It's no tall tale: Wangjing is home to one of the capital's best wine and cocktail bars, and another notch for the northeastern neighborhood that has certainly been flourishing as of late (spurned on by a slew of recent openings that you can read about here). Yet the bar in question, WineTail, actually opened back in 2016, before Wangjing became a 'thing' and was still better known as Koreatown.

From the moment you arrive, you'll be charmed by the bar’s scuffed woodgrain and industrial-chic decor, along with the low chairs on the cozy terrace. The interior may be narrow but makes up for it with a towering selection of bottles composed of ten – that's right, ten – shelves that shoot up to the heavens behind the bar, making for an impressive sight both from the ground floor as well as the nookish mezzanine above.

During our visit we weren't actually able to figure out how the WineTail team reaches the highest bottles (there was nary a ladder in sight), nor how many of them are merely decorative, but no matter, it's a beguiling centerpiece and one that is reflected by an equally hefty menu.

Be sure to peruse the wine list – from the affordable RMB 350 Woodbridge Cabernet Sauvignon and RMB 410 Columbia Crest Grand Estates Merlot to the pricier RMB 780 Cloudy Bay Pinot Noir – but don't pass up the tempting cocktails options. Their eponymous RMB 75 sangria is a good place to start given that it straddles both, and is elevated here by WineTail's inclusion of a splash of rum and Cointreau for a stronger and fruitier mix. Sipping one of these on the bar's terrace may just become the ultimate way to while away your time this summer should you be lucky enough to live close by.

Their enticingly bright green Season Flower (RMB 80) is also light and fun thanks to a mix of lavender gin, blueberry syrup, Martini Blanco, and lemon and lime juice. For something heftier, order a bitterly woozy Live and Life (RMB 90) made with whiskey, Patron, Martini Rose, Frangelico herb-flavored liqueur, and Fernet Amaro.    

The eclectic cocktail list, well-stocked wine shelves, and comfortable terrace all make WineTail a winner not only by Wangjing standards but in comparison to any of Beijing's more central crowdpleasers.

WineTail
Daily 6pm-2am. 8-7, Bldg 8, 1/F, Helin Qilin, Yutong West Street, Chaoyang District (135 0110 3581)
朝阳区阜通西大街合生麒麟社8号楼1F8-7

READ: DaliDali: Andingmen's Cocktail Newbie With Crucial Dianping Hacks

More stories by this author here.
Email: kylemullin@truerun.com
Twitter: @MulKyle
Instagram: mullin.kyle

Photos courtesy of WineTail

Weary of oh-so-impersonal Taobao and soulless shopping malls? Then get ready to open your wallet wide for the creative vendors slinging distinctive wares at these local markets and bazaars.

Upcoming markets

May 25: Hefeng Japanese Crafts Market
This Japanese themed market brings together vendors selling crafts and antiques they hunted down as tourists in Japan's vibrant arts and craft scene. Various Japanophiles will also give talks and share travel tips that will enrich your next visit to the Land of the Rising Sun (Tokyo's famous Asakusa district is pictured at top). Listen while enjoying beers, food, and other treats from Japan. RMB 58 (book your ticket here). 10am-8pm. Yang Jing Lane

May 24-26: Langyuan International Food Festival
Imagine nibbling on delicacies from over 30 countries in one place. That’s exactly what this three-day food festival has in store. Langyuan Station will turn into a foodie paradise thanks to vendors hawking French foie gras, Italian Parma ham, and Grana Padano cheese, and Japanese caviar and eel sushi, just to name a few. There will also be dancers, live music, and film screenings to keep you entertained. Free (RSVP in advance and take your ID or passport for check-in). 2-11pm. Langyuan Vintage

May 31-Jun 2: Vintage Clothes Hunting Party
There's no better way to upgrade your look than donning a few vintage threads. This market and party organized by a hidden vintage clothes store near Nanluogu Xiang will help you do just that. The shop offers a great number of vintage clothes of various styles, mostly from the 1980s. There will also be plenty of bargains, alongside an eye-catching rooftop view, free beer, music, film screenings, and what's sure to be a lively afterparty. Various times, contact the organizer to inquire (WeChat ID: misswild1 or call 186 0112 6023). Free (bring your own bag). Midday-10pm. Huangwu & Jingqi Vintage Club

Jun 1: Go Back to Crafts Market
Organized by Jop Pottery, this market brings together craftspeople from around the city to sell their works. Those wares include anything from leather items, ceramic tea sets, fabrics, organic soaps, and skin care products to jewelry, handmade clothes, tie-dye bags, earrings, hats, fragrant candles, lacquerware, and more. Free. 10am-4pm. Aiyuedu Library

Ongoing Markets

Every Saturday: Chuzou Creative Market
Located in the artists’ community of Songzhuang, Chuzou Coffee acts as a meeting point for many of the young artists who own workshops or live nearby. That means this market is a great place to buy an array of local products such as pottery, leather wares, wooden sculptures, paintings, as well as artisanal food. We're particularly fond of the great selection of secondhand items to be found here, available for bargain prices. Free. 11am-6pm. Chuzou Coffee Shop

Every Tuesday, Saturday, and Sunday: Beijing Farmers' Market
Since its first iteration in 2018, Beijing Farmers' Market has remained one of the most popular pop-up food markets in the city. Here you'll find organically grown food, artisanal cheeses, meats, vegan products, baked goods, herbs, skin care products, textiles, and more. In keeping with the farmers' market spirit, please bring your own shopping bags to minimize waste. Free. 10am-2pm. Various locations (click here for Beijing Farmers' Market April schedule)

Every Saturday and Sunday: Farm to Neighbors (F2N)
Advocating a zero-waste lifestyle, Farm to Neighbors (F2N) market offers fresh local vegetables and fruits, Beijing-made cheeses, bread, cookies, and numerous other delicious goodies. Like other conscientious events on this list, please bring your own shopping bags along. Free. Midday-6pm. B1, Grand Summit

Want to party after your day of shopping? Browse the best of Beijing's nightlife events here.

Photos: Unsplash, courtesy of event organizers

After five years of perking Beijingers up with his Barista Coffee cafe on Wudaoying Hutong, Alex Liu has decided to turn his focus to a mellower, later hour crowd.

Having expanded his Barista Coffee brand to two other locations in Sanlitun and Yizhuang, he now has wiggle room at his original stomping grounds, and has recruited Oasis Feng (of top-notch Beijing bar Janes and Hooch fame) to serve vermouths, aperitifs and (what else?) coffee flavored cocktails at the now revamped bar that he has renamed Barista&GoodWood.

Oasis – a broad-shouldered and gruff-voiced dongbei-hailing bartender with impeccable English – elevates the seemingly straightforward drinks with subtle flourishes and well-balanced mixing.  

Take, for instance, their RMB 80 Vermouth Cooler. Its Hayman Slow Gin and Dolan sweet vermouth are balanced by orange bitters and, more creatively, a slightly spicy and bitter nutmeg garnish. The cocktail is whipped to foamy perfection and served in an elegant, goblet-like glass.

If you're partial to drier drinks you should instead try the Grape&Grapefruit (also RMB 80). Absinthe gives the cocktail serious heft, while its grapefruit dry vermouth, Amaro Montenegro, and Regen's orange bitter provide a sour nose, palate-coating mouthfeel, and citrusy aftertaste.

Considering Liu's smash success in the cafe arena, you should also ask for an off-menu cold drip negroni. If they have the ingredients on hand, you'll enjoy the deeply rich flavor of this coffee -laced cocktail, not to mention its faintly chocolatey aftertaste.

The decor evokes a hip New York loft thanks to the low ceilings, wall length padded bench, and squat wooden tables and chairs. Lattice divides some of the bar's shelves, and with the wicker light fixtures, add to the bar's crafty and low key ambiance.

