RFK Rankings · Beijing
Best Restaurants Open Late in Beijing 2026
Open Late · Beijing · 6 tables ranked · Updated June 2026
Compiled by the Restaurants for Kings editorial team · Published August 22, 2024 · Updated June 15, 2026 · Reviewed by Fredrik Filipsson, Editor-in-Chief · How we rank · Corrections
More than 150 kitchens stay lit past midnight on Gui Jie, the kilometre of red lanterns locals call Ghost Street, and that is the heart of eating late in Beijing. The street runs hottest between six in the evening and two in the morning, when the crayfish woks, hotpot halls and bullfrog pots draw a crowd that rarely thins before one. Off the street, a 24-hour dim sum hall and the dawn-hour hotpot chains carry the city to morning. The late food here is cheap, fast and properly spiced. These six keep a real kitchen going long past eleven, ranked here by how late they cook, how good the food is, and what you get for the yuan.
1.Hu Da Restaurant
Beijing's loudest crayfish hall numbs and stings past midnight at roughly ¥130 a head; queue for it.
Hu Da is the most popular crayfish house on Gui Jie, the run of red lanterns on Dongzhimen Inner Street, with five branches and lines that can stretch two hours. The numbing mala crayfish is the order, priced by size from about ¥6 to ¥15 a piece on a fifteen-piece minimum, so a proper feed with cold Yanjing beer lands near ¥120 to ¥160 a head. It is loud, cheap by the plate and genuinely good, packed at one in the morning. Pull a Dianping ticket before you arrive and go after midnight, once the first-sitting crowd clears.
Dianping ticket; crayfish to the small hours on Gui Jie.
2.Xiaolin Hotpot
The original 24-hour hotpot that built Ghost Street, cheaper than the chains and open whenever; walk in.
Xiaolin was Beijing's first 24-hour restaurant when it opened on Gui Jie in the 1980s, the kitchen that turned Dongzhimen into a late-night street. The spicy mala hotpot with lamb, tripe and hand-cut noodles is the order, a full pot for two from around ¥90 to ¥140 a head, below the big chains. It trades on history rather than theatre, and it never closes. For a hotpot at four in the morning without a queue ticket, walk in.
Walk in; hotpot 24 hours on Gui Jie.
3.Haidilao Hot Pot
Service-circus hotpot runs near dawn around ¥160 a head; broth and the sauce bar cost extra, so budget it.
Haidilao, the Sichuan chain founded in 1994 and famous for its service, keeps several Beijing branches cooking close to seven in the morning, Wangfujing and Xidan among them. The twin mala-and-tomato broth with hand-pulled noodles spun tableside is the order, at around ¥140 to ¥200 a head once you add the soup base and the self-serve sauce bar, both charged separately. You get free snacks, drinks and a manicure while you queue. It is the reliable late hotpot at any hour. Pull a ticket on the app, busiest after midnight at weekends.
Queue ticket on the app; hotpot near dawn.
4.Spice Spirit (Ma La You Huo)
Gui Jie's other crayfish heavyweight plates mala tails and grilled fish past midnight for about ¥120; order it.
Spice Spirit, known on the street as Ma La You Huo, is the crayfish-and-grill rival a few doors from Hu Da, cooking to about two in the morning. The mala crayfish and the Wanzhou-style grilled fish over chillies and beansprouts are the orders, a shared spread with beer near ¥110 to ¥150 a head. It is a touch quieter than Hu Da with the same heat and the same value, which is the point. For crayfish without Hu Da's two-hour wait, order it.
Walk in; crayfish and grilled fish to 2am on Gui Jie.
5.Wawajiao Bullfrog
Spicy bullfrog hotpot is Ghost Street's cult order, cheap and fiery at roughly ¥110 a head; try it once.
Wawajiao is the bullfrog specialist on Gui Jie, the dish that draws a younger late crowd to Dongzhimen. The mala bullfrog hotpot, frog simmered in a chilli-and-peppercorn broth with potato and lotus root, is the order, a pot for two from around ¥90 to ¥130 a head. The texture surprises first-timers and the heat is real, served until about two in the morning. It is one of the street's better-value pots. For a Beijing late-night dish you will not get at home, try it once.
