Honbo Shenzhen: Hong Kong Smash Burger at MixC

Honbo Shenzhen is the first mainland China store of Honbo, the Hong Kong burger joint a former doctor, Michael Chan, founded in 2017. It opened in May 2026 at shop B108, Block B, MixC Shenzhen Bay, in Nanshan District, according to Wen Wei Po. In August 2026 a weekday single combo cost ¥78 and the signature Honbo 2.0 smash burger ¥99. All prices here are in Chinese yuan (RMB).

I have not eaten at the Shenzhen store yet. This is a sourced guide, not a review, and it carries no rating. What follows comes from the brand, the Hong Kong and Singapore press, and the one mainland report that gives a menu with prices.

Honbo Shenzhen key facts

Honbo Shenzhen sits on basement level B1 of MixC Shenzhen Bay, with burgers from ¥99 to ¥139. I checked every line below on 16 October 2026.

Honbo Shenzhen key facts: founder Michael Chan, Wan Chai origins in 2017, the address at B108, Block B, MixC Shenzhen Bay, the spring 2026 opening, Houhai metro access and prices from ¥26 to ¥139, checked on 16 October 2026. (Table: Burger Breton, CC BY 4.0, data from honbo.com, Wen Wei Po, Tatler Asia and Wikipedia)

Honbo founder Michael Chan: the doctor who made a cheeseburger

Michael Chan founded Honbo in 2017 with no background in the food industry. He is a Hong Konger raised in Montreal and a former doctor, according to Tatler Asia and A Foodie World.

“If you want to make a cheeseburger, make a cheeseburger,” he told Tatler Asia in 2023. I like that line, because the menu actually keeps to it: two American styles of burger, no truffle, no kimchi, no fusion stunt to photograph.

What does the name Honbo mean?

Honbo is the Cantonese word for hamburger, according to the brand’s official site. The name says what the shop sells, in the language of the city that built it.

From Wan Chai to Shenzhen: the Honbo story

Honbo grew from one Hong Kong shop to Singapore and then mainland China, and nearly vanished from Hong Kong along the way.

• 2017: Honbo opens on Sun Street, Wan Chai (honbo.com).
• 2020: HK01 reports that Honbo was the only Hong Kong venue among the 42 restaurants on Bloomberg’s list of the world’s best burgers (HK01).
• 2022–2023: Honbo closes its Wan Chai, Tsim Sha Tsui, Sha Tin, The Mills and BaseHall locations amid economic pressure (A Foodie World).
• 28 July 2023: First overseas outlet opens at CHIJMES, Singapore (Tatler Asia).
• 2025: Honbo reopens in Wan Chai and launches a Central location.
• May 2026: First mainland store opens at MixC Shenzhen Bay (Wen Wei Po, 19 August 2026).

Honbo timeline, 2017–2026: the Wan Chai opening in 2017, the 2020 Bloomberg best-burgers mention reported by HK01, the 2022–2023 Hong Kong closures, Singapore’s CHIJMES in July 2023, the Hong Kong comeback in 2025 and MixC Shenzhen Bay in spring 2026. (Chart: Burger Breton, CC BY 4.0, data from honbo.com, HK01, A Foodie World, Tatler Asia and Wen Wei Po)

Today Honbo’s official site lists only two stores, both in Hong Kong: Wan Chai (G/F, Shop C, 1-3 Moon Street) and Central (G/F, Shop 2, 8 Lyndhurst Terrace), open daily from 12:00 to 22:00. Neither Shenzhen nor the Singapore outlet at CHIJMES appears there, and I could not confirm whether Singapore still trades. Nor could I find out whether Shenzhen is company-run, franchised or licensed, or what role Michael Chan plays in it. For the home city, see our Hong Kong burger guide; for the island state, our best burgers in Singapore hub.