Considering the lack of cocktail bars in the Wudaoying area these days, and the lane's surplus of snooty cafés, Liu made the right move by shaking this spot up. It's also laudable to see one of Beijing's most successful cafe owners forgo bland corporate franchising and instead step out of his comfort zone. All that and more will lure us back to this charming cocktail joint to raise a glass again soon.

Read our review of Liu's Barista Speciality Cafe in Sanlitun here.

Barista&GoodWood
Daily 6pm-2am. 28 Wudaoying Hutong, Dongcheng District (150 1080 9311)
东城区五道营胡同28号

More stories by this author here.
Email: kylemullin@truerun.com
Twitter: @MulKyle
Instagram: mullin.kyle

Photos: Uni You

Worried about going out of your mind with boredom this summer? Well, here's your chance to get involved in an exciting, and career-boosting internship opportunity. Here at the Beijinger, we are always on the lookout for talent. If you want to get involved in media and publishing, then interning at thebeijinger.com will give you all that and more.

As an editorial intern, you will participate in the planning, research, and writing of articles, blog posts and all the other things that go into the Beijinger website. Better yet, if you have a particular niche or obsession – be it food, entrepreneurship, nightlife, shopping, or sports – we will arrange it so that you can write as much as possible about these topics.

As everyone knows, getting published is the main route towards a career in journalism, and this could be your first stepping stone. Many of our interns either end up working for us full time or getting swooped up by another media outlet that has seen their work published here.

You are:

• Living in Beijing and excited to be here
• Experienced in writing but eager to get more practice
• Versatile and quick to learn
• Responsible and hardworking
• A great writer (and if you possess conversational Chinese and literacy, that's a definite plus)

What you'll get out of it:

• Work experience for your CV and bylines for your portfolio
• Professional coaching in writing and editing
• Daily practice in pitching, writing and researching stories
• A network of contacts in Beijing, especially in your field of interest
• Hands-on knowledge of the behind-the-scenes work of a dynamic website
• References and a letter of recommendation

What you will do:

• Pitch and write your own articles for thebeijinger.com
• Assist in preparing and editing editorial content from partners and freelancers
• Moderate and edit directory items, classifieds and events
• Attend press conferences and events

What you won't do:

• Make coffee
• Filing
• Take dictation
• Anything that you are ethically/morally opposed to
• Anything that you are banned from doing by a doctor
• Get rich*

Interested?

Send your CV, a cover letter explaining why you'd make a great intern, and any writing samples that you have to editor@thebeijinger.com.

*But there is a stipend for interns who work at least 20 hours a week. Huzzah!

Want to get a feel for the kind of things we write about? Start with our blog, right here.

Photo: Pinterest, Giphy

Meat, certain vegetables, roasted coffee, certain pasta, and alcohol (including beer, wine, and gin) are but a few of the American food products set to be affected by the country's trade war with China. In fact, a 25 percent tariff will be imposed on nearly 2,500 US products as part of China's recent retaliatory measures in the ever-escalating geopolitical spat. So the concerned foodie among us will naturally ask: Is the trade war coming to my favorite Beijing bar or restaurant? How will this impact my wallet? Or, more importantly, how will this impact my stomach?

An investigation of sanctioned products and conversations with local business owners reveals that the impacts will likely be limited, but are as of yet, uncertain. For businesses that do not rely on already highly taxed American products, broader economic downturns or shifting health and safety standards pose a more immediate threat to food and beverage industry operations. For instance, Marcus Medina, Q Mex Bar & Grill and Q Mex Taqueria executive chef and co-founder, says: “I can honestly say we have not felt any impact whatsoever ... In fact, this has been our best year ever. If there's a slowdown it will be the higher tier establishments that will feel it first.”

Medina is equally sanguine about regulatory changes, saying that adherence to high standards and good relationships with respective officials keep consumers happy and practices compliant. From his perspective, the regulatory climate for small business has grown stricter but also more stable, mandating more resources for bureaucratic processes but also providing more transparency. 

However, Kenn Bermel from The Local had a less cut-and-dry take: “It depends on which regulations. If we're talking taxes or other economy-related issues, it takes a while before we really notice anything. If it's something like fire safety, then the effect is immediate.”

However, some proprietors are nonetheless concerned by the implications that tariffs pose for consumer spending habits. Jeff Powell, R&D center manager for Tube Station and local F&B restaurant developer says: “The trade war has not affected us, yet. But it certainly is about to. Major tariffs on beef, pork, and dairy are about to go into effect which will have a major impact on F&B as a whole. At Tube Station, we use quite a bit of American mozzarella and parmesan and I can’t see how any U.S. company could bear the whole price increase without passing some along to the end user."

"We go through a massive volume of mozzarella each month and even a USD 1-2 per kilogram price hike will affect our bottom line a great deal,” Powell adds. He goes on to say that businesses with this degree of reliance on American products will need to find alternative sources for US products, creating challenges for product consistency, menu creation, and consumer price stability.

Accessing up-to-date and accurate information is another challenge for bars and restaurants navigating changing trade war standards. While restaurant owners can stay informed via publicly accessible information such as that of the US Drug Administration and the news, it appears that cultivating good connections with Chinese counterparts who are in the know is the most efficient and effective method to mitigate risk.

In terms of alcohol consumption, the impact on tax rates will be drastic. Speaking to the Beijinger, lifestyle blogger and wine expert Jim Boyce stated that, should tariffs go into effect on Jun 1, the biggest impact may be on imported alcohol. At present, countries with free trade agreements with China have to pay a 16 percent value-added tax and a 10 percent consumption tax. Countries without Free Trade Agreements pay around 41 percent, but upon implementation of new tariffs, incoming American wines will be hit with a massive 90 percent tariffs and taxes. In order to offset this price hike, companies will either have to accept a profit decrease or pass that cost along to distributors or consumers.

These hikes would more drastically impact less expensive, mass-produced wines, as they face more competition and price sensitivity. For high-end brands, it is less likely that even a drastic price increase will result in a decrease in demand, as these customers are already willing to pay a premium for the cost of a luxury brand.

Despite the potentially drastic rate increase on American wines, the overall impact is likely to be limited given how little wine reaches the Chinese market. Mr. Boyce estimates that only one in every 250 bottles produced in an American vineyard will be sold in China. Given this reality, any increases in price are much more likely to negatively impact Beijing-based consumers, not American vineyards.

READ: Beijing Craft Brewers Win Big at Australian International Beer Awards

Photo: Forbes India, courtesy of Q Mex 

This post is part of an ongoing series by the Spittoon Collective that aims to share some of the voices that make up Beijing’s 21.7 million humans. They ask: Who are these people we pass on the street every day? Who lives behind those endless walls of apartment windows? These interviews take a small, but meaningful look.

***

Yu Jinying, thirty-something, from Guangdong

I was born and grew up on a small island in Guangdong. I’m probably the only dancer from there.

I’m the middle kid of three children in my family. I often ran away from school, and my parents were too busy working to pay me much attention. Before the age of eighteen, I didn’t know a thing about dancing. I certainly never dreamt of becoming a professional dancer.

At one point I watched some of Michael Jackson’s videos and imitated his moves. My elder brother saw some talent in me, so he decided to send me to learn dancing.

He brought me to a technical secondary school that offers dancing courses in the nearest city. The dancing teacher showed me to the dance studio, where a group of people were practicing and wearing tights. I was a shy kid, I guess it has something to do with living on a small island – I’d never been to the city before. I lowered my head, and was even too shy to really look at them.

The age of eighteen is a relatively late beginning for a professional dancer. All my classmates had been learning since they were young. The first several months were very tough for me. The stretching brought a lot of pain to my body. But after a few months, I began to really enjoy dancing, and became less shy. I would happily show off some of my dancing in front of people when I went back to the island from school.

