Han Cang 9 ($$)

Han Cang Restaurant

This Restaurant serves traditional Hakka cuisine. Located along the water front of HouHai Lake this restaurant is the perfect place to rest in the shade and enjoy the view. This restaurant is most well known for their three cup sauce roasted duck, foil wrapped fish and salted shrimp. I have eaten here twice now and their food has been consistently delicious.

I highly recommend the fried pork ribs, the three cups sauce duck and the shrimp. Everything was very flavorful, and very mildly spiced. The beer here is served very cold and on a hot day by the lake it tastes so refreshing.

There was only one dish that I found disappointing, the soft shell turtle. I had never had turtle before and I was feeling adventurous, but I expected it to taste fresher, and less chewy. It actually had a taste similar to chicken heart and cartilage, but a little muddier. I am not familiar with how fresh turtle tastes, but I would guess that it had been frozen too long.

For taste, excluding the turtle I give this Hakka restaurant a 10.

I love the mellow, drinking beer by the river feeling of this restaurant. All the tables and chairs feel like they are at the right height with enough space for your legs between them (rare in China). And due to its location on the eastern side of the lake this restaurant stays cooler during the day. Atmosphere rates an 8.

The cost of two people eating here is a little under $$. And a great deal for the amount and quality of the food.

Overall I give Han Cang Restaurant a 9 out of 10. Eating here is very enjoyable. It is my favorite place for lunch on a hot day. After lunch there are plenty of shops and boutiques in the area to explore as well and the river front to walk along. If you are tired of walking its really easy to get a ricksaw and just enjoy the ride.

Hatsume 7($$$)

Hatsume

The best sushi in Beijing…

….was disappointing.

Hatsume is well known for being the best in Beijing but it was quite a few steps below the neighborhood sushi restaurants back home. But considering it is the best, I would defiantly avoid any other sushi place in town.

Despite the quality of the fish this restaurant is pretty busy during the dinner hour. Reservations are absolutely necessary.

On this occasion Kris reserved the traditional sunken Japanese dinner table. We took off our shoes and climbed under the table hand picked out chopsticks from a little presentation and then ordered four dishes. Braised salmon and tuna in garlic cream miso sause, a salmon tuna roll in spicy 119 (911 in china) sauce, a roast duck and cucumber roll and tempura sweet potatoes.

In the taste category Hatsume warrants a 7. It was not that bad, in fact I did enjoy the braised salmon and tuna with garlic cream miso sauce. But their sushi grade fish was not what it should have been. The duck roll was actually the better of the two rolls, with is saying a lot for the duck and not a good review of the fish. I usually hate sushi rolls with anything other than fish it them.

For two people we spent $ for two people including a decent bottle of French Riesling. It was paired perfectly with the salmon and tuna but did not pair as well with the roast duck roll.

The atmosphere was kind of cute, it had little fountains and zen sand walkways but it was currently under construction or renovation so half the walls and ceiling were covered in painters tarp. Hopefully they will finish it soon.

Overall I give this restaurant a 7 out of 10. It was ok, and probably a little better than I give it credit for, but I have come to expect top rated sushi places to be absolutely exceptional. The quality of the fish is everything, and the variety and creativity of the menu should come second.

TimeZone 8 Editions 9($$)

Timezone 8 Editions

This restaurant is in the heart of the 798 art district, part restaurant part art book store. We picked Timezone because it was the busiest restaurant on the little strip; as they always say, “follow the locals”. This particular day was so beautiful! We sat outside in the cool weather at a little bistro table and just enjoyed the scenery. Kris ordered a hamburger steak, I ordered a pepperoni pizza and we shared a plate of fries.

The pizza was a tomato sauce, mozzarella cheese, fresh cut tomatoes, pepperoni, green peppers and parmesan cheese. The crust was baked perfect, on a real pizza stone. I personally prefer thin crust pizza but this fluffy and evenly baked crust did not fail to impress me. Timezone sure knows how to make a classic just right.

The hamburger steak was not an all beef patty, most likely a pork blend. But it was still thick and juicy and so delicious. It came out with steamed vegetables in vinegar dressing and a wheat bread roll.

For taste I rate Timezone a 9 out of 10. Everything was unusually good, and the vegetables were an especially good touch.

For Price Timezone receives a $$ which is very common in China.

Over all I give Timezone a 9 out of 10. Surrounded by book stores and art galleries, lunch or supper here has that exclusive beatnik art scene feeling. I would say that a lot of the art galleries here are over rated, but dinner here will not disappoint.

Tree 10 ($)

Tree

This place is more of a bar than a restaurant, their Belgian beer menu is extensive, while their food menu is limited to pizza a few pastas and some snacks.

We ordered a pizza with pepperoni, artichoke hears, . It was decent, and baked on a think crust wich I prefer. But it wasn’t enough, and I was still hungry after we had finished the whole pie. We hand to order a plate of steak fries to finish up.

The beer on the other hand was exceptional. The Orval I had was almost its own meal it was so rich and smooth. The head lasted the entire drink it was so thick. This beer is a must try, it had absolutely no bite and it drink like milk. Perfect pairing for anything.

The atmosphere in tree gets pretty busy on weekends and is very popular amongst the other ex-pats in Beijing. It has the feeling of a local pub. It is though a little off the beaten trail, that means that only seasoned Beijiners go here and it had a little bit of a locals only feeling.

For taste I give Tree an 8. It was pretty good, but it’s a much better bar than a restaurant.

Overall I rate Tree a 10, but go for the drinks and not for the food exclusively.