Honbo Shenzhen Bay MixC menu and prices

At MixC Shenzhen Bay, a weekday Honbo combo cost ¥78 in August 2026 and the burgers ran from ¥99 to ¥139. The figures come from Wen Wei Po’s report of 19 August 2026. Mall menus change, so check the prices on Dianping before you cross the border.

Honbo Shenzhen menu and prices in RMB, August 2026: weekday single combo ¥78, Honbo 2.0 smash burger ¥99, The Gold Standard ¥139, cheese fries ¥39, buffalo wings ¥99 and iced tea ¥26. (Table: Burger Breton, CC BY 4.0, data from Wen Wei Po, 19 August 2026)

Is Honbo a smash burger?

Partly. Honbo 2.0 is a smash-style burger with four thin 2 oz patties, while The Gold Standard stacks two thick 4 oz patties. Tatler Asia calls the first West Coast (thin and crispy) and the second East Coast (thick and juicy). To try the smash technique at home, follow our ShackBurger copycat recipe step by step.

How Honbo makes its burgers

According to its official site, Honbo grinds its beef in-house every day instead of buying pre-formed patties. The potato milk buns were developed with the baker Eric Kayser. In Hong Kong the beef comes from Wisconsin: Tatler Asia describes 36-month-old Holstein and Angus beef under an exclusive deal for Hong Kong and Singapore.

For Shenzhen, I could not pin down where the beef comes from. Sources disagree, and some mainland posts show wagyu items. Treat any wagyu burger you see there as a limited run, not a fixture.

Hong Kong burger in Shenzhen: how to get to Honbo

Honbo Shenzhen is one of the easiest Hong Kong burgers to reach across the border. MixC Shenzhen Bay is about 10 minutes by car from Shenzhen Bay Port, and its basement connects to Houhai metro station.

Shenzhen Bay Port passenger terminal, the Hong Kong–Shenzhen border crossing about 10 minutes by car from Honbo at MixC Shenzhen Bay. Archive photo from July 2007. (Photo: 聰 (zh.wikipedia user), CC BY-SA 3.0, https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Shenzhen\_Bay\_Port\_Passenger\_Terminal.jpg)

1. Cross at Shenzhen Bay Port, then take a car to MixC Shenzhen Bay (about 10 minutes), or take Shenzhen Metro to Houhai station (lines 2, 8, 11 and 13).
2. From Houhai, follow the signs into the mall’s basement.
3. Go to level B1 of Block B and look for shop B108, near the Wave Plaza escalator.

The Line 13 concourse at Houhai station, Shenzhen Metro, in April 2025. Houhai serves lines 2, 8, 11 and 13 and connects to the basement of MixC Shenzhen Bay, where Honbo is. (Photo: ObbanautYT, CC0 1.0, https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Shenzhen\_Metro\_-\_Houhai\_Station\_-\_Line\_13\_Concourse.jpg)

MixC Shenzhen Bay is run by China Resources. It opened on 28 December 2018 and added a Phase II on 30 September 2025, according to Wikipedia.

An escalator inside MixC Shenzhen Bay in December 2025. Honbo is on basement level B1 of Block B, near the Wave Plaza escalator, which may not be the one in this photo. (Photo: NAN LIU, CC BY-SA 4.0, https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:MixC\_Shenzhen\_Bay.jpg)

Map of Honbo Shenzhen at MixC Shenzhen Bay, 1218 Haide 1st Road, Nanshan District, with Houhai metro station next to the mall and Shenzhen Bay Port to the south (iframe 800×450). (Map: © OpenStreetMap contributors, ODbL, https://www.openstreetmap.org/copyright)

Is Honbo Shenzhen worth the trip?

My view: worth it if you are already crossing at Shenzhen Bay, not yet worth a special trip. Order the Honbo 2.0 at ¥99. It is the burger the brand built its name on, and it costs ¥40 less than The Gold Standard. A thick double with bacon you can find anywhere; four smashed patties with triple cheese, done properly, are rarer in Shenzhen.