I stayed at the school practicing basic skills for a year before transferring to a training college in Beijing that didn’t require high gaokao scores.

It was in Beijing that I got to know modern dancing. I immediately fell in love with it, and soon did nothing but sleep, eat, and practice. I kept training so hard for two years that I made rapid progress. I applied for a modern dancing troupe, and to my delight and surprise, I got recruited.

This was one of the leading modern dance troupes in China. Many thought I was very lucky to get recruited after such a short time with dance. Good luck certainly plays its role, but I think God treats us fairly. I know better than anyone else how much time and hard work I spent to get where I am today. I spent two full years trying to catch up with those long-time dancers, and I closed the gap.

Though it was a leading dance troupe and we got to tour in and outside of China, we didn’t make a fortune. We were paid RMB 3000 monthly, a salary that could barely support us in Beijing. We were often strapped for cash. Things in 2015 and 2016 were especially grim.

My parents supported me more after they saw my enthusiasm for dancing. I visit my home island once a year. I never complained to them no matter what I’ve been through. They have no idea the hardship I’ve had here.

In early 2018, I founded my own troupe. It’s a small group, only four of us. We can’t afford a proper place, so in the beginning we literally danced wherever there was some space, be it in a neighborhood, on the street, or under overpasses. People living nearby watched us curiously and asked what type of kungfu we were practicing.

Later a friend kindly lent us his workshop to practice. His workshop is located outside of the sixth ring so it isn’t covered by public heating. We persisted practicing over ten hours per day despite Beijing’s minus-ten-degree temperatures. Even when all four of us came down with colds, we got IV drips in the daytime, and at night we put on fever strips and kept practicing.

Why be so hard on ourselves? Because we know what we are doing and what we want. I pretty much own nothing right now – all my expenses go to support the troupe. I even borrow the money to buy my daily three meals from friends. But it’s when I own nothing that I know for sure what I want in my life. And it’s also because I own nothing that I dare to risk everything.

Our troupe had our debut performance this April. Nobody knows how much work it meant for us to put on the show. But I don’t see it as a hardship. Dancing is the most important thing in my life. To me, it’s also something sacred. The second I take off my shoes and step on the dancing mat, I’m not me anymore. I’m something else.

Everyone is spending, no, consuming their life in their own way. But not everyone is lucky enough to be happy with the way they consume it. I’m lucky to have found dancing in my life. My love for dancing will never be exhausted. The end can only come after death. After I’m gone, then it can end.

You never know what’s out there for you. I can’t imagine my life if I never started learning to dance. I probably would've remained on my small island, having a life as plain as the water there.

Beijing Lights #7: Mountains, Rivers, Flowers, and Trees Are My Teachers

The cover picture shows Ying and his troupe in their debut. Follow them on WeChat (ID: Ying-Dance-Theatre) to learn about their future performances.

This article is provided by our content partners Spittoon Collective. You can read more content just like this from Beijing's creative literary minds via their website here. You can also find the article above in its original Chinese form here.

More stories by this author here.
Email: kuang@thebeijinger.com

Instagram：beijinglights_

Photo: 吴一苇

The fun, the strange, and the what-on-earth-is-this: a wrap-up of top stories in Beijing as told by the trending hashtags, local press, and general power of the internet.
 

A TF Boy is caught smoking in public, causes outrage

Stardom can be a heavy burden indeed. Wang "Roy" Yuan (王源), member of Chinese teen pop band TF Boys was recently spotted smoking in a Beijing sushi restaurant. While the 19-year-old star is far from the only person in Beijing breaking the law by lighting up indoors, as a celebrity, he is held to a different standard. That means his actions have truly fired up his massive fan base on Weibo, where the hashtag #王源抽烟# (Wang Yuan smokes) has already gathered more than 2 billion views.

Roy Wang has since apologized for breaking the law and has been fined for smoking indoors. In his apology on Weibo, the singer said that as a public figure, he should pay more attention to his words and actions.

As always, reactions online were overblown. "It's not that I don't like smoking, I don't like him saying that he wants to do better at singing but then smoking at the same time," said one miffed netizen. Other commenters contented themselves by wishing he would find another, healthier way to release stress and take better care for his body. 
 

Beijing records highest temperatures in 50 years

Beijing is always hot in summer, but the worst of the hot days are always the first ones, when our gentle winter bodies are still unprepared. On May 22, Beijing recorded scorching 40 degrees Celsius heat, sending urbanites to look for shelter and cold water. June temperatures from last year broke a 50-year-old heat record, and it looks like this summer will only be hotter... so get your fans ready. 

Cold comfort perhaps (har har), but at least we Beijingers are not alone in our suffering. Tianjin, Hebei, and Jinan have all been marinating in their own sweat recently, with temperatures hovering around 38 degrees Celsius. Netizens are cheekily naming the heatwave the "chicken throat inflammation," referring to the shape of mainland China and the areas most affected by the heatwave. 

Netizens have also been sharing pictures of their overheating iPhones placed in freezers and fridges in order to cool them down. Go and join the fun with more than 640 million other subscribers at #热热热热# (hot hot hot hot).
 

Mao Buyi slims down, worries fans

Mao Buyi (毛不易) first stole audiences hearts back in 2017, when he won the Chinese talent show The Coming One. The nursing student and aspiring singer-songwriter's awkward stage presence, plump face, and ordinary financial background helped him charm fans, and secure his position as an idol for all the underdogs out there with his debut song "If I Become Very Rich One Day" (如果有一天我变得很有钱).

Yet when fans saw photos of a much slimmer Mao Buyi on May 23, instead of thinking that he may have made some positive lifestyle and diet changes, they immediately concluded that he was sick. The hashtag #瘦下来的毛不易# (Sick Mao Buyi) now has over 140 million followers, including this future Munchausen syndrome by proxy nutter who exclaimed: "When he was fat and cute, he was beautiful, now when he is ill, he is even more beautiful." 

READ: Throwback Thursday: Navigating the Maze of Chinese TV Censorship

Images: Weibo

Welcome to Wudaokou Watch, where we profile a different Beijing-based student from abroad each week to hear about their life in China's capital. You can read the whole series here.

My name is Regis-Renaud Dusabe, and I’m from Burundi, an East African country known as "the Heart of Africa" because of its shape and geographic location. 

I came to Beijing to study in October 2018. I'm doing my master's in Computer Science and Technology at North China Electric Power University.

Compared to my home country, Beijing is a big city, with tall buildings, a subway and other innovative technologies that I really wish we had in my country or other African countries. On the other hand, Burundi is a beautiful country with a stable climate (there is no winter season), clean atmosphere (no pollution compares to Beijing), and of course, Burundian people are very beautiful!

Since I arrived in China, the biggest challenge for me has been learning the Chinese language but I’m working hard, especially at reading, listening, and oral expression. I hope to finish my first year of study here with good skills and a basic knowledge in Chinese which will help me in my future professional career.

I'll never forget the first day I attended my Chinese class and the teacher asked me to introduce myself in Chinese.

In my downtime, I love playing football, basketball, or ping pong with friends in order to free my mind. Sometimes on the weekend, I hang out with my country mates we chill together and have fun. Apart from the Forbidden City and some parks that I've already visited, Beijing has many nice tourist sites that I still need to explore in this coming summer.

When I’m feeling homesick, I try to find something to do. I take part in different activities such as the Chinese Culture Festival, Beijing School of AI which provides knowledge and skills in machine learning and related domain through a free workshop at UIBE.

Beijing is full of open-minded and creative people. It’s a great place to meet many different personalities, to share ideas and experiences in order to make a change in the development of the country and to build a good future especially in the area of Information and Technology.

Chinese people are hard working. It is motivating to see how they are doing great things in terms of technology. Living here has impacted my lifestyle, and my mind has been opened to an international perspective.

