Da leng, the night counter
The Cantonese name for the row of cold dishes at a Teochew street stall; locally people are more likely to say they are going to eat the night porridge.
Pronunciation dǎ lěng｜Food and tea｜One entry in the Chaoshan glossary
What it means
The row of dishes set out at the front of a Teochew street stall: braised goose, fish rice, raw pickles, bitter melon, dried tofu, laid out saucer by saucer for customers to point at. The word spread from the Teochew lanes of Hong Kong, and locals use it less than visitors do.
The arrangement is the menu: you order what you can see, and no list is needed.
When you eat it
At night, from after dinner until the small hours, with a bowl of plain porridge or a bowl of rice noodles — the standard late supper here.
Words easily confused
The word names the form of the counter, not cold food: the stall sells hot and cold alike, the braises are warm and the porridge is boiling. Locally people say going to eat the night porridge; the other is what outsiders call it.
Read next: Chaoshan cooking and snacks, written apart.
Same group: braised goose, fish rice, mi, the porridge.
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Last revised: 3 November 2026