Nanchang takes breakfast seriously. Beyond the signature bànfěn noodles, the morning food options are extensive: rice porridge with preserved egg and pork (皮蛋瘦肉粥), deep-fried dough sticks (油条) sold with warm soy milk from sidewalk carts, and steamed dumplings (汤包) with thin skin and soup inside. The best breakfast experience is to walk any residential street between 6am and 8:30am and follow the queue.
The area around the old market streets in Xihu district is particularly good for breakfast. Dedicated breakfast shops open at 5:30am and close when they sell out, typically by 9am. The rhythm of the city is organized around the morning meal, and sitting at a plastic stool table on the pavement eating hot noodles while the city wakes up around you is one of the more memorable ordinary experiences Nanchang offers.