What inspires me the most is to help my family first, and to help the community by serving my country. To achieve that, we need a lot of energy and courage to overcome the challenges of daily life. I still have a lot of things to learn and want to continue to explore different job opportunities here in China.
 

READ: "I Can Now Confidently and Fluently Speak Chinese"

Are you a student in Beijing? Let us profile you and your unique experiences here. Drop us a line at editor@thebeijinger.com and we’ll get back to you to schedule an interview.

Images courtesy of Regis-Renaud Dusabe

As the mercury rises and layers start to come off it’s only natural that our minds wander to thoughts of exercise (whether our bodies follow is another matter entirely). If you do happen to find yourself near some lifting equipment in the coming months, one way to ease the pain is to drop some well-timed gym expressions. Even if you don’t look like you should be there, at least you can sound fit!

From ample praise to unabashed insults, this guide to gym-themed slang should help you wow your workout partners and distract yourself from the second-day-soreness.

Without further ado: 加油, fitness freaks!

马甲线 mǎjiǎxiàn

Meaning: A woman’s toned abdomen.
Literal translation: Corset line. 马甲 mǎjiǎ means corset, the idea being that a lady’s abs are nature’s alternative to this otherwise restrictive attire.

Don't say: "Screw getting a six-pack, I'll just buy a whalebone corset instead."
Do say:"I'm going to make this gym look like a modern-day renaissance fair."

人鱼线 rényúxiàn

Literal translation: Mermaid line.
Meaning: A man's toned abdomen i.e. a V-cut. 人鱼 rényú is Chinese for mermaid/merman. Just as a fish tapers towards its tail, the guy tapers towards his, well, you know.

Don't say: "What's that smell?"
Do say:"Give me a few more months and I'll look as fly as Derek Zoolander."

蜜桃臀 mìtáotún

Literal translation: Peach butt.
Meaning: A firm and curvaceous derriere, usually said of the ladies doing endless squats in the corner.

Don't say: "Mind the stone."
Do say:"Who needs to eat fruit when you've got an arse like this?"

小蛮腰 xiǎományāo

Literal translation: Little barbarian waist.
Meaning: A slim waist, of a woman.

Don't say: “Are you related to Attila the Hun?”
Do say: "Ogle me again and I'll rip your f**king head off."

水蛇腰 shuǐshéyāo

Literal translation: Water snake waist.
Meaning: Skinny waist, like that of a water snake, again of a woman.

Don't say: "She's may have the waist of a snake but her skin needs some work."
Do say:"I may not be poisonous but I do bite."

水桶腰 shuǐtǒng yāo

Literal translation: Water bucket waist.
Meaning: Pudgy belly (again, surprise surprise, usually referring to that of a woman).

Don't say: "Let's take a break around the water cooler."
Do say:"This belly bucket will be gone by the morning – it's all water weight anyway."

萝卜腿 luóbotuǐ

Literal translation: Turnip legs.
Meaning: Fat calves (usually derogatory and of a woman).

Don't say: “Hey girl, you gotta get back in the gym. Those legs went from carrot sticks to total turnips!”
Do say:"Is it just me or did someone just turnip the heat?"

八块腹肌 bā kuài fù jī

Literal translation: Eight-piece abdominal muscle.
Meaning: Eight pack.

Don't say: “I'm going back West where at least people are content with a six pack.”
Do say:"I'm going to have all the luck in the world with my lucky eight pack!"

蝴蝶骨 húdié gǔ

Literal translation: Butterfly bone.
Meaning: A woman with prominent shoulder blades, mimicking a butterfly's wings.

Don't say: "Damn girl, you fly!"
Do say:"Hey world, have you ever thought about not objectifying women? That could really take off!"
 

Other useful vocabulary

Equipment

杠铃 gànglíng - barbell
杠片 gāng piàn - plate
哑铃 yǎlíng - dumbbell
跑步机 pǎobù jī - treadmill

Exercises

深蹲 shēn dūn - squat
硬举 yìng jǔ - deadlift
卧推 (仰卧推举) wò tuī (yǎngwò tuījǔ) - bench press
挺举 tǐngjǔ - overhead press
引体向上 yǐn tǐ xiàngshàng - pull-up
划船 huáchuán - row
二头弯举 èr tóu wān jǔ - bicep curl

Phrases

可以帮我看一下吗？Kěyǐ bāng wǒ kàn yīxià ma? Could you spot me?
你还在用这个／那个吗？Nǐ hái zài yòng zhège/nàgè ma? Are you using this/that?
你还有几组？Nǐ hái yǒu jǐ zǔ? How many sets do you have left?
我快要结束了。Wǒ kuàiyào jiéshùle. I'm almost finished.
我可以加入吗？／我们可以一起用吗？Wǒ kěyǐ jiārù ma?/Wǒmen kěyǐ yīqǐ yòng ma? Can I work in? Can we use this together?
你要加入吗？Nǐ yào jiārù ma? Do you want to work in?

READ: 3 Fun and Unconventional Exercise Classes to Try in Beijing

Image: mensxp.com

With temperatures recently soaring above 30 degrees, it’s clear that summer has very much arrived. With that in mind, where would you rather see yourself this summer? Stuck in your air-conditioned living room or swimming in a natural spring? If the latter sounds more like up your alley, then Jinan could be your perfect destination. Jinan, often called the City of Springs, takes just 1.5 hours from Beijing by train making it the perfect place for a weekend break or a couple of days away.

A City of Springs

Jinan, the capital city of Shandong Province, is renowned for its numerous springs. In total, Jinan has a whopping 733 natural springs within its city limits, so it will come as no surprise that spring water plays a very big role in daily life in Jinan, be it recreational in the form of bathing, tea made from the natural spring water, or even the famous winter swimming festival.

Top Attractions

Baotu Spring 

What better place to get an understanding of the City of Springs than at its most popular spring? Baotu Spring was praised by the Kangxi Emperor as the "best spring under heaven" during the Qing Dynasty. The spring's water gushes out in three prongs and has also been diverted in modern times to be used by Jinan's residents who believe that the sweetness of the water makes it perfect for brewing tea. The park is also home to a number of temples and pavilions, making it a pleasant destination for a leisurely stroll. In the late afternoon, you'll often see the locals hanging out here with their feet in the water.

Another famous spring is the Five Dragon Pool, just outside the old city of Jinan, which is also located within a tranquil park. Alternatively, head to the free Black Tiger Springs, named after the roaring sound the water makes as it splashes into the city moat from its three stone carved tiger heads.

Daming Lake

Once you've got your fill of the springs, head to Daming Lake, best known for its beautiful willows, blossoming lotus', and for being the city's biggest park. You can rent a boat if you feel like paddling around between the lotus flowers or relax at the park's Taoist temple or local official's memorial. 

Qianfo Shan

For bird’s eye views of the city, head over to Thousand Buddha Mountain (Qianfo Shan). Hike to the top in about 30 minutes or if you don't want to climb, there's also a bus to the top as well as a ski lift.

The mountain's name comes from the thousands of stone sculptures engraved into its slopes, dating from 581 to 600 AD. It is home to important Buddhist festivals throughout the year. The eastern side of the mountain is also notable for being under provincial protection as it is home to the Shandong Revolutionary Martyrs Cemetery.

If you've got more time to kill, visit Lingyan Temple, which was founded over 1,600 years ago and is great for a relaxing day of exploring. This scenic spot is made up of bridges, pavilions, halls, ponds, terraces, Buddhas, stone tables, and even caves.

What and Where to Eat

Shandong cuisine, also known as Lu cuisine, is one of the eight big cuisines of China. Jinan is one of the centers of Shandong cuisine, known for its rich ingredients, complex presentation, and strong flavors, as well as its special emphasis on soup and fish.

While you're in Jinan, try sweet and sour carp, known in Chinese as tangcu dahuangyu, a dish of deep-fried fish with sugar and vinegar. 

