Fang Shan Restaurant in Beihai Park

Located in Beihai Park, the imperial palace restaurant was founded in 1925. Formerly known as "Fang Shan Tea House", it specializes in tea, court pastries and flavored dishes, and the most famous food is minced meat patty, small wotou and pea flour cake. In 1956, it was changed to a restaurant and began to sell court dishes, among which the "Manchu Han Imperial Feast" is famous in China and abroad.

The horizontal plaque is inscribed with Mr. Lao She's handwritten Chinses words "Fang Shan", and on both sides is Fu Jie's handwritten "Imperial Palace Style Fang Shan Restaurant". As soon as you enter the door, you can see Fu Lu Shou in the enterway. There are only four private rooms and two scattered seats, one in the Fanggu Hall and the other under the glass canopy. The imitation dragon chair is brilliant. The real boutique is the calligraphy and painting hanging on the wall. Although they are not a national treasure in Shiqu Baoji, they are the authentic works of calligraphers and painters in the eighties of the last century.

The dishes of Fang Shan Restaurant are exquisitely made, beautiful in color and shape, and the taste is exquisite, inheriting the characteristics of Qing Palace's "imperial meal" which are clear, fresh, crisp and tender. Its specialties include stir-fried pork fillet, stir-fried sliced fish, stir-fried pork kidney pieces and stir-fried prawns; fried hazelnut purée, fried minced meat pea sauce, fried stir-fried cucumber purée, fried carrot purée; crisp chicken, crisp fish, crisp meat and crisp seaweed; tofu, braised Chinese cabbage with chestnuts. Presently, the cooking skills of Fangshan Restaurant have been listed as a national intangible cultural heritage.

Qingfeng Steamed Stuffed Bun Shop in Beihai Park

Qingfeng Steamed Stuffed Bun Shop was founded in 1948 as "Wanxingju", selling snacks, rice, stir-fried vegetables, etc. Wanxingju devoted itself to learning the production methods of different varieties of buns in Tianjin, Beijing and other places, combined with the strengths of each branch, and created buns suitable for the taste of the people in Beijing. Because of its strict selection of raw materials, fine production, and pure taste, the business is very prosperous. In 1976, "Wanxingju" was renamed "Qingfeng Steamed Stuffed Bun Shop", which means "celebrating a good harvest" in Chinese.

Nowadays, Qingfeng buns have also entered Beihai Park and tourists have more choices for dining.

Translator: BAO Minmin

Reviewer: ZHANG Ruochen