Honbo Shenzhen prices compared, in RMB, August 2026: the ¥78 weekday combo costs less than either signature burger, and The Gold Standard (¥139) costs ¥40 more than the Honbo 2.0 smash burger (¥99). (Chart: Burger Breton, CC BY 4.0, data from Wen Wei Po, 19 August 2026)

What holds me back is everything I could not check: the beef, the operator, whether the store is still open. Until I have eaten there or Honbo lists the store itself, I treat it as a promising address, not a confirmed favourite.

Best burger in Shenzhen: where Honbo fits

Honbo is the most notable recent arrival on Shenzhen’s burger scene, and the first Hong Kong burger brand I can confirm on the mainland side. None of the English-language ‘best burger in Shenzhen’ lists I read mentions it; most predate 2026.

It is not alone. Shake Shack also trades in Shenzhen, at shop NL101 of a MixC mall, according to Trip.com. Against a global chain, Honbo’s edge is its Hong Kong story and its two-style menu. We add venues as we verify them on our Shenzhen burger guide hub. For the wider picture of brands moving into China, read our 2026 report on burger chain international expansion.

Is there a Jason Atherton restaurant in Shenzhen?

No. Jason Atherton has no restaurant in Shenzhen, and his official site lists none in mainland China or Hong Kong as of 16 October 2026. I started this guide chasing that lead, and a ‘Shanghai Social Club’ said to be his. The only Shanghai Social Club I found was a closed bar in Boston, with no link to him or to Shenzhen.

His China ties are real but past, and none was in Shenzhen. In Shanghai he opened Table No. 1 in 2010 and The Commune Social in 2013 (Wikipedia), and later oversaw Shanghai Tavern, Canton Disco and Hiya at The Shanghai EDITION (The Caterer). In Hong Kong he ran 22 Ships, Ham & Sherry and Aberdeen Street Social. For burgers in that city, see our best burgers in Shanghai hub.

What I could not verify

Six points remain open as of 16 October 2026. I left them out rather than guess.

• Exact opening day: Wen Wei Po only says “May this year” in an article dated 19 August 2026.
• Opening hours, phone number, and whether the store is still open in October 2026.
• Whether foreign cards are accepted, or only Alipay and WeChat Pay.
• The beef origin used in Shenzhen.
• Who operates the Shenzhen store and Michael Chan’s role there.
• The original Bloomberg 2020 list: the claim comes from HK01.

FAQ

Where is Honbo in Shenzhen, and how do I get there from Hong Kong? Honbo is at B108, Block B, MixC Shenzhen Bay, No. 1218 Haide 1st Road, Nanshan District. From Shenzhen Bay Port it is about 10 minutes by car, or take the metro to Houhai station, which connects to the mall’s basement.

How much does a burger cost at Honbo Shenzhen? In August 2026, Honbo 2.0 cost ¥99 and The Gold Standard ¥139. A weekday combo with a burger, fries or tater tots and a cola cost ¥78.

Who founded Honbo, and what does the name mean? Michael Chan, a former doctor raised in Montreal, founded Honbo in Wan Chai in 2017. Honbo is the Cantonese word for hamburger.

Is Honbo Shenzhen the same as Honbo in Hong Kong? The signature burgers share their names and builds, but I could not confirm that Shenzhen uses the same Wisconsin beef as Hong Kong. Honbo’s official site does not list the Shenzhen store.

Is Honbo a smash burger? Honbo 2.0 is: four thin 2 oz patties with triple cheese. The Gold Standard is a thick-patty burger.

Is there a Jason Atherton restaurant in Shenzhen? No. His official site lists no restaurant in mainland China, Hong Kong or Shenzhen as of October 2026. His past China restaurants were in Shanghai.

Can I pay with a foreign card at Honbo Shenzhen? I could not verify it. Set up Alipay or WeChat Pay with a foreign card as a backup, and check Dianping or Meituan before you go.