Central Market Food Hall

Central Market (中環街市) is one of Hong Kong's most iconic Bauhaus buildings — a 1939 landmark that sat empty for years before reopening in 2021 as a heritage food hall. The restored architecture alone is worth the visit: sweeping staircases, original market signage, and the famous curved facade on Des Voeux Road Central. It's now a buzzing mix of curated food stalls, coffee, local brands and exhibition space.

Where the old building once housed a classic wet market with dai pai dong-style cooked food stalls, the revived Central Market is a modern food hall — think Vietnamese pho, Thai street food, Chaozhou classics, and specialty coffee under one heritage roof. It's the most accessible food destination in Central: two minutes from the MTR, open daily, and genuinely popular with both office workers and tourists. If you want the traditional cooked-food-centre experience, head to a municipal market instead — but for eating in a beautifully restored piece of Hong Kong history, this is the spot.

← Back to HK Food Directory · Browse more in Central.

Bustling, bright and beautifully restored. The heritage details — tiled staircases, original market shutters, the glass-roofed atrium — make it feel like a museum you can eat in. The food hall hums with the clatter of trays and the murmur of office lunches; upstairs gets calmer and more gallery-like. Weekday lunch is a proper Central rush, while evenings and weekends are more relaxed with a younger crowd. It's polished, not gritty — heritage charm meets food-court energy.

• 🍜 Vietnamese pho (順) — HK$78–98. A stand-out stall: rich beef broth, silky noodles, generous toppings. The beef brisket pho is the one.
• 🍛 Thai classics (亞答屋) — HK$60–90. Khao mun gai and slow-braised pork rice are the crowd favourites — honest, well-executed comfort food.
• 🥟 Chaozhou eats (久両菜) — HK$50–90. Oyster omelette, chili chicken, and classic 打冷 dishes with a neon dai pai dong vibe.
• ☕ Specialty coffee & desserts — HK$35–60. Plenty of local roasters and dessert stalls to round off the meal.

Stalls change over time — look for the longest queue, that's the one to try. Budget roughly HK$60–100 per person for a proper meal; sharing two stalls is the move.

Central Station (Exit B2 or B3) is the nearest MTR stop — about a 4-minute walk. Come out of Exit B2 and walk east along Des Voeux Road Central; the market entrance is between the HSBC building and the tram lines. You can also take any tram heading east along Des Voeux Road and hop off right outside.

The cooked food centre is on the upper floors — take the escalator up and follow the smell of wok hei. Weekdays 12:00–1:30 PM is peak office-rush chaos but the food is freshest; go at 11:30 AM for a relaxed seat.

Central office workers use the food hall as their weekday lunch rotation — the pho at 順 and the Thai at 亞答屋 are genuinely good, and the setting beats a fluorescent office canteen any day. Young locals come on weekends for coffee, dessert and the restored heritage space, which regularly hosts exhibitions and markets. Locals love that it's a piece of old Central reborn — the building has been a neighbourhood anchor since 1939, and it's full of life again.

Tourists come for the Instagram-worthy heritage building and the easy eating: it's right in the heart of Central, two minutes from the MTR, with a beautifully restored 1939 Bauhaus interior and a curated food hall under one roof. You get a taste of Hong Kong food culture — pho, Thai, Chaozhou, coffee — in a space that's both historic and photogenic. It's not the gritty dai pai dong experience (for that, go to a municipal market), but it's the most convenient, comfortable introduction to Hong Kong eating.

Whenever I'm in Central and want lunch that isn't a sad salad or a HK$150 sandwich, I head to the Central Market food hall and grab a bowl of pho at 順. The building itself does half the work — the restored staircases and old market signage make eating here feel special in a way a normal food court never could. Come on a weekday around 12:30 PM, order one thing from one stall and a dessert from another, and find a seat by the big windows overlooking Des Voeux Road. Heritage food hall, solid food, zero pretension.

Is Central Market Food Hall still open?
Yes — Central Market (中環街市) is open daily, roughly 10:00 AM – 10:00 PM, with individual stalls varying. The building is a popular weekend spot too.

Where is Central Market Food Hall located?
70-80 Des Voeux Road Central (中環德輔道中70-80號), Central. Nearest MTR: Central Station (Exit B2/B3) or Hong Kong Station.

Can I suggest edits?
Yes. Email practical corrections to name, address, phone, or hours to improve this directory.