EZTrip.com International Destination Guide and Hotel Listings

Chongqing's centre is alive with canteens and food stalls, and at meal times, already busy side streets and markets become obstacle courses of plastic chairs, low tables and wok-wielding cooks. Local tastes lean towards Sichuanese small-dish assemblies - perfect for solo diners - in which dumplings, pickled vegetables, fish, fowl and offal figure strongly. Look for snake beans with ginger, tiger-skin peppers, braised frog or spareribs, and "pearl" rice balls. Chongqing is where Sichuan's hotpot originated, and residents are certainly dedicated, tucking into them even during the sweltering summers. A variation here is that the raw ingredients arrive on plates, not skewers, so the pots are divided up into compartments to prevent mixing. Night tables along Bayi Lu are popular - fix prices per plate first. Chongqing Beer is the local brew, served in squat, brown-glass bottles. A KFC overlooking Jiangfangbei, and the hotels, are your best bets for non-Sichuanese fare.