🔄 Updated 21 Jun 2026
Why does Hat Yai have so many Chinese restaurants? Because the city grew out of a Chinese community that followed the railway down to trade more than a century ago — mostly Teochew and Hokkien. That's why the food leans southern Chinese: not heavily spiced, built around freshness, seafood, and quick high-heat stir-frying, plus the braised duck and goose that became signature dishes of the city. The places we picked are spots Hat Yai locals genuinely eat at — some open since grandfather's generation, some grand banquet halls used to host out-of-town guests.
10 Chinese restaurants & banquet halls in Hat Yai, picked
Ordered from old banquet halls for big Chinese-style spreads, down to small shops where one person can eat well too. Prices are rough per-head figures from reviews — the time you go and what you order changes things, so check with the restaurant before heading over.
Washington Restaurant
One of Hat Yai's old Chinese restaurants, open more than 30 years and a go-to spot for the city's Thai-Chinese families when they host guests. Regular orders are Peking duck, garlic fried duck, fresh prawn dumplings (hae kuen), prawn spring rolls, and wide noodles with seafood gravy. They handle full banquet bookings, in a classic air-conditioned Chinese dining room.
Tor Huad Restaurant
Another old Chinese restaurant Hat Yai locals think of when there's a banquet to throw — weddings, seminars, big Chinese-style spreads. The signatures are Peking duck and hot appetizer platters. You can book a private room, there's a lift to the upper floor, and it has that old Chinese dining-hall feel. Per-head prices run a touch higher than everyday shops, as you'd expect from a proper banquet hall.
Nai Roo Restaurant
An old Chinese restaurant near Kim Yong Market that Hat Yai locals and Prince of Songkla University students have eaten at for years. It's known for high-heat stir-fries and seafood — mixed seafood stir-fry with clams, crab, squid and prawns, chicken with cashew nuts, and pla jum (crispy fried fish with sweet sauce). Prices are easy to reach and the room has that old-Chinese-shophouse feel, good for a group sharing plates.
Aa Restaurant
An old shop that Malaysian visitors cross the border to eat at regularly, with staff who speak several languages. The most-ordered dishes are braised goose — tender, no gamey smell — fried goose legs, crispy pork, and stir-fried bamboo shoots with prawns. Mellow southern-Chinese flavors at friendly prices, good for a casual family meal.
Tae Hieng Iew Restaurant
An old Thai-Chinese restaurant running more than 85 years, in Songkhla's old town — about a 30-minute drive from Hat Yai, but worth the trip if you genuinely love the old places. Signature dishes are stir-fried morning glory, crispy fried dried fish with tamarind sauce, and garlic prawns. It's a place that has kept the old hands' flavors fully intact.
Niyom Rot Restaurant
An old Teochew Chinese restaurant, open nearly 50 years. The dish every table orders is the tao-tei fish hotpot — hot Teochew-style broth with firm-fleshed fish. There's a full range of seafood and southern-Chinese stir-fries too. The room has that old-fashioned feel, good for a family ordering a hotpot to share.
Hong Kong Roast Duck (Talat Mai)
The roast-duck-over-rice and roast duck shop Hat Yai locals call the regular spot in the Talat Mai area. The roast duck has fragrant skin and tender meat with no gamey smell, and the gravy isn't too salty. The crispy pork has genuinely crisp skin with neat layers of meat and skin, and the BBQ pork–crispy pork over rice is great too. Prices are light — one person eats their fill for under ฿100.
Kiap Ping Restaurant
An old Chinese restaurant known for roast suckling pig with thin, crisp roasted skin, eaten with sweet sticky dark-soy dipping sauce. Beyond the suckling pig there's steamed grouper, fried fish cake (tod man pla krai), and traditional made-to-order Chinese dishes. Best for a group ordering suckling pig to share.
Pratthana Phochana (Tian Tian Lai)
A legendary Chinese restaurant for Prince of Songkla University students, in the Niphat Uthit 3 area — good Chinese food at prices that aren't steep. It's known for crispy fried pork knuckle, steamed prawns with condensed milk, and high-heat stir-fried vegetables. Students and families have sat down to eat here for years; great value for a group meal.
Da Ren Betong
A Betong-style Chinese restaurant that brings those flavors to the middle of Hat Yai. It's known for Betong chicken with firm, chewy meat, crab soup with egg, and Betong water-spinach stir-fry. Good if you want to try Betong-style southern Chinese food without the long drive — friendly prices and just the right amount of bold flavor.
Tips for ordering a banquet
If you're coming as a big group and want a full Chinese-style banquet (Washington, Tor Huad), call to book 1–2 days ahead and tell them your per-head budget and number of guests — the restaurant will put together a set menu for you. Peking duck and roast suckling pig usually need to be ordered in advance, since they take time to prepare.
Want to taste deeper? Try a Hat Yai food tour or cooking class
Half a day with a local who knows the lanes — or cooking a dish yourself — teaches you more than just eating. Book ahead on Klook or GetYourGuide.
How Hat Yai's southern Chinese food differs from elsewhere
Most Chinese food in Hat Yai is Teochew and Hokkien, so the flavors aren't as heavy as central Chinese or Sichuan cooking. It leans on fresh ingredients, plenty of seafood given the location on the Gulf of Thailand coast, and the braised, slow-stewed aromatics carried down from old Chinese kitchens. That's what gives Hat Yai's Chinese cooking a character of its own.
- Braised goose / braised duck — slow-stewed in five-spice braising stock until tender, with no gamey smell; a signature city dish you'll find at several shops.
- Peking duck — the headline dish at the big restaurants, with crisp roasted skin wrapped in thin pancakes with spring onion and cucumber; usually needs ordering ahead.
- Roast suckling pig / crispy pork — thin, crisp roasted skin eaten with sweet dark-soy dipping sauce; a sharing dish for group meals.
- High-heat seafood stir-fries — crab, clams, squid and prawns stir-fried in oyster sauce, cha (basil-chili), or with garlic, fresh from the sea near the city.
- Teochew hotpot — tao-tei or scat fish simmered in Teochew-style broth, slurped hot; perfect for a family meal.
Choosing a restaurant by occasion
Banquet for a big occasion
Washington or Tor Huad handle full Chinese-style banquets with private rooms — good for weddings and company dinners.
Easy family meal
Nai Roo or Aa — share seafood and braised goose at prices you can reach, no formality.
Solo & quick
Hong Kong Roast Duck — duck over rice or crispy-pork over rice, full for under ฿100, fast and easy.
Straight talk
The old banquet halls like Washington and Tor Huad taste great but cost more per head than everyday shops. If you're on a budget and don't need the upscale setting, places like Nai Roo, Aa, or Hong Kong Roast Duck give you good southern-Chinese flavors for a lot less. Pick by occasion and you'll get the most for your money.
Plan a full eat-and-explore trip to Hat Yai
See the Hat Yai travel guide →