When to Go

Jinan is great to visit any time between April and November, but if you can, get there sometime in August or September so as to catch the Festival of Springs, which includes many organized activities celebrating Jinan's plethora of springs and their importance to the people's daily lives.

Further Afield

If you've got more time, then there are plenty of other destinations to visit in Shandong: Qufu, the birthplace of Confucius is just 1.5 hours away from Jinan by train, you can explore the home of The Art of War in Binzhou 2.5 hours away, get to Mount Tai in just 17 minutes or travel 2.5 hours to Qingdao to find sea and the sunshine.

For more information and a few surprises, please follow the Visit Jinan 济南 WeChat account by scanning the QR code below.

This post is provided by Visit Jinan 济南
Photos courtesy of Visit Jinan 济南

*This post has been adapted from a blog originally published on the Beijinger in June 2017

A probable child abduction attempt was thwarted in Chongwenmen last week, thanks to the quick thinking of a woman employed as an ayi by the child's family.

The story was shared with our sister publication beijingkids by the boy's father, a prominent member of Beijing’s international community. He says that he has shared his story in the hope of warning other families about the dangers of child abduction and to prevent any future incidents. Names have been withheld for safety reasons.

“There’s a communal area just outside the shopping mall nearby where we live and all the kids play there in the evening,” the father told us. The man's son was approached by a young man who had was holding a cheap toy, and succeeded in engaged the boy in conversation.

“The ayi saw this and didn’t take that much notice, because my son is quite a sociable guy. Then she noticed there was about half a dozen people moving around and getting closer [to my son]: six young guys, and a middle-aged guy and middle-aged woman."

According to the father, the young man then began to use his phone, possibly to call a car in order to pick up the boy. At this point, the ayi, suspecting that the group of people may be planning to abduct the boy, quickly brought him inside to safety. 

While a tragedy may have been avoided this time, the family are taking measures to try and find the would-be kidnappers. “We’re [currently talking to] the police and the mall security because the area has cameras,” the father said. He suggested parents should be particularly vigilant while their children play in public spaces and to review family safety and 'stranger danger' policies with their ayi. 

The ayi in question has since been rewarded for her vigilance. “Yes, she just had a hongbao!” the child's father reported.

Tragically, child abductions are a common occurrence in China, where victims are kidnapped by a third party gang, and then either raised by the person who hired the abductor, sold to another family, or put to work on the streets by gangs as beggars. 

Child kidnapping may be seen as an extreme response to childlessness in a society where children are seen as a financial safety net in old age. However, this is the first report of an attempt at kidnapping targeted at the international community that beijingkids is aware of since 2011, when there was concern about predatory attacks on teenage girls. We continue to caution against circulating reports of kidnapped children on WeChat when the source cannot be verified.

READ: Eats Shoots, and Leaves: Two Women Busted After Uprooting Entire Beijing Bamboo Forest

This article originally appeared on our sister site beijingkids.

Photo: avontuura.com

When it comes to living the good life, it looks like Beijing still has a long way to go.

A new survey by Deutsche Bank Research, the eighth that the bank has undertaken, has ranked the Chinese capital in 55th place in terms of quality of life on a list of 56 cities from around the world. The only city deemed worse than Beijing in terms of living standards was the Nigerian capital of Lagos. Meanwhile, Manila, Philippines; Dhaka, Bangladesh; Jakarta Indonesia; and Mumbai, India were major cities to slightly outperform Beijing. Zurich, Switzerland topped the list.

Deciding factors used to determine the rankings were purchasing power, safety, healthcare, cost of living, property price to income ratio, commute time, pollution, and climate. Surprisingly enough (at least for those of us who gripe about Beijing's gridlocked streets and increasing priciness) our city scored well on the traffic (38th on the list), and purchasing power (39th). As an indication of how much more you'd need to cough up if to live in Zurich, Beijing's cost of living placed 18th whereas the Swiss capital placed dead last. Beijing's safety (37th) and healthcare (43rd) numbers leave something to be desired.

It should come as no surprise to Beijingers that our city's climate and notorious pollution levels dragged down our ranking. That is all the more discouraging when we consider the recent promising news about Beijing no longer being among the world's top 100 polluted cities.

More alarming still, but unlikely a huge shock to anyone who has moved house recently: Beijing ranks last on the property price to income ratio, behind even famously pricey Hong Kong (which came 55th) and Shanghai (third worst at 54). 

To add insult to injury, our Pearl City rival placed ahead of us on the overall ranking, in 48th place. Capital dwellers can only hope that our recent gains against pollution continue and that officials address housing and property prices so that Beijing's standing improves on such lists going forward.

Yet, perhaps we shouldn't take the report to heart just yet. On page four of the introduction, the report authors state that "most of our price data is collected from Expatistan," and "there may be issues with data quality and consistency over time." Expatistan is an online price-comparison tool, which uses crowd-sourced, unverified data submitted by users, and averaged out over time. While this tool is certainly useful for working out how many packets of salmiakki you can afford during a holiday in Helsinki on your Beijing wages, it may not be quite robust enough to prove the report's claims.

READ: Monthly Rent in Beijing Soars to Skyscraper Heights

Photos: talkmarkets.com, worldradiomap.com

For once, we stop focussing on alcohol and drinking, but instead take a more productive look at what's going on around Beijing this week. Here is our top pick of events that won't leave you hungover...

Monday, May 27

Ethics as Global Sustainability
Political philosopher Sebastiano Maffettone invites one and all to this talk on reframing the concept of sustainability and what it means on the level of governments and individuals in China. The discussion will focus on how “global sustainability” may in fact be the best way "to heal the tension between the world of public ethics and the world of economics and in essence provide the theoretical bases for mediation in the context of a renewed theory of value." Maffettone will be joined by doctor Wang Jianbao, director of the Center for the Humanities and Business Ethics of the Cheung Kong Graduate School of Business. Free (registration required). 7-9.30pm. Wilderness Coffee, Wudaokou
 

Tuesday, May 28

Open Studio
All artists, no matter skill level, will want to dust off their easels (or not; they're provided) this Tuesday for That's Mandarin's weekly open studio event. Head over to "paint, draw, and sketch in a casual and supportive atmosphere." This week's model will maintain one pose for the entire session so that you can practice your best life drawing skills, uninterrupted. RMB 150. 10.30am-12.30pm. That's Mandarin
 

Wednesday, May 29

Storytelling Spoken Word
Wednesday means that it's time to lay your soul bare for the good people of 4corners to see. This week's storytelling event will revolve around "journey abroad" and for your raconteurial efforts, you'll be rewarded a beer for any story that you tell (gift it to someone nearby if you feel a hangover encroaching!). This one should be especially entertaining given that nearly everyone has a China-related horror story they want to get off their chest. Free. 9-11.30pm. 4corners
 

Thursday, May 30

Lars Vogt Piano Recital
Known for his range and versatility, Lars Vogt has been wowing audiences for the past 20 years with his repertoire of the greats, including everyone from Mozart, Beethoven, and Brahms to Grieg, Tchaikovsky, and Rachmaninov. He appears at the National Centre for Performing Arts on Thursday to play a varied program of works. RMB 50-480. 7.30pm. National Centre For The Performing Arts (NCPA)
 

Friday, May 31

Master Every Conversation Using Neuroscience
After another successful week of work in the bag, join career and leadership coach Virginie Mangin to learn how you can use neurolinguistic programming – the concept that connection between neurological processes, language, and behavioral patterns learned through experience can be altered to achieve specific goals –  to enhance your conversational skills, better frame your conversations, and manage your emotions during disputes. RMB 59, RMB 49 (advance). 6.30-9pm. WeWork
 

Saturday, Jun 1

"People's Park" Screening
Langyuan Vintage in Guomao screen the 2012 documentary People's Park this Saturday (a still from which is also featured at top). Produced at Harvard's groundbreaking Sensory Ethnography Lab and filmed entirely in one shot in the Sichuan capital of Chengdu, the film captures daily life for many locals who escape to the park to dance, chat, or simply relax with friends and family. If you've been to a southern Chinese park (where the weather tends to be a little more hospitable than in Beijing), you'll know that these loiterers mean business. RMB 40. 2pm. Langyuan Vintage
 

Sunday, Jun 2

Beijing Highland Games
Whack on your finest tartan this Sunday for the first ever Highland Games, a day packed with the best tug-of-war, log-throwing, and if you're lucky, cheese rolling, you've ever seen. Organized in unison by the bonnie lasses and brawn chaps of the Beijing Scottish Society, Britcham, and AustCham Beijing, there'll be British food and drinks and entertainment fit for all the family, including a best-dressed pet competition for the furrier members among you. RMB 50, RMB 20 (advance). 11.30am-4.30pm. Dongfeng International Sports Park

There are plenty more fun, exciting, and, should you want them, boozy events in our Events section here.

