Travel Reference
In-Depth Information
NEED TO KNOW
Price Ranges
The following price ranges are used in all our listings and represent the cost of a meal for one person.
$
less than ¥50
$$
¥50 to ¥100
$$$
more than ¥100
Opening Hours
Běijīng restaurants are mostly open from around 10am to 11pm, although there are quite a few that run 24/7.
Many shut after lunch and reopen at 5pm. Generally, the Chinese eat much earlier than Westerners, lunching
from 11am and having dinner at about 6pm.
Menus
Be warned that some restaurants in tourist areas still fob off foreigners with an English menu (
yīngwén càidān
) that has higher prices than the Chinese menu (
zhōngwén càidān
). Generally, though, most places have pic-
ture and/or English menus now.
Service
With the exception of upmarket restaurants, service can often be erratic and/or lackadaisical. Unless you're in
a restaurant serving foreign food, don't expect the waiting staff to speak English.
Smoking
There are nonsmoking signs in most Běijīng restaurants these days, but that doesn't mean they are adhered to.
Smoking is still commonplace in many eateries. Our listings note if an establishment is tobacco-free.
Tipping
Tipping is not standard practice in Běijīng. Leave a tip in a local restaurant and the waiter will likely come
after you saying you've forgotten your change. Some upmarket Western places, though, do tack on a service
charge to the bill, as do high-end hotel restaurants.
Desserts & Sweets
The Chinese do not generally eat dessert, but fruit is considered an appropriate end to a
good meal. Western influence has added ice cream to the menu in some restaurants, but in
general sweet stuff is consumed as snacks and is seldom available in restaurants.
