Live Your Best Lives
The wet market is a place where hidden talents emerge. Its rich, everyday atmosphere fosters an endless passion for life. It also contains the secrets of local customs, offering a truly authentic and down-to-earth experience that draws people to it, often leading to love at first sight. Furthermore, the wet market is a place where the essence of life is most present, and those who love to visit it tend to have a passion for life and a zest for living.
Today we will divide the four chapters of feelings, trends, new life and Jianghu to visit the popular food markets in Suzhou and present Suzhou cuisine and Jiangnan style to everyone.
What is nostalgia? It is the indelible presence in the memories of Suzhou people.
The only remaining original old street market in Suzhou
This is a natural classroom for learning Suzhou dialect, where the soft Wu dialect fully demonstrates the gentleness of Suzhou people; it is also the wharf where seasonal products first arrive, with chicken head rice and Tibetan mutton vying for the spotlight; it is also the place where the aroma remains the same for decades, and the shops along the old riverside street carry the hometown complex of countless people.
Cost per person: 20 yuan
Recommended reason: No. 1 in line on Fengmen Hengjie Street, freshly fried fish (not abalone), try to go in the morning, they close when they sell out
Cost per person: 60 yuan
Recommended reason: Food lovers will definitely flock to this place. This is an old craftsmanship passed down from generation to generation. It is currently the most expensive braised large and small intestines in Suzhou (136 yuan/jin). It is processed very cleanly and has the old taste recognized by locals.
Cost per person: 10-20 yuan
Recommended reason: They mainly serve freshly made glutinous rice balls and wontons, with handmade fillings that taste like home and a wide variety of varieties. We recommend sesame/fresh meat/shepherd's purse/crab roe glutinous rice balls.
Recommended reason: Located right at the west entrance of Hengjie Street, it's a favorite among Suzhou residents. Braised meat noodles, three-shrimp noodles, crab roe noodles, and onion oil noodles... consistent persistence and consistent taste (those who like to eat first-class soup noodles should go as early as possible)
Cost per person: 10 yuan
Recommended reason: Traditional Suzhou-style pastries yyds, each season has limited edition pastries, spring green dumplings, summer fried meat dumplings, magical double-stuffed dumplings, autumn osmanthus lard cake, will make you unforgettable. Friendly reminder, glutinous rice cakes are more space-consuming, suitable for breakfast, not easy to get hungry!
Cost per person: 60 yuan
Recommended: Suzhou's must-have winter delicacy, like the people of Northwest and Inner Mongolia, loves lamb, especially white-cut lamb and lamb soup. Many people shy away from the tangy smell of lamb, but if you're brave enough, you'll likely fall in love with it like durian. Fresh lamb wrapped in lotus leaves is a prestigious gift every winter. Buy white-cut lamb or lamb cakes and return home to make cabbage and vermicelli lamb soup, braised lamb ribs, or stir-fried lamb tripe with garlic.
Cost per person: 25 yuan
Recommended reason: Handmade fermented glutinous rice wine is rare these days, not an industrial product. The unprocessed fermented glutinous rice wine is truly amazing, affordable, and delicious. It's perfect for desserts, steamed eggs, and soups. Winter rice wine and winter-brewed glutinous rice wine are also super affordable, and there's also an autumn-only osmanthus honey!
Cost per person: 2 yuan
Recommended reason: There are few childhood snacks that are so cheap and nostalgic. A rice cake costs two yuan. It is crispy and has the taste of rice milk when it is just out of the pan. It is also a rare and affordable delicacy that can fill your stomach.
Cost per person: 20 yuan
Recommended reason: Freshly made fish balls are suitable for making hot pot in winter. Fish balls + egg dumplings are a perfect match and a quick dish on the winter table.
Cost per person: 15 yuan
Recommended reason: It is a very popular spot around the Dragon Boat Festival every year, especially the gray soup rice dumplings, which are also seasonal. If you go there on other days, the large meat rice dumplings are recommended, which are sticky and fragrant.
What is a trend? Shuangta Market is a collision of traditional market culture and art district.
Transformed from the original Shuangta Vegetable Market
Opened to the public in December 2019, it gained popularity thanks to the "Dream Home Renovation" program and became a new cultural and tourism IP and a must-see destination in Suzhou in 2020 and 2021. It showcases Suzhou's traditional snacks and delicacies, offering a diverse array of photo opportunities. Lanterns, projectors, cultural walls, signage, and creative products all highlight Suzhou's traditional culture. This diverse market offers not only fresh ingredients and authentic snacks, but also pastries, cafes, handmade crafts, antiques, taverns, exhibitions, bookstores, and more, providing a new window for young people to explore Suzhou's traditional culture.
