Longan Food
On Grain Buds, Beijing natives observe the custom of eating longan. Logan can eliminate dampness and heat, and is always used to make various kinds of food, such as logan cake, and Spring Chicken with Logan for auspicious omen of “fullness and good harvest”. “Grain Buds Longan Cake” produced by Beijing time-honored “Dao Xiang Cun” is very sweet and refreshing. It is made with savory longan meat and nutrient butter beans as stuff, which are wrapped with crisp pie crust and then baked. The cake has mild color, tastes soft and crisp, and is very popular among Beijing locals.
Spring Chicken with Logan is made with logan and spring chicken. First, pluck spring chicken, and take out viscera. Put the chicken in boiling water for seconds to get rid of blood. Put it in steaming pot or wok, add logan, cooking wine, shallot, ginger, salt and water, and cage steam it for about one hour. The dish is said to have the function of benefiting qi and blood, and suitable for people suffering from palpitation and insomnia caused by insufficiency of heart blood.
Where to Taste:
Qianmen Branch
Address: No.59, Qianmen Street, Dongcheng District, Beijing (Southwest corner of the Qianmen street and the Dashanlan intersection).
Wudaokou Branch
Address: No. 99, 1F, 3rd building, Lanqiying, Chengfu Road, Haidian District, Beijing ( Near Wudaokou Subway Station of Metro Line 2).
Wangfujing Branch
Address: No. 10, Dengshikou Street, Dongcheng District, Beijing (Near Dengkoushi Subway Station of Metro Line 5).
Yayuncun Branch
Address: 1F, Anhuili 3rd Community, Chaoyang District, Beijing (Near the Beichen Shopping Mall)
Drum Tower Branch
Address: No. 50, Di anmenwai Street, Beijing (Diagonally opposite the Di anmen Shopping Mall).
Suan Mei Tang (Sour Prune Drink)
Suan Mei Tang (Sour Prune Drink) is a traditional summer beverage in Beijing. In summer days, many households would buy smoked plum (or waxberry) to decoct suanmeitang. White sugar is added to get rid of sour. It tastes wonderful after being iced.
Suanmeitang can remove heat, bring coolness, soothe mind, and cure pain. It can even cure cough, cholera and dysentery. Plum syrup can help digestion, promote the circulation of qi, dissipate blood stasis, help produce saliva and slake thirst, and astringe lung qi. Drinking plum syrup frequently can ward off disease and keep fitness. It is a healthy drink for Grain Buds, and is loved by many Beijing natives.
Where to taste:
Beijing Xinyuanzhai Suan Mei Tang
Osmanthus sour prune drink is the most famous summer cooler in Xinyuanzhai. It was produced and sold from the Dragon Boat Festival (5th day of the 5th lunar month) to the Ghost Festival (15th night of the 7th lunar month), lasting about 70 days before.
In order to guarantee the quality and the color of the products, Xinyuanzhai thinks highly of the selection of raw materials.
The major ingredients of osmanthus sour prune drink are smoked plums, osmanthus blossoms and rock sugar. The smoked plums are selected from Changxing and Anji areas of Zhejiang province, since the plums there is remarkable for its size, with small pits and thick sarcocarp, sour, and able to help slake thirst. The osmanthus blossoms are exclusively picked from Hangzhou before their fallen, and they are of rich and pure perfumes. The rock sugar, golden and transparent, were once directly refined from the Emperor’s Kitchen in the Qing Dynasty.
When compounding the materials, producers will slightly adjust the proportions of the ingredients according to the weather. Therefore, the drinks taste sourer in hot days while sweeter in cool days. Xinyuanzhai Sour Prune Drink is of a golden color and a delicately delicate scent of osmanthus. When taking a sip, one would feel palatable and refreshed, and sense a long-lasting aftertaste. Praised as a “rare treasure in the court”, it still enjoys high reputation among customers.
Now, suan mei tang of Xin Yuan Zhai is easier to access, which is sold in various convenient shops and supermarkets. Even online shopping malls sell it as well.
Almond Tofu
Beijing locals are particular about “eating tofu in summer and drinking tea in winter”. The tea refers to Seasoned Millet Mush, and “Tofu” means Almond Tofu originated from imperial court. It is white, tender and smooth. After Grain Buds, it is getting hotter and hotter, when a bowl of Almond Tofu is amazing for you to remove heat and get refreshed.
Where to taste:
Store Name: Alba Cafe
Price: 20 yuan
Address: No. 70 Gulou East Street, South Luogu Lane, Dongcheng District 东城区南锣鼓巷鼓楼东大街70号
Din Tai Fung
Price: 38 yuan
Address: Floor 6, Beijing APM, Chaoyang District (near Wangfujing) 朝阳区APM新东安百货6楼近王府井
Niulaolao Niunailao (Grandma Niu's Cheese)
Price: 8 yuan
Address: No. 1, 2nd Area, Anzhenli, Anding Road, Chaoyang District (50 meters south to the Jin Ou Building) 朝阳区安定路安贞里二区一号楼底商(近金瓯大厦南50米)
Guoer Tiao
Price: 12 yuan
Address: No. 19 Cangjingguan Hutong, Yonghe Temple, Dongcheng District (near Upper Room Coffee) 东城区雍和宫藏经馆胡同19号(近楼尚咖啡)
Huguo Temple Snacks
Price: 5 yuan
Address: No. 93 Huguosi Street, Xicheng District (Opposite the People’s Theartre) 西城区护国寺大街93号(人民剧场对面)
Nailao Wei
Price: 8 yuan
Address: Room 107, No. 202 Guanganmen Inner Street, Xicheng District (at the north entrance of Niujie) 西城区广安门内大街202号107室(牛街北口)
Old Beijing Chatang Li (Li’s Seasoned Flour Mush)
Price: 10 yuan
Address: Shop No.1, Building 30, 7th Area, Hepingli, Dongcheng District东城区和平里七区三十号楼1号底商
Waza Japanese Cuisine
Price: 30 yuan
Address: Floor 1, The Q Club, Maizidian West Street, Chaoyang District朝阳区麦子店西街三全公寓俱乐部1楼
Sunnyum Restaurant
Price: 10 yuan
Address: No. 75 Gulou West Street, Shichahai, Xicheng District西城区什刹海鼓楼西大街75号
De He Zhai
Price: 12 yuan
Address: No. 7 Tianshuiyuan East Street, Chaoyang District (Opposite the Daojiayuan Neighborhood) 朝阳区甜水园东街7号(道家园小区对面)