Images: askonasholt.com, Libbie D. Cohn and J.P. Sniadecki, courtesy of the organizers

As parents of children growing up in an international environment, it’s natural for us to wonder how their experiences might shape their future. Very often, our children had no part in the decision to move to Beijing, and we hope that the advantages of learning new languages and gaining a global perspective will outweigh the challenges they face.

It might be reassuring then to learn that some of those former third culture kids return to Beijing as adults. We talked to three of them, about their experiences of growing up in the city, and what brought them back here to work.

Greta Bradford was not only a Beijing kid, but actually featured in the very first issue of beijingkids! Back then she was a teen attending the International School of Beijing (ISB).

“I moved to Beijing from Portland, Oregon, when I was 16,” she told us. “I went to ISB, and met many friends on the first day! Making friends from so many countries definitely changed my worldview. The war in Iraq and Afghanistan were underway and classmates would frequently discuss or debate the US role in global politics from many perspectives. Having friends from different backgrounds has enriched my empathy and world perspective.”

Lincoln Lin (pictured above) was much younger when he first came to Beijing. He was born in the US to a Chinese father and American mother, but as he told us, things could have been different.

This article appeared in the beijingkids May 2019 Identity issue. Continue reading the article here.

Images courtesy of Lincoln Lin, beijingkids

While many Japanese restaurants in Beijing are gently lit and intimate (at best) or claustrophobic and dingy (at worst), Dao Yin takes another tack entirely. Far from trying to hide in the shadows, this Andingmen sushi spot is light, bright, and welcoming with bold and colorful scroll paintings hanging above the long, woodgrain counter.

The second floor is adorned with equally vibrant vintage movie posters from renowned Japanese directors (Kurosawa, Miyazaki, and the like) and features private rooms with authentic chabudai low tables and reed screen doors.

The food is also colorful and inviting. Whether it be the vibrant pink, Faroe Island-imported sashimi (RMB 58) or the plump and juicy yakitori chicken skewers (RMB 39 for half a dozen) served with tangy teriyaki sauce, the Dao Yin team pull each of the dishes off with aplomb and for a decent price.

We also recommend Dao Yin’s RMB 38 fried salmon cutlets, which crackle delightfully with a crispy batter, while the addition of cotyledon leaves from Korea give them an enticingly bitter edge. The tender barbecued Brazilian beef tongue meanwhile is flecked with enough spices to make your tongue tingle.

Dao Yin isn’t trying to corner the top-tier Japanese restaurant market here in the city, but the tasty, well-prepared dishes, quality imported ingredients, and unpretentious atmosphere make it a straightforward option to satisfy your Japanese food cravings in the hutong area.

Keep reading Long Jing Brings High-Quality Japanese Classics to Overlooked Qianmen

Dao Yin
Daily 10am-2am. 308 Andingmen Nei Dajie, Dongcheng District (6406 6881)
东城区安定门内大街308号

More stories by this author here.
Email: kylemullin@truerun.com
Twitter: @MulKyle
Instagram: mullin.kyle

Photos: Uni You

Beijing may be one of the least liveable cities in the world (yeah, right) but at least it's once again back on top as China's best city. That's because on May 24, financial media outlet China Business Network (CBN) released their 2019 rankings of China's 337 cities, putting Beijing in the top spot ahead of long-time rival Shanghai, who placed ahead of the capital for the first time last year. Guangzhou and Shenzhen followed in third and fourth respectively.

This is the fourth unofficial official list from CBN. Despite being a branch of state-owned company Diyicaijing (Yicai for short), CBN's rankings are not explicitly endorsed by the Chinese government. Nevertheless, since 2016 these rankings have formed the basis for the tier system often referenced by media and citizens as a rule-of-thumb index for a city's level of development. Positions are determined via an overall "economic attraction index" with five major indicators:

• Concentration of commercial resources, including e-commerce and the retail industry
• The city as a hub i.e. the ease of transportation, logistics, and the location of commercial resources
• Citizen activity evaluated via the data of food delivery and online shopping
• Diversity of lifestyle as pulled from travel data, personal expenditure, and entertainment activities available
• City development, which emphasizes the city's level of innovation, how attractive it is to outside talent, and the city's consumption potential.

As well as the big four "real" first-tier cities of Beijing, Shanghai, Guangzhou, and Shenzhen, the total list also includes 15 cities classified as "new first-tier" (not new in the sense that they have graced the list for the first time but simply that they're ranked next best behind the big four), 30 second-tier cities, 70 third-tier cities, 90 fourth-tier cities, and 128 fifth-tier cities.

Given that the big four never change, the most interesting results and best indicators of thriving economic development lie further down the list, among the top 15 "new first-tier" list.

This year, the new first-tier list is led by Chengdu and Hangzhou, followed by Chongqing, Wuhan, Xi’an, Suzhou, Tianjin, Nanjing, Changsha, Zhengzhou, Dongguan, Qingdao, Shenyang, Ningbo, and Kunming. With the overwhelming majority of these cities (ten out of 15) located in the south, the results reflect a distinct and growing economic gap between the two halves of the country.

Noteworthy changes compared to last year's list include Kunming's emergence as one of China's logistic hub cities thanks to the One Belt One Road-related investments in rail and airport facilities, replacing Jiangsu's Wuxi, and earning them a spot among the top 15 new first-tier list for the first time. Dongguan, which was once infamous for its thriving sex industry (since thoroughly scrubbed clean) jumps from 14th to the 11th on the list, its seedier underbelly having been replaced with cutting-edge electronics manufacturing.

Predictably, the new rankings have been met with mixed reactions online. On Weibo, some citizens have expressed their doubts regarding the reliability of the data, while others simply think their own cities deserve better ranking. Others still are skeptical of the whole thing, suggesting that it is just a strategy whipped up by speculators to artificially bolster local real estate markets.

Concerns about rising housing prices and living costs in cities with high rankings are common. “Please remove Chongqing from the top list, we don’t care about ranking top on the list, all we want to see is that our life remains affordable and comfortable,” one Weibo user wrote. A netizen in Changsha, Hunan also demonstrated similar concern, posting, “I’m so worried that housing prices in Changsha will become even higher after this stupid ranking thing.”

Although the growth of China’s housing market has been slowing down as of late, the potential of a bubble in the property market still remains a very real and serious threat to the country’s economic development, as some economists have pointed out. It has been suggested that having more "first-tier cities" in China could help reduce discrepancies in urbanization across the country and mitigate the real estate bubble in big cities. So far, whether such a strategy will work has yet to be seen. 

Meanwhile... Beijing Places Second to Last in Deutsche Bank Quality of Life Index

Photos: Pixabay, mrcjcn.com, China.com.cn

EAT: Your bite-sized guide to the best eats to be had in Beijing this week.

