Family Pizza , next to the International Hotel, 124 Dazhi Jie. Unremarkable pizza and pasta with a Chinese slant.

French Bakery , 174 Zhongyang Dajie and at the International Hotel, 124 Dazhi Jie. Espresso, cappuccino, Bud's ice cream and pizza. Inexpensive and a good place to chat with locals.

Huamei , 142 Zhongyang Jie. Patronized chiefly by tourists, this is Harbin's only authentic Russian restaurant, and the fairly Western food is eaten with knives and forks. Though a little pricey - expect to pay at least ¥100 per person - the meals (especially the stroganoff) are good, and make a change from local cuisine. If you can afford it, you can indulge yourself with caviar.

Jiachangcai , Shi Si Dao Jie. Restaurant open 24hr serving cheap eats and beer, off Zhongyang Dajie across from the new post office.

Kingdom of Eastern Jiaozi , 39 Zhongyang Dajie. Good dumplings and photos of the floods of 1998 on the wall.

Korean restaurant , 52 Jingwei Jie. Cheap Korean staples and friendly service. A block west of a store that sells nothing but unusual telephones.

Moxin Niushao , 47 Senlin Jie. BBQ place next to Zhaolin Park where you cook your meal at your table. Dinner for two for under ¥50.

Ri Yue Tang , 502 Xinyang Lu. Formerly the KK disco, now Harbin's most popular restaurant. Laden with local mushroom-based meat dishes, like xiao ji dun mo gu (chicken and mushrooms).