Shaxian Snacks

I’m Nick Hamman and if you’re a fan of great Chinese food, here is your next visit. Just look at this creamy, nutty, peanut-sesame broth that I’m eating at one of China’s biggest food success stories that too few people know is sitting on the top floor of Rivonia Junction in arguably Joburg’s third Chinatown.

This is Shaxian Snacks. A place honouring a food tradition from Fujian Province that flourished during the Tang and Song dynasties, grew through the Ming and Qing periods, and evolved into a fast, affordable food culture for merchants, travellers and workers.

Thousands of families from Shaxian spread across China opening small restaurants serving inexpensive noodle dishes, wontons, soups and snacks. Over time it became one of the most recognisable food brands in China.

The bowl arrived steaming and impossibly generous, packed with noodles, prawns, cabbage, mushrooms, seaweed and vegetables swimming in a rich amber broth. At first glance it looked like it might be spicy, but the flavour went in a completely different direction. The broth was silky and deeply savoury, with a subtle peanut richness running through every spoonful. It wasn’t the sweet peanut flavour of satay, but something gentler and more complex — nutty, comforting and almost creamy. The noodles soaked up the broth beautifully, the prawns added bursts of sweetness, and the wood ear mushrooms brought their signature crunch. It was the kind of soup that feels restorative rather than indulgent, warming from the inside out and somehow getting better with every bite.

Everything I ate here was genuinely fantastic and I’m already coming back, and trust me, you need to try Shaxian Snacks for yourself. So of course, I’ve left the details in the caption. Let me know in the comments if you’ve tried this place and what you thought and also, please let me know where you think the best Chinese food in South Africa can be found.

📍 Shaxian Snacks
Rivonia Junction Shopping Centre
Rivonia, Johannesburg

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