Wangfujing Dajie: Stuff that I didn't eat

Wangfujing Dajie

Wangfujing Dajie is known for selling all sorts of street foods, especially creepy crawlies.  B and I weren't drawn to any of the vendors, and we wanted to save our appetites for Makye Ame...at least that was our excuse.  For more about eating insects in China, check out Time Out Beijing.

Cicadas and Larvae

Seahorses, Starfish, and Scorpions, Oh My!

"Turkish Grilled Meat"

Beefballs, Fishballs, and Red Dates

Mutton Stomach (I think)

Chuanr (Skewered Meats)

Roasted Pigeons

Even Bigger Black Scorpions

Centipedes with Cicadas and Larvae on the Sides

Stinky Tofu

Stinky Tofu Vendor

Lazy Guotie

Baos

Sticky Rice Flour Cakes with Red Bean Paste and Peanut Powder

Spicy Seashells

Breakfasts in Beijing

Here are a few photos of my breakfasts in Beijing.  I mostly ate breakfast zhou or bao zi at S's apartmet because it was too cold to go out early in hte morning.



Long line outside the Maido chain that sells hot savory pies (bing)

Pork and Green Bell Peppers Bing (the pork was way too fatty)

I couldn't resist having breakfast at Comptoirs de France again, but the traffic was horrible; by the time I arrived, they had already moved on to their lunch menu.  I ordered a smoked salmon sandwich and a nice, big cup of coffee.

Coffee at Comptoirs de France

Smoked Salmon Sandwich for breakfast

The day of my departure, I walked to Field Home, a Chinese fast food chain.  I ordered the #8 special which had a bowl of delicious pidan shourou zhou (hundred-year egg and lean pork rice porridge) garnished with youtiao and green onions and a side of guotie (pan-fried dumplings).  YUM!  It was kinda a crazy about of food for breakfast but I gotta get some culinary satisfaction before enduing a 13 hour flight full of crappy food.

Pidan Shourou Zhou

Guotie and Milk Tea

烤肉季 Kao Rou Ji

Kao Rou Ji

On my last day, I wandered around Xicheng district and visited the Bell and Drum Towers.  I knew that Kao Rou Ji, a famous Xinjiang restaurant, was in the area so I made my way to Houhai for lunch.  This is not a place for dining on your own because the portions of each dish are meant for sharing.  Oh well.  That wasn't going to stop me from trying their famous grilled lamb!

Complimentary Pumpkin Xiaomi Zhou

The lamb with the extra order of condiments and shao bing made damn tasty Xinjiang burgers.  

Grilled Lamb with Scallions

Grilled Lamb with Hot Chili Oil, Pickled Garlic, Cucumbers, and Shao Bing

Interior of Shao Bing

Making my Xinjiang Burger

Mmmm...Ready to dig into my burger!

Dadong Kaoya: My Second Visit

After my awesome dining experience at Dadong Kaoya in Fall 2009, I decided to treat my hostess to their delicious Peking duck near the end of my research trip.  I chose Peking duck because she hasn't had it since moving to Beijing.  I also wanted to try dishes other than the Peking duck this time, and that's much easier to do with a dining companion. 

We ordered Chef's Dong's Braised Eggplant.  This version of braised eggplants is a sweeter variation.  My favorite preparation of braised eggplant is the briny version with diced salted fish in as clay pot.  However, because it's a much heavier dish, you have to pair it with copious amounts of white rice to tame the flavors.  Dadong's braised eggplant is a lot more refreshing and is void of grease, which is amazing in China.

Braised Eggplant

Silly me insisted on ordering shrimp and insisted on the deep fried dish.  It was a bad move on my part as it was poorly prepared.  Instead of a light, crunchy batter, we got a wet skin-like batter.  The sauce that coated the shrimp made it worse.  It was some kind of rice wine vinegar sauce that tasted like mustard but not quite.  I really didn't understand what the chef was going for in this dish.

Deep Fried Prawns

The next dish was the super adorable "Steamed Egg" with Crab Roe.  We each ordered one (28 RMB / $4.50!!!).  Although the egg looks like a soft-boiled egg, I think it's actually made from steamed eggwhite with a little bit of broth.  The "yolk" is the crab roe.  The light broth and lightly seasoned bok choy complemented the deliciously rich "egg."

Steamed Egg with Crab Roe

Steamed Egg with Crab Roe

S and I are both tofu lovers and were immediately drawn to the "Two Flavor Bean Curd."  One flavor was the tender bean curd with mei cai (preserved vegetable) and the other is yuzi bean curd with spicy XO sauce.  I have no idea what an yuzi bean curd is.  It tasted more like steamed egg custard than tofu.  Both were awesome.

Two Flavor Bean Curd

Tender Bean Curd with Soy Sauce

Meicai and Yuzi Bean Curd with XO Sauce

S approved of the Peking duck!  She was also amazed at how lean and ungreasy the duck was considering how most dishes in China are greasy.

Peking Duck

Duck Broth Made from Duck Bones

S was so excited about dinner that she was surfing the net for pictures of what other diners have ordered in the past.  She said that she really wanted to try a cotton candy dessert she saw on someone's website.  I'm not a cotton candy type of person, but S had been such a gracious hostess so I obliged.  See how happy she was?

Cotton Candy for Dessert

I admit that it was really fun to eat and that the added surprise in the middle of the cotton candy ball made the experience even better.

With a Candied Fruit Inside!

And Stuffed with a Red Date!

Free Fruit Plate

Noodle Bar at the Hidden City

After afternoon tea at Green T. House with its hidden door, we enjoyed a dinner at Noodle Bar, which is one of a cluster of restaurants inside the Hidden City.  The entrance is actually an art gallery!  We enjoyed a really nice exhibit of Wu Guanzhong's paintings before entering a courtyard filled with contemporary artwork.  Now this is the way to do culinary artsy-fartsy!

The Hidden City

Courtyard inside the Hidden City Walls

The menu at Noodle Bar is simple, which is a breath of fresh air after the craziness at Green T. House.  You can choose from a couple of side dishes and 5 noodle choices: beef, tendon, tripe, combination, or vegetarian.  You can also choose between thin or thick noodles.

Noodle Bar Menu

The side dishes were really not that great.  S loved the pumpkin in plum juice, but I much preferred Din Tai Fung's pumpkin in orange juice.

Raw Pumpkin in Plum Juice

The wheat-gluten was way to sweet and salty.

Wheat Gluten, Shitake, and Edamame

The bean curd and soy egg were also way too salty.

Bean Curd and Soy Egg

The duck chuanr was the only good side dish, but it was so spicy that my lips felt like they were on fire for the duration of the meal.

Duck Chuanr

The beef noodle soup was seriously good, especially the broth, brisket, and tripe.  S, B, and I all ordered the thick noodles, but we all felt that they were too thick and chewy.  We should've gone with the thin noodles.  Nevertheless, this was a very satisfying meal.

Beef Noodle Soup with Brisket and Daikon

Combination Beef Noodle Soup with Tripe, Tendon, and Brisket