From crispy Peking duck to five-spice foie gras, the Chinese capital has transformed its dining scene into one of the finest in the country.
Beijing, like the rest of China, is boldly proud of its food. But until recently, the capital’s cuisine lacked the verve and sophistication of that on offer in Shanghai. A culinary excursion here was about getting down with the locals in homey streetside eateries. But today, fine dining is firmly on the city’s menu, and a number of high-profile chefs and restaurateurs are giving Beijing’s southern sister a run for its money in the food stakes. Here, 10 establishments that are transforming the city’s culinary scene.
Inevitably, your visit to Beijing will include a tour of the Forbidden City and Tiananmen Square. It’s a tiring day out but luckily, one of the city’s most beautiful restaurants is within easy reach. Capital M occupies a prime piece of real estate facing the south end of Tiananmen, housed in a Qing-style building on historic pedestrian strip Qianmen. While some restaurants are better at either lunch or dinner, Capital M – the third Chinese establishment of Australian restaurateur Michelle Garnaut – shines at both. By day, you can enjoy a relaxed brunch; by night, the lights in the restaurant and illuminating the surrounding heritage buildings create an atmospheric setting.
There are various dining areas in the restaurant, including a vibrant, parquet-floored space furnished with velvet loveseats, open fireplaces and an elaborate 50-metre-long mural. But Capital M makes its mark with a wraparound terrace, its views extending from the imperial gates of Qianmen and Tiananmen to the Great Hall of the People and the Forbidden City beyond.
The food is modern European, although the goal is not to wow you with gastronomic feats – instead, chef Panos Kalamidas believes dishes need to be true to their origins: “If it’s a Greek mezze, then it should be like the mezze you have in Greece,” he says.
Unfortunately, you won’t find this Mediterranean staple on the menu, but with delectable dishes such as scallops in ginger, lime and chilli broth, and crispy suckling pig available, you won’t go hungry.
Just across the road is Beijing institution Maison Boulud, opened by Michelin-starred chef Daniel Boulud. The restaurant occupies another magnificent building: a manor house within a Qing-dynasty compound, once the home of the U.S. Embassy. The imposing mansion is just one reason to visit – the service, French cuisine and cocktails are impeccable, too.
Under the constant attention of chef Brian Reimer, the restaurant has become Beijing’s most awarded, with accolades that include the number 88 spot in the S. Pellegrino World’s 100 Best Restaurants of 2009 and Wine Spectator’s Best of Award of Excellence in 2011. Small wonder, given dishes such as a warm veloute of green peas, scented with mint and a smoked bacon grissini, or confit of duck with a frisée salad and black truffle dressing on the menu.
Boulud’s one-time general manager Ignace Lecleir has moved on, and now oversees the city’s hottest new dining destination, Temple Beijing Restaurant. Set in a 600-year-old Buddhist temple compound – a venue almost impossible to come by in today’s Beijing – the restaurant is at once grand and gracious, modern and historic. The interiors are clean and comfortable, their grey stone walls and slate floors highlighted with colourful fabrics and throw pillows.
The food is contemporary European and, as we’ve come to expect from Lecleir’s restaurants, the service and wine list are also excellent. À la carte and degustation menus are available and might include, depending on the season, roasted pigeon with ceps and a truffle jus or, our favourite, an indulgent dacquoise with Caraibe chocolate and hazelnut caramel.
A visit to Beijing would not be complete without at least one feast of Peking duck, and arguably the best place to sample the capital’s signature dish is at Da Dong Roast Duck Restaurant (there are three outlets in town). Here, homegrown celebrity chef Dong Zhenxiang is so dedicated to the humble ingredient, he specialises in it – he has even opened his own duck farm so he can raise the birds just as he wants them. Aside from traditional wood-roasted Peking duck, served with piping-hot pancakes, spring onions and plum sauce, Da Dong serves up modern Chinese cuisine – think “drunken” chicken served with a sorbet of Shaoxing wine, or steamed oxtail with longan and honey.
Peking duck is taken to new levels at Duck de Chine. For several years, the restaurant has made a name for itself in South Sanlitun’s 1949 The Hidden City, a grey-stone courtyard complex that’s home to several other notable eateries. In recent months, however, it’s the new, grander Duck de Chine in the 1949² venue that’s been creating a stir.
Also designed in the style of a traditional Chinese hutong (courtyard), the building surrounds a garden dotted with eye-opening contemporary art. Inside, light streams into the lofty dining rooms and high wooden rafters create a church-like setting.
Here, the duck is a little punchier than at Da Dong, cooked longer over jujube wood to produce a darker, crispier skin. A whole duck is sliced 80 times rather than the traditional 108 slices, which means thicker, juicer portions to wrap in your pancakes. In addition to duck, the restaurant specialises in Cantonese cuisine, including a delightful spread of dim sum – try the deep-fried abalone mushrooms and the baked turnip puffs.