Walk in; bullfrog hotpot to 2am on Gui Jie.
6.Jin Ding Xuan
Beijing's 24-hour dim sum hall plates cheap har gow and char siu bao at any hour; slip in.
Jin Ding Xuan is the round-the-clock dim sum hall facing Ditan Park in Hepingli, a Beijing institution that genuinely never closes. The har gow, char siu bao and egg tarts arrive at trolley speed, most plates around ¥15 to ¥30 and a full late spread under ¥80 a head. It is the antidote to a night of hotpot and beer, bright and busy at three in the morning, with no bookings and no queue tickets. For cheap dim sum in the small hours, slip in.
Walk in; dim sum 24 hours by Ditan Park.
Not for a late dinner
Famous, but closes early
Quanjude and Siji Minfu are the names everyone knows for Peking duck, but both stop seating around 21:30 and the kitchens close by ten. Roast duck is a planned dinner here, not a late one, so book them for an early evening rather than a midnight craving.
Da Dong, the modern duck house, runs a little later but still winds down well before midnight. It is a fine room and the wrong call after eleven; save it for a proper sit-down and head to Gui Jie when the night runs long.
Eating late in Beijing without a hitch
Almost nothing here takes a Western reservation. The hotpot halls run on Dianping queue tickets, so pull one on your phone before you walk over to Gui Jie or to a Haidilao, and you will skip an hour of standing. The crayfish, bullfrog and dim sum places are walk-in by nature and busiest from midnight to two.
Set up Alipay or WeChat Pay before the night begins, because cash is awkward and few late spots take foreign cards. The metro stops running around 23:00, so plan a Didi home; fares climb after midnight but stay cheap by Western standards. Gui Jie itself is a short ride from the Dongzhimen and Beixinqiao stations, and the whole street is walkable once you are there.
Frequently asked
Which Beijing restaurant has the latest kitchen?
The hotpot chains run latest. Haidilao's Wangfujing and Xidan branches cook close to 7am, and Xiaolin on Gui Jie never closes. Jin Ding Xuan's dim sum hall by Ditan Park is also 24 hours. On Ghost Street itself, Hu Da, Spice Spirit and Wawajiao serve to about 2am. For food in the genuine small hours, the 24-hour spots and the dawn-hour Haidilao branches are the reliable options.
Where can I eat late in Beijing on a budget?
Ghost Street is the value. A shared plate of mala crayfish at Hu Da or Spice Spirit runs around ¥120 to ¥150 a head with beer, and a bullfrog pot at Wawajiao lands near ¥110. Cheaper still is Jin Ding Xuan, where a late dim sum spread comes in under ¥80. The Haidilao chains are the splurge end of the late scene once you add the broth and sauce-bar charges.
Do Beijing kitchens close early?
The famous restaurants do. Peking duck houses such as Quanjude, Siji Minfu and Da Dong stop seating between 21:30 and 22:30, so duck is an early dinner here. But Beijing has a deep late-night street in Gui Jie, where crayfish, hotpot and bullfrog kitchens run to two in the morning and beyond, which is why this list is built around the places that genuinely cook past 23:00.
What is the best late dinner in Beijing?
For the full late experience, the crayfish at Hu Da on Gui Jie is the benchmark, loud and cheap by the plate. For a hotpot at any hour, Xiaolin is the historic 24-hour pick and Haidilao the polished one. For a cheap, restorative end to the night, the 24-hour dim sum at Jin Ding Xuan by Ditan Park is the order.
Can I walk in for a late table in Beijing?
For the crayfish, bullfrog and dim sum spots, yes; Hu Da, Spice Spirit, Wawajiao and Jin Ding Xuan are walk-in. The hotpot halls, Xiaolin and Haidilao, queue late, so pull a Dianping ticket before you go. Set up Alipay or WeChat Pay first, since cash is awkward, and plan a Didi home once the metro stops around 23:00.
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