Cost per person: 8 yuan
Recommended reason: This old shop has been in Shuangta Market for more than 20 years. It is the alley food that countless students have eaten since they were young. The scallion egg pancake and tofu pudding are more recommended. They can be said to be the most famous snacks among the many snacks in Shuangta Market.
Cost per person: 15 yuan
Recommended reason: We highly recommend red bean paste dumplings (second only to Xiangxin) and fermented rice wine peach gum soup. If you are here for the first time, you must try these two Suzhou-style desserts, which are quite different from Cantonese desserts.
Cost per person: 25 yuan
Recommended reason: The rebirth of traditional Suzhou pastries, beautiful and delicious. I highly recommend the lotus pastries that were newly released last summer, as well as jasmine cheese and taro pastries. They are definitely a very beautiful souvenir!
Cost per person: 25 yuan
Recommended reason: I personally think it is a must-have delicacy on the family table. Although it is a chain brand, the tender and smooth taste has remained unchanged. It is recommended to go there in the morning. Occasionally, they will be closed in the afternoon if they are sold out. There will also be discounted packages for the public!
Cost per person: 20 yuan
Recommended reason: The original Biluochun milk tea shop in Suzhou. If you haven't tried it, you must try it. You will be pleasantly surprised! 50% sugar, tea + milk + oats + mung beans, very fragrant.
Cost per person: 25 yuan
Recommended reason: The braised food here is worth a try. If you come here on weekends, you may need to queue up. Braised chicken feet, chicken legs, dried tofu, and lion's head are more recommended. The house-style salted pork and vegetable rice and the family-style casserole are also good. A simple lunch is enough for you.
What is rebirth? It is the rebirth of the beloved affordable treasure market in old Suzhou, which is largely due to the renovation plan of the dirty and popular market.
From the perspective of tourists, it is adjacent to the Shantang Street scenic area, which is not only a gathering place for local customs, but also a gathering place for Suzhou culture and food. If you have enough time, you must visit the vegetable market and some old shops in Xishantang.
Cost per person: 10 yuan
Reason for recommendation: It is right at the entrance of the vegetable market, second on the Xinmin Bridge queue list. The freshly baked ones are super delicious. I recommend the scallion oil and sesame candy, 1.3 yuan each, which is really good value for money. However, if you don’t have a large family or are giving it as a gift, it is recommended not to buy too much, just taste it.
Cost per person: 5 yuan
Recommended reason: The ceiling of Suzhou Shaomai, it is not on the same level as convenience store breakfast shops, the pieces are big and stuffed, mushroom and diced meat are 3 yuan, egg yolk and diced meat are 4 yuan, it feels like you can be full after eating one. Friendly reminder, try to buy it in the morning, and close the stall in the evening when the day's supply is sold out.
Cost per person: 30 yuan
Recommended reason: Good news for lazy people, this is definitely a delicious fast food. It is located at the corner on the second floor of the vegetable market and is freshly made every day. I recommend the shrimp and crab roe wontons, seaweed and pork wontons, and shepherd's purse wontons. I first knew about Yuan Ji in Chengdu, and after I came back, I found that there is also a store in Suzhou, so it became a must-have for dinner and breakfast (it can be frozen in the refrigerator for 15-30 days and kept fresh for 3 days). It tastes good with soy sauce or garlic chili sauce.
Cost per person: 65 yuan
Recommended reason: On the second floor of the vegetable market, it ranks first in the queue at Xinmin Bridge. Usually, old Suzhou citizens come here to buy. It is a beef specialty store. The five-spice beef tendon is highly recommended. It is a face-saving dish for family gatherings!
Cost per person: 20 yuan
Recommended reason: This is a time-honored cake shop, not a popular tourist shop. If you like seasonal cakes, you must go to this shop that locals often buy (just a little further inside Wang's Linji Shaobing)
Cost per person: 35 yuan
Recommended reason: Peking duck is available in practically every market, and each has its own characteristics. With years of experience in eating duck (1. Don't buy cheap quick-cooked duck 2. The truth is in the details. Roast duck is only made on the same day. Secondly, it is best to make the lotus leaf skin yourself, which is tough and not easy to crack), this roast duck restaurant also has a queue while stocks last. It cannot be said to be better than the freshly roasted duck in the restaurant, but at least it is relatively distinctive among many markets.
