz, Intendente, and Almirante Reis serve the real thing—homemade noodles, hand-pulled dumplings, sizzling stir-fries, and soups brimming with rich flavors. They may look modest, but they deliver the most genuine Chinese dining experience in Lisbon.
These restaurants are not fine dining; they’re everyday dining. And that’s what makes them so special.
We often go there when cravings hit—it’s cheap, fast, and full of flavor. The atmosphere feels more like a canteen in Chengdu than a European capital.
Lisbon’s Chinatown: ingredients, groceries & hidden gems
Still no signs – but try ringing the bell.
Just five minutes from Tings Lisbon, around Martim Moniz, you’ll find Lisbon’s small but vibrant Chinatown. It’s a paradise for anyone who loves to cook or explore Chinese cuisine.
Here’s what you’ll find:
- Authentic groceries packed with sauces, herbs, and Asian spices
- Fresh fruits, mushrooms, noodles, and greens delivered daily
- Hard-to-find delicacies like fermented cabbage, duck, pig’s ear, or marinated tofu
- Household essentials like chopping knives, woks, and bamboo steamers
Many of these shops have kitchens in the back where they prepare delicious takeaway boxes—perfect if you’re in a hurry or want to eat back at Tings.
One of our favorite spots even makes fresh noodles to order for every bowl of soup. The food arrives in minutes—fast, simple, and delicious, just like in China.
We eat there at least once a month. Authentic. Affordable. Addictive.
Bon appétit—or as they say in China, hǎo chī!
/Thomas