Shuck Off Launch Party at C Pearl, May 30

The fourth annual oyster shuck off organized by Oysterlicious Group will kick off with a launch party at C Pearl in Liangmaqiao from 2-5pm on May 30. Expect some serious oyster shucking competitions, including the finals of China's North Regional Oyster Shucking competition. C Pearl will also offer buy-one-get-one-free oysters, half-price Cloudy Bay clams, and award-winning guest bartender Julia Markina will be mixing Gin Mare and Rock Island cocktails to pair.
 

Plant-Based Dinner at Hutong 44 Kitchen, May 30

Vegans of Beijing are teaming up with creative Chinese restaurant Hutong 44 to put on a special event featuring plant-based whole foods. Expect dishes inspired by ancient techniques and recipes, featuring organic and fermented ingredients. The dinner is priced at RMB 150 per person for a shared menu. Scan the QR code on the poster above to pay and register.
 

Vegan Kitchen Takeover at The Orchid Lodge, Jun 8

The Orchid Lodge continues its Pop-Up Chef events with an Indonesian street food-inspired, all-vegan kitchen takeover. On Jun 8 at 6pm, enjoy an eight-course family-style dinner featuring some of the best street food dishes Indonesia has to offer, prepared by independent chef Sarah, an avid experimenter intent on bringing new flavors and ideas to the table. Tickets are priced at RMB 168 per person; book your place by adding ID: itaidoshin on WeChat.
 

Venezuelan Arepas Pop-Up at Side Street, Jun 1

On Jun 1, Side Street host a pop-up with Venezuelan chef Mannu. He'll cook up traditional Venezuelan arepas, a Venezuelan staple made from ground maize formed into a flat, round patty and then stuffed with a variety of fillings. The arepas will be available from 6pm (while stocks last).

READ: Early bird tickets now on sale for the 9th Beijing Burger Festival, Jun 22-23

More stories by this author here.

Instagram: @gongbaobeijing
Twitter: @gongbaobeijing
Weibo: @宫保北京

Images: Vegans of Beijing/Hutong 44, courtesy of event organizers 

Peach with saffron spice, chunks of black and white Kinder chocolate, kiwi jam, and coffee sauce are but a few of the many toppings you’ll find at the newly opened JW Froyo shop (the acronym stands for "Joghurt Werk"). The German frozen yogurt brand has recently opened its first branch in Dongzhimen's Raffles City Mall, following locations in Chengdu and Shanghai, and is an undeniable haven for dessert fans.

The spellbinding 60 topping options (many of which, as mentioned above, are distinctly more unique than the run-of-the-mill fruit chunks and sauces offered at many other frozen yogurt joints around Beijing) can be added for RMB 3 per spoonful. The cups of froyo themselves, meanwhile, are sold for RMB 22 for a small, RMB 35 for a medium, and RMB 55 for a large. 

The reasonable prices and eclectic toppings aren’t the only memorable features to be found here. Adventurous patrons will enjoy the black "light vanilla" flavored frozen yogurt instead of the standard white. The JW Froyo team says this darker option is made by using activated charcoal from a coconut shell (a similar trick is used to darken burger buns and pizza crusts across Beijing). Aside from the eye-catching "color," the black frozen yogurt is also slightly less sweet than the original flavor.

It's also very Instagram-friendly, as is the shop’s quirky, logo and overall funky aesthetic. We were unsurprised then to find several customers curled up on JW Froyo's large step-like platforms (the store forgoes tables in lieu of this unusual option) near the dessert counter, dutifully snapping photos of their handsome pots of frozen yogurt.

Regardless of how they draw customers in, one thing is true: JW Froyo's product is the real deal, making it one of the best new venues to stop by and cool off this summer.

JW Froyo
Daily 10am-9pm. B1, Raffles City, 1 Dongzhimen Nandajie, Dongcheng District
东城区东直门大街1号北京来福士中心B1楼08A号 / 08A

READ: Burger and Craft Beer Joint Beer Boom Gets Off to a Promising Start by Gongti

More stories by this author here.
Email: kylemullin@truerun.com
Twitter: @MulKyle
Instagram: mullin.kyle

Photos courtesy of JW Froyo

This post comes courtesy of UnTour Food Tours, who have been taking guests off the beaten path to eat shoulder-to-shoulder with locals since 2010.

During the eight centuries since Beijing was first established as China’s capital, the city’s history has been interwoven with stories of the rise and fall of emperors, dynasties, movements and great houses. While many of these stories from the imperial age were concluded long ago, a few great houses of commerce, craftsmanship, and cuisine remain alive as reminders of Beijing’s dynastic past. Known as 老字号 lǎozìhao, or time-honored brands, these houses are celebrated as part of Beijing’s living history and purveyors of the best Beijing has to offer.

While the title of time-honored brands can be bestowed on any traditionally celebrated product, service, company or brand, the best known of these time-honored brands are the restaurants that have survived, some for hundreds of years, despite the pressures of Beijing’s rapid modernization. Below, we offer our top five (in no particular order) time-honored restaurants for visitors and expats alike. While we’ve placed quality and flavor as our number one criteria, we’ve also ensured Beijing’s three main cuisines (Shandong, Hui, and Imperial) are represented, and also ensured none on our list of Beijing’s top five time-honored restaurants are too far outside central Beijing. We’ve also excluded laozihao specializing in Peking duck. If you’re looking for duck, check this blog instead.

Tonghe Ju 同和局

Our other top pick for Shandong-style Beijing cuisine is Tonghe Ju, established in 1822. Nestled on the western shore of Shichahai Lake, this restaurant serves some of the best renditions of the kind of dishes you could expect to see served in the homes of Beijing locals. We like the wok-fried shredded pork with sweet and salty fermented sauce and served with thin sheets of tofu for wrapping (京酱肉丝 jīngjiàngròusī); Fried bamboo shoots and meatballs with dipping spices (干炸两样 gānzháliǎngyàng), and Dalian huoshao (褡裢火烧 dālián huǒshāo), long, fried dumplings resembling a combination of dumpling and spring roll.

Tonghe Ju’s lake views and rooftop tables make it a great option for summer dining, however, cold winters and unpredictable local policies mean alfresco dining is never guaranteed. Whether the rooftop is open or not, this restaurant remains one of our favorites and is well worth a visit.

Bldg B, 71 Yueyun Nanjie, Sanlihe Xicheng District
西城区三里河月云南街乙71号

Dongxing Lou 东兴楼

Beijing’s status as the imperial capital has seen its cuisine influenced by culinary traditions from all over China. During the Yuan, Ming, and Qing dynasties, chefs from throughout the country were given places in Beijing’s palace kitchens, where they pitted their own regional dishes against those of others to gain the favor of royalty, aristocrats and courtiers. While these chefs were busy vying for the favor of the privileged few, however, thousands of chefs from Shandong Province on China’s east coast were moving to the capital to establish restaurants catering to Beijing’s working masses.

Over subsequent centuries, mass appeal triumphed over imperial favor, winning Shandong cuisine prime position in the hearts and stomachs of Beijing’s people, and securing its role as the backbone of Beijing cuisine. Many of these centuries-old Shandong-style Beijing dishes are still being served in restaurants across the city, with restaurants old and new either drawing influence from Shandong cuisine or specializing in the cuisine itself. One of the best-known of such specialists is Dongxing Lou, established in 1902 and located in Beijing’s most famous eating precinct, Ghost Street.

Shandong cuisine is famed for its stewed and braised dishes, its bold flavors and its tendency toward sweetness and saltiness. Three dishes that showcase these features and the mastery of Dongxing Lou’s chefs are the deep fried pork meatballs (新干炸小丸子 xīn gàn zhà xiǎo wánzi), with a selection of dipping spices; cold sliced pork elbow with traditional Beijing bean-flour rolls and mandarin pancakes (北京咯吱配肘花 běijīng gēzhī pèi zhǒu huā), and diced boneless chicken fried with sweet flour paste (酱爆鸡丁 jiàng bào jī dīng).