Xiao 9($$)

Xiao

This restaurant serves food from Guizhou province. Traditionally food from this area is very similar to Shichuan food, but is usually served in small bite size pieces. This restaurant is located in the popular Gulou area of Beijing surrounded by trendy clothing stores, guitar shops and bars. The restaurant has a most interesting interior architecture. The dinning floor is set on four levels; four tables on each level.

We ordered three dishes and it was more than enough food for two people. Ham and Chicken soup, Pork Spare Ribs and Mint Chicken Wings. Everything was very good, and definitely had a distinguishable flavor different than typical Chinese food.

I was most impressed with the Mint Chicken wings. They were marinated in a spicy sweet sauce and stir fried, fresh mint added last to keep the flavor. The mint gave the spicy chicken a cool almost basil flavor reminding me of some Indian dishes. The pork was breaded with a flour and pepper crust and then fried in little pieces. It was wonderfully spicy, crisp and a perfect balance to the sweeter cool taste of the chicken wings. This restaurant is most famous for their soup, particularly their sour fish soup. But we ordered ham, I thought is was refreshing and the broth was very good, but it wasn’t really all that unusual or special.

For taste I give Xiao a 10, it was an adventure in taste well worth the visit. In fact it may be my favorite restaurant experience so far in Beijing. Everything was hot and so good!

For atmosphere I give it a 7. Xiao has that little family owned restaurant feeling. The tiered dinning levels were definitely a home job and it’s a little weird that the kitchen is located below the floor but every thing was very clean. One major down side though is that there is not a bathroom on location, you have to walk a block to get to the nearest public toilet, not really a problem for locals but a little inconvenient for foreigners.

For price Xiao gets a $ and ½$ for two people; about $30 American dollars in total.

Overall I give Xiao a 9. I loved the flavor and variety that this restaurant has to offer. It was a treat to try something different. But I did not like having to run around the corner to go to the bathroom and the facility was terrible, which has no reflection on the restaurant other than the fact that they didn’t have one, but I would walk the extra block to go to the public bathroom with the doors on the stalls.

Grandma's Kitchen 9($$)

Grandma’s Kitchen

This little restaurant is exactly what you would think; home style American food served piping hot in large American portions without loosing that “made just for you“ taste. Getting to this little gem was a little hard, it was a little further off the beaten path than we thought it would be, and we had an unexpected walk ahead of us getting there. But it was ultimately worth it. The location that we went to had a little living room set up in one corner with comfy couches and arm chairs in front of a fireless mantle and an indoor patio bistro set up in the other corner. The larger dinning room was just beyond the warp around coffee house counter. I would have to say that over all feeling was cute, with the wainscoting and molding you would find in a country kitchen, complete with cherry curtains.

On this occasion Kris and I just wanted that little bit of home. I ordered the spaghetti with meat sauce and garlic bread, and Kris ordered a Philly cheese steak sandwich. My spaghetti was wonderful, it was not the best I have ever had, but it was just what I wanted. The meat sauce was thick with ground pork barely and just enough tomato to keep the traditional color.

Kris’ sandwich, looked amazing, and considering how quickly it disappeared I have to assume that it tasted amazing. Kris remarked that it was the best Philly cheese steak sandwich he has ever had.

For taste I give Grandma’s Kitchen a 9 everything tasted good, was made from scratch and completed to perfection. They had a very extensive menu, including steaks and meatloaf; there were at least five different spaghetti dishes alone. Grandma’s only looses a point because I like to be impressed to give out perfect scores; Grandma’s met all my expectations.

For service I have to rate them, again, at a 9, it met my expectations.

For atmosphere I have to call it a family joint, this should seem obvious. It was very clean, and much larger and open than most little family run restaurants are in China. It would be an ok place to take a date but really only if you knew each other pretty well and were there for the food.

For Price, typical of Beijing, a meal here for two people was about 1 ½ $

Over all I give Grandma’s Kitchen a 9 out of 10. Again Grandma’s met all my expectations, but it did not really surprise me other than the fact I am usually disappointed. I definitely recommend going. They are supposed to have really good home made cheese cake.

Durty Nellie's Beijing Irish Pub 9($$)

Durty Nellie’s Beijing Irish Pub

This place is a lot bigger than you think it will be from the out side. On this night it was raining, and a walk down by the river to get here was not ideal. But I can see where this little pub can be a lot of fun on a summer night. This pub has a decently sized bar, two foose ball tables, a pool table and a dart board, there is a room in the back that can be separated for parties or rowdy game nights and the porch our front has some plastic picnic tables. There is not much a view since is just looks out into parking lot next to the freeway but the river side is nice.

In addition to being a great place to get a drink though, they also have a very good kitchen. Kris and I each ordered a Burger and we shared an appetizer of fried mozzarella sticks and Thai chilly dipping sauce. The cheese was ok, but really it needed to be fried longer so it would be hotter and the cheese would be meltier but it was good. The Burger, was amazing. Large hand formed patty, a fried egg on top, lettuce, tomato, mayonnaise all on a sesame seed bun and large salty steak fries. The best burger I have had in a while.

For taste I give Durty Nellie’s a 9 out of 10. That Burger was soo… good. Fresh vine ripened tomato thickly sliced, hand packed juicy beef patty, a sunny side egg on top. The French fries were salty, crisp, and piping hot.

For atmosphere I rate the Irish Pub at a 9. There was pool, and darts, a big screen TV plenty of seating chairs, a nice patio by the river and the good old neighborhood pub feeling.

Each burger cost 65 Yuan so for two people eating, and drinking it’s a little less than $$ for two people.

Overall I give Durty Nellie’s Beijing Irish Pub a 9. It was a fun place with great food and good beer.