Guangzhou is perhaps the most natural city for vegetarian food: of the twenty most common dim sum dishes, almost all can be ordered meat-free — steamed chicken feet become steamed radish cake, the barbecue pork bun becomes a dried-tangerine-peel vegetarian bun, spare ribs become taro cake, with no need for a special menu.
We have put together five vegetarian tea houses you can trust. Baohua Vegetarian is an old Xiguan house with steady output and generous portions, good for a first visit. Lianxianglou has a dedicated vegan counter, so you can eat vegetarian dim sum in a heritage institution. Shishao Tea House specialises in vegetarian food, with the most complete menu. Zhenwei Guan represents Cantonese cooking turned vegetarian, with dishes you would not expect to find meat-free. Chanxin Vegetarian sits beside Guangxiao Temple, ideal after a visit.
Timing matters too: eight to ten in the morning is when locals crowd in for tea, so go after two in the afternoon for quiet — and there are discounts on dim sum.
One pot and two pieces, a whole morning at the table: in Guangzhou this is completely normal. It is also what we like most about the city — vegetarian food needs no justification here.
For a first visit, start with Baohua Vegetarian — steadiest output, old-fashioned service, hard to get wrong. Once you have tried two or three, pick the more individual places. Most vegetarian tea houses are busiest before eleven in the morning, and that is when they have the most atmosphere.