5 Dongzhimennei Dajie, Dongcheng District
东城区东城区东直门内大街5号

Fangshan 仿膳饭庄

Fangshan’s story begins in 1925, just 14 years after the fall of the Qing dynasty. After China’s last emperor had stepped down to make way for the first republic, eight former palace chefs pooled their resources to establish a tea house on the north shore of Beihai Lake. Their aim was to continue the culinary traditions of imperial cuisine – the dishes and menus served for centuries within Beijing’s palaces. Fangshan still continues to uphold those culinary traditions, with many recipes remaining unaltered to the present day.

Imperial cuisine is known for its light, fresh, often sweet flavors, and its playful presentation, making it a great option for a Beijing-style brunch. We recommend the sesame pastries (圆梦烧饼 yuánmèng shāobǐng); delicate pastries are served with lightly spiced minced pork for you to stuff inside as well as the walnut-shaped pastries made from walnut flour (核桃酥 hétáo sū​​​​​​​); and the 驴打滚lǘ dǎgǔn, literally "rolling donkey," chewy sesame and osmanthus flavored pastries made from soybean flour. Those with curious palates will find Beijing’s traditional sweets and pastries served in their highest form at this elegant lakeside teahouse, however, a word to the wise traveler: pay close attention to prices on this menu as while most items are inexpensive, some can soar to over USD 200 per plate.

1 Wenjin Jie (inside Beihai Park, enter via the east gate), Xicheng District
西城区文津街1号北海公园东门内

Kaorou Wan 烤肉宛

Camel trains and Silk Road traders have been visiting Beijing for much of the city’s history, bringing with them commodities, culture, and religion for over a thousand years. With Beijing’s first mosque established in 996 AD, and the Muslim Hui ethnicity constituting Beijing’s largest minority, it’s small wonder that Halal cuisine has had the second largest influence on the cuisine of Beijing (after Shandong cuisine, see Dongxing Lou above).

Today’s Beijing has thousands of Halal restaurants, serving cuisines from along the Silk Road, as well as local Beijing Hui cuisine. One of Beijing’s oldest surviving Hui restaurants, Kaorou Wan, is located just south of the Lama Temple on Yonghegong Dajie. Specializing in hotplate-barbequed meats, Kaorou Wan was established in 1686 and is famed for serving meats ‘as tender as tofu.’ The restaurant’s chefs are known for their knife skills, cutting beef and mutton in the shape of willow leaves, using the ratio of 300 slices per kilogram as their standard. Sliced meats are then marinated in soy sauce, vinegar, ginger, cooking wine, leeks, and cilantro before being roasted on the restaurant’s circular hotplates. Kaorou Wan is definitely a restaurant for meat lovers, and we recommend trying both the barbecued beef slices (烤牛肉 kǎo niúròu) and the barbecued mutton slices (烤精品羊肉 kǎo jīngpǐn yángròu), as well as the mutton slices stir-fried in a sweet and savory sauce (它似蜜 tā shì mì​​​​​​​).

32B Zizhuyuan Lu, Haidian District
海淀区紫竹院路乙32号

Hongbin Lou 鸿宾楼

Finally, another outstanding purveyor of Hui-style halal cuisine is Hongbin Lou. Established in neighboring Tianjin in 1853, Hongbin Lou moved to Beijing in 1955 and was quickly proclaimed the capital’s "number one halal restaurant." Hongbin Lou takes a more refined approach to Hui cuisine than other restaurants, with an emphasis on subtle, balanced flavors, and appealing presentation. Stand-out dishes include the soy-braised oxtail (红烧牛尾 hóngshāo niúwěi), zhāopái dòufu (招牌豆腐 well-seasoned, crumbly tofu served with fresh herbs), and fresh ginseng and walnut salad (鲜田七桃仁 xiān tián qī táorén).

11 Zhanlanguan Lu (at the intersection of Baiwanzhuang), Xicheng District
西城区展览馆11号（百万庄路口）

This article originally appeared on UnTour Food Tours' official WeChat account (ID: UnTourFoodTours). Join UnTour in Beijing, Shanghai, Chengdu, and Hong Kong to discover China's delicious food, explore authentic neighborhoods and learn the fascinating stories that make up 5,000 years of culinary history.

READ: Never See the Underside of a Table Again With These Tips on How to Drink Baijiu

Images: Pixabay, Dianping, the Beijinger, courtesy of UnTours, DuoGuo, YouTube

New food, who dis? French bakery chain Comptoirs de France has been a fixture in Beijing for so long (they opened their first store way back in 2006) that they can sometimes be forgotten in the flood of new restaurants opening and closing. 

Yet the bakery, which now has 12 outlets in both Beijing and Tianjin, has never stopped testing and trying new menu items, and each season represents a new opportunity to re-discover the old favorite. The new summer menu, which we were invited to taste recently, is no exception.

Two new bread items on the menu take their cues from the Provence region in the south of France, with the tomato and olive fougasse (RMB 25), and Italy, with the cheese focaccia (RMB 18). As is to be expected from the bakers, the bread is excellent. The fougasse is appropriately dense and a bit chewy, although a little light on the olives and semi-dried tomato, while the cheese focaccia, made with a mix of Parmesan and mozzarella give a delicious crunch and would be ideal served warm, with a side of salad or even a bowl of soup.

The two new summer salads: mango shrimp, and roast beef (both RMB 56) are good but unimaginative when compared with the dense and flavor-packed bowls one can find at Moka Bros, Tribe, and co. Then again, salads have always been a blind spot in French menus (where they rarely deviate from a simple garden salad or a classic niçoise), so if anything, this weak spot on the Comptoirs de France menu just proves the authenticity of their origins. 

Thankfully, the tender marinated beef (supplied by French steak restaurant O'Steak) reappears in the more successful roast beef and mushroom sandwich (RMB 56). Served with mushroom, lettuce, and onion in a soft roll instead of the traditional baguette, it is a delicious and hearty lunch option.

So far, so good, but, the new range of patisseries are the real stars of the show. Served warm as the bakery recommends, the mini baked apricot and raspberry cake (RMB 39), is an absolute triumph, the almond-flour based dessert hitting the exact right balance of sweetness and tart summer flavors. Another classic French treat, the generously portioned Paris-Brest (RMB 39) is good enough to make you want to ride the famously grueling bicycle race after which it's named, in order to earn the substantial calories therein, as is the chocolate chou (RMB 15 for small, RMB 39 for large), which is made with imported chocolate from the famous French chocolate makers, Chocolatier de l'Opera. In fact, the mini chocolate chou is among the desserts that Comptoirs de France supply to Air France first class customers, so good news fellow cattle-class warriors, even if we can't afford to fly in luxury, we can enjoy at least some of the perks. 

While these desserts sit firmly within the canon of French patisserie, the strawberry and vanilla ice cream macaroons (RMB 19, pictured at top) most decidedly do not. And that's what makes them so fun. A disc of Baxi brand ice cream is sandwiched between the two airy, candy-colored shells of a French macaroon, making a deliciously silly, refreshing summer treat that we suspect will fly out of the store's refrigerated shelves during the warmer months.

This new fresh summer menu reinforces why Comptoirs de France has been able to endure in an unforgiving Beijing food and beverage scene that has felled so many others. For more than 13 years they've made it their simple goal to serve fresh, authentic French food with high-quality ingredients right here in the capital. If it's been a while since you dropped by one of their stores, perhaps now's the time to say re-bonjour;hello again!

READ: Over 60 Topping Options Make JW Froyo Dongzhimen's Coolest Dessert Shop

More stories by this author here.
Email: annahartley@thebeijinger.com
Twitter: @its_annahartley
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Images courtesy of Comptoirs de France