PLANNING YOUR FACT-FINDING TRIP - Living Abroad in Beijing - page 115

Xicheng
Xicheng has somewhat polarized eating options. There are local restaurants and premium
hotel restaurants, and very little in between, especially as far as Western cuisine is con-
cerned.
The majority of fine dining in Xicheng is done at the five-star hotels near Financial
Street (Jinrong Jie), near Fuxingmen (Lines 1 and 2). Italian restaurant Cépe and Cantonese
restaurant Qi, both in the Ritz-Carlton Beijing, Financial Street (1 Jinchengfang Dong
Jie, 北京金融街丽思卡顿酒店,西城区金城坊东街1号 , tel. [phone],
www.ritzcarlton.com ) , often take up posts in Beijing's fine dining annals, as does progress-
ive French restaurant S.T.A.Y. in Shangri-La Beijing (29 Zizhuyuan Lu, Haidian dis-
trict, 海淀区紫竹院路29号, tel. [phone], www.shangri-la.com/beijing/shangrila ) ,
which you'll find closer to the National Library (Line 4) and Huayuanqiao (Line 6) subway
stations.
For something more of-the-people, there are endless options, and if you end up living
in the area, there will be new eateries to discover every week. To get you started, try a
visit to Wufangyuan (248 Chengfu Lu, Haidian district, 海淀区成府路248号, tel. 8610/
6264-0677). You might know Sichuan food by its reputation for spiciness, but this will
awaken you to Beijing's other spicy incarnation, Hunan food. Alternatively, try Xiao Diao
Li Tang (66 Baofusi, Haidian district, 海淀区中关村保福寺66号 , tel. [phone]), a
traditionally decorated but creative Chinese restaurant with all manner of fun and delicious
dishes.
Those in the mind to try hotpot seek out Happy Hot Pot (20 Zhichun Lu, Haidian dis-
trict, 高兴火锅, 海淀区知春路甲20号, tel. [phone]). Hotpot restaurants blanket
the city, but this one sets the bar higher than most.
The Xinjiang Islam Restaurant (Xinjiang Provincial Government Office, Building B1,
7 Sanlihe Lu, 三里河路7号新疆驻京办事处院内B1楼, tel. [phone]) is located by
the official office location for Xinjiang representatives. This cheap and bustling restaurant
is touted to offer the authentic flavors of this far north-west region of China. Try the succu-
lent lamb skewers ( 羊肉串儿, yángròu chuànr ).
Haidian
Food in Haidian tends to also be at either extreme, although this is changing. The student
population in the area means that at one end there are a lot of café-level eateries, but the
growing concentration of commercial hubs also means it feeds the white-collared set, too.