On the east side of the city, the Park Hyatt’s China Grill is head and shoulders above its competitors – literally. One of the loftiest dining rooms in town, this restaurant is encased in glass, which means that you can enjoy 360-degree views of the city. The menu is dedicated to seafood and steak, using fresh ingredients to create uncomplicated, yet tasty dishes such as Boston lobster with spiced squid-ink linguini or silken chicken soup with forest mushrooms and wolfberries.
Just across the road, the Shangri-La’s newest hotel, the Summit Wing, is home to a restaurant that trumps even China Grill in height. Grill 79 offers a much more formal dining experience than its competition at the Park Hyatt. The dining room looks west toward the centre of the city and its edge on height gives it stellar views of Tiananmen Square and the gold and russet rooftops of the Forbidden City. The charming chef de cuisine Ryan Sablan Dadufalza has produced a playful menu, with skilfully crafted dishes including Alaskan king crab salad, mushroom and truffle soup, and a delightful popcorn crème brûlée.
Moving north to Beijing’s hip Sanlitun precinct, you’ll encounter an overwhelming array of bars and restaurants. One of the best stops in the area is Bei, an intimate establishment tucked away in the basement of boutique hotel, The Opposite House. Bei (which means “north” in Mandarin) has an elegant, restrained design that perfectly complements its menu of north Asian specialties – with a twist. Chef Xavier Mauerhofer takes traditional favourites from Japan, Korea and Northern China and adds French flair: the five-spice foie gras, for example, marries Chinese flavours with foie gras, ground seaweed and a bamboo charcoal brioche; the Dungeness crab salad sits atop a bright-green cucumber shiso jelly.
Sanlitun is also home to a concentration of Spanish establishments, and Migas is one of the best. Its modern cuisine uses techniques that chef Aitor Olabegoya learned under the guidance of elBulli brainchild Ferran Adrià, and its sexy rooftop bar is the perfect spot to end your meal on a balmy summer night.
For something with a little more heat, head to Transit, a sophisticated modern Sichuan joint in neighbouring Sanlitun Village North. “Modern” here means taking traditional Sichuan favourites and tweaking them in line with trends in health and taste. This means no MSG and less oil. It also means that few dishes are overpoweringly spicy. The food is elegant, more delicately flavoured and sweeter than you’ll find at other Sichuan restaurants around town – and this is not necessarily a bad thing. The delicious shui zhu yu (boiled fish) is made with sea bass rather than a bony river fish, and a simple dish of vegetables is flavoured with fragrant litsea oil. From design to cuisine, it’s another wonderful culinary postcard of modern China. •
Photographs courtesy of respective establishments.
TRAVEL FACTS
China Eastern operates daily services from Melbourne and Sydney to Shanghai, with connections on to Beijing. China Southern flights to Shanghai travel via Guangzhou.
• China Eastern Airlines. 61-2/9290-1148;
flychinaeastern.com
• China Southern Airlines. 61-2/9233-9788;
flychinasouthern.com
getting around
The following companies offer insightful trips and tours around Beijing.
• Creative Holidays. 1300-747-400;
creativeholidays.com
• Helen Wong’s Tours. 1300-788-328;
helenwongstours.com
• Selective Tours. 1300-760-208;
selectivetours.com
• Travel Indochina. 1300-365-355;
travelindochina.com.au
• Travman Tours. 1800-368-077;
travman.com.au
• Wendy Wu Tours. 1300-727-998;
wendywutours.com.au
where to stay
April to June is beautiful, but can be windy; September to November is ideal.
where to eat
• Bei. The Opposite House, 11 Sanlitun Rd., Chaoyang; 86-10/6410-5230.
• Capital M. 3/F, 2 Qianmen Pedestrian St., Chongwen; 86-10/6702-2727;
m-restaurantgroup.com
• China Grill. 66/F, Park Hyatt Beijing, 2 Jianguomenwai St., Chaoyang; 81-10/8567-1838/1840;
beijing.park.hyatt.com
• Da Dong Roast Duck Restaurant. 5/F, Jinbao Dasha, Jinbao St., Dongcheng; 86-10/8522-1234.
• Duck de Chine. 98 Jinbao St., Dongcheng; 86-10/6521-2221;
elite-concepts.com
• Grill 79. 79/F, China World Summit Wing, China World Trade Centre Phase 3, 1 Jianguomenwai St., Chaoyang; 86-10/6505-2299;
shangri-la.com
• Maison Boulud. Ch’ienmen 23, 23 Qianmen Dong St., Dongcheng; 86-10/6559-9200;
danielnyc.com
• Migas. 6/Floor, Nali Patio, 81 Sanlitun Rd., Chaoyang; 86-10/5208-6061;
migasbj.com
• Temple Restaurant Beijing. 23 Songzhu Si, Shatan North St., Dongcheng; 86-10/8400-2232;
temple-restaurant.com
• Transit. N4-36, 3/F, Sanlitun Village North, Sanlitun Rd., Chaoyang; 86-10/6417-9090.
further information
For more information on travelling to Shanghai, contact the China National Tourist Office. 61-2/9252-9838;
cnto.org.au
