Home Inn Nanjing Yueyahu Jinhu Mansion

Nestled in a cultural park, this restaurant has a stately presence. The chef-owner, a Jiangsu native, is classically trained in Huaiyang cooking. He excels at refined Huaiyang dishes that are influenced by other Chinese cuisines. The braised meatball is a refined version of the classic lion's head pork balls, which is tender and juicy, thanks to the perfect ratio of lean and fat meat. His braised dried abalone is also a must try.

Initially a cold appetiser shop in Hongmiao District, this place moved several times before settling in the bustling city centre. The signature duck blood curd glass noodle soup comes with a choice of different duck cuts and offal. If in doubt, go for the version with a bit of everything. The duck broth is deeply flavoured, the meat moist and silky. Classic palates will also relish the roast duck with crispy skin and juicy, marinated flesh.

In the 1950s, the owner's grandparents co-founded the legendary Jiming Restaurant. He inherited the heritage soup dumpling recipe and opened his own shop in 2017. The space feels upbeat and targets a younger clientele. Soup dumplings, filled with pork or crabmeat and roe, are made to order and steamed in the typical Nanjing way – with the pleats facing down so as to retain the juices. Also try the Nanjing braised noodles, and duck blood curd glass noodle soup.

For over three decades, this local darling has been serving traditional Nanjing cuisine, including painstakingly crafted recipes that are hard to come by these days. In the hand-written vintage menu, you will find classics like Sichuan pepper-scented crispy skin duck and Dun Sheng Qiao – rice paddy eel that is deboned, pounded and deep-fried, before being poached in a meat broth with dried bamboo shoot. The generous portions are ideal for sharing.

This restaurant comes from humble beginnings as a street hawker stall. Thanks to the unrelenting support of the city's foodies for over 30 years, it has expanded into a two-storey restaurant serving Jiangsu cooking alongside Cantonese favourites. The juicy frog's legs with duck tongues in sizzling claypot are a must – their smoky aroma is intoxicating. Some find the fragrance imparted by the stinky tofu and pork intestine pot addictive!

For over 20 years, this neighbourhood shop run by a husband-and-wife team has won the hearts of many with its Nanjing-style duck offal glass noodle soup. Toppings include blood curd, intestine and stuffed tofu puffs. The deluxe version also comes with duck heart and gizzard. The clear duck broth is simmered for hours to develop deep umami. It is even better when the broth is soaked up with duck fat Shaobing flatbread or paired with puffed rice crackers to add some crunch.

The owner couple opened this shop in 2012 to serve rice paddy eel noodles, a speciality from their home county of Baoying, Yangzhou. The fried version is the most popular choice: boasting velvety eel, bouncy noodles and smoky wok hei. It is served with a bowl of eel bone soup. For the soup varieties, choose between milky eel soup and clear broth topped with sautéed eel in a thick glaze. Add pork balls, pork aspic or cracklings for something extra.