Established in 1915, Lai Jin Yu Xuan Restaurant (来今雨轩) is now located at the western part of Beijing's Zhongshan Park. The main architecture is classical in every aspect. Flowers, rockeries, bridges, fountains and falls, which are the essentials of a classical garden, keep beautifully here. Walking the stairs along the green corridor and seeing afar. The old trees veiled the majestic scenes of the Forbidden City and the Great Hall of the People. This is an excellent and elegant view in the heart of Beijing.
Lai Jin Yu Xuan RestaurantChina's Nationalist President Xu Shichang wrote and contributed the old and big plaque "Lai Jin Yu Xuan" for the restaurant, while the Zhao Puchu, the Chairman of China Buddhist Society, made the new plaque with the same words. "Lai Jin Yu Xuan" has a story behind it. Du Fu, a famous poet from the Tang Dynasty, once was to be promoted by the emperor Tang Xianzong because his talent. Many people knew this information and wanted to be his friends. However, Du did not want to become an imperial cadre, and later his had been quite poor. Many who did know him had left. On one cold and rainy day, Du Fu was old and in ill health. A friend of the past, surnamed Wei, visited him by surprise. He was so moved by this. He wrote a poem to acknowledge his old friend. It ran "…the old rain comes and the new rain does not today…" Rain, pronounced in Chinese is "Yu", and today is "Jin" and the name of the famous restaurant "Lai Jin Yu Xuan" means making new friends, having a heartily gathering and dining at an excellent restaurant.
The restaurant serves great dishes mentioned in the renowned Chinese novel The Dream of the Red Mansion and the cuisines from Sichuan and Guizhou Provinces. Red Mansion Cuisine not only reflects the eating habits of every social sector in late Ming Dynasty and early Qing Dynasty, but also realizes the medical functions of the Traditional Chinese Medicine. Moreover, the dishes of this style are in good looking too. They are among the best cooking arts in China.
Source: beijingattractions.org