The original Ganjiang Road has now been moved to Caixiang Road
It has always been a popular and well-known vegetable market in the city, with convenient transportation. It is one of the top 5 treasure vegetable markets in my mind.
Cost per person: 15 yuan
Recommended reason: This is a time-honored brand in the hearts of Suzhou people. Why has it been so popular for so long? Diners have trusted its taste for decades. The store is very attentive to the ingredients and craftsmanship. The bubble wontons in bone soup, glutinous rice flour dumplings, hand-ground sesame dumplings, and various seasonal cakes are all favorites of Suzhou people. Remember to come and try them.
Cost per person: 10 yuan
Recommended reason: This specialty food, taro slices (sliced and deep-fried taro, shaped like potato chips), has been featured on many food shows. It's crispy and not irritating, and a little lighter than the ones on Fengmen Hengjie Street (remember to taste it before buying; over-frying may have a slightly burnt and bitter taste). It's also a seasonal food, so I recommend buying it for about 15 yuan each time.
Cost per person: 7 yuan
Recommended reason: The shop is only open until 1pm, so go in the morning to enjoy the egg pancakes! Auntie has decades of experience in making them. The pancakes are thin, the sauce is superb, and the ingredients are super fresh. It is a childhood memory for a generation.
What is a "jianghu" (a market)? It's a fiercely competitive market far from the city's bustling core. These markets often serve as sourcing centers, located close to vegetable and meat production bases or near docks. You'll see bustling trading scenes and a variety of fresh fish and shrimp. However, due to their remote location and the bustling scene mostly occurring in the morning, few tourists frequent these areas.
Cost per person: 80 yuan
Recommended reason: The most popular stall next to Dongshan Market, the king of white-braised lamb, lamb wrapped in lotus leaves is 140 yuan/jin. Many people will drive here specifically to buy lamb, cut 20 pieces of lamb, and go to the noodle shop next door to order a bowl of plain noodles. The noodle soup brings out the sweetness and tenderness of the lamb, and paired with a little bit of chili sauce, it is simply amazing, and it is worth getting up early.
Cost per person: 20 yuan
Reason for recommendation: Opposite the Ayomatou Lamb, we recommend the red bean paste and lard cake, which is freshly made every day with more than ten years of old craftsmanship and the old taste. This is also a noodle shop in the morning, and many people come here to eat the first soup noodles. The rising steam and the scenes of family life are the warmest moments.
Near Tanchong Road, Wuzhong District
Cost per person: 40 yuan
Recommended: This noodle shop, nestled right by Taihu Lake, was originally a village eatery catering to fishermen who woke up early to enjoy noodles. Its affordable prices and generous toppings, made from the freshest vegetables and seafood, made it a local favorite. It later became an online sensation, boasting an even wider selection of toppings. It's also become a popular check-in spot for tourists visiting Guangfu Town, Taihu Lake. You can often see drivers and motorcycle riders parked outside. Recommended toppings include shrimp, small intestines, and shredded eel. Choose your favorite dish.
Cost per person: 90 yuan
Recommended: This is a large restaurant originally owned by fishermen (you don't eat on the lake). It's located on the roadside near the seafood market and recommends seasonal seafood. If you can't get the freshest Taihu seafood here, there's really nowhere else to go. The wontons are also highly recommended. A bit more affordable than the one next door.
Cost per person: 95 yuan
Recommended reason: This restaurant has been featured on Douyin (TikTok). The Minglu Mandarin Fish and Silver Carp Head Soup are very famous, and the whitebait wontons are also delicious. The only downside is that the food is served a little slowly.
The Suzhou local ethos is to visit the old market to find fresh produce, chat with the women, haggle with the vendors, and savor those cherished flavors with neighbors and friends. This nostalgic feeling has remained unchanged for decades. Thinking of the tender white radishes still stained with mud, the freshly harvested wild rice stems still wrapped in their husks, and the steam rising from the noodle shop's boiler—this might be the most enduring feeling of happiness. If you have the chance, visit the market, even if it's just for a snack or a bowl of noodles, and experience that rich, intoxicating, everyday atmosphere.
