LISTINGS - The Rough Guide to Beijing - page 205

RESTAURANTS
BEIJING'S BEST
Best hotpot Hai Di Lao
Best Yunnanese Lost Heaven
Best Korean Saveurs de Coree
Best Xinjiang Crescent Moon
Best vegan The Veggie Table
Best dumplings Din Tai Fung
Best Manchu Najia Xiaoguan
Best for weirdness Unban Bulgogi
Best falafel Biteapitta
Best Peking duck Deyuan
THE FORBIDDEN CITY AND TIAN'ANMEN SQUARE
Lost Heaven 花马天堂 , huāmǎ tiāntánɡ 23 Qianmen Dongdajie 010 85162698,
lostheaven.com.cn ; Qianmen subway (line 2); map . This Yunnanese restaurant is more than
a little strange. Set in the fashionable, newly renovated 23 Ch'ienmen complex, it's spellbind-
ingly beautiful and surprisingly cheap (around ￥ 100 per head), while the food is up there
with the best of Beijing's many Yunnanese restaurants. The mystery? It's hardly ever full.
Daily noon-2pm & 5pm-1am.
Maison Boulud 布鲁宫 , bùlŭ ɡōnɡ 23 Qianmen Dongdajie 010 65599200, maison-
boulud.com ; Qianmen subway (line 2); map . In the mood for something fancy near the For-
bidden City? Look no further than this splendid restaurant, whose high ceilings, giant mirrors
and chequered flooring simply ooze class. The menu is largely French, with a few interesting
local twists, and varies by the month. Come for dinner and you'll pay a fortune, but weekday
lunch specials are great value at ￥ 198 for three courses; alternatively, you're free to come
by for cocktails (from ￥ 75). Daily noon-3pm & 5-10pm.
Renhe 仁和酒家 , rénhé jiŭjiā 19 Donghuamen Dajie 010 65241955; Tian'anmen East
subway (line 1); map . A short walk from the Forbidden City's East Gate, and owned by a
chap who's the living spit of Ai Weiwei, this is a cut above the area's other (mostly hor-
rendous) restaurants. Here you're far less likely to be ripped off or served yesterday's rice; in
fact, the food is rather good, especially their tasty tofu dishes (from ￥ 22). Its outdoor seats
are also a good place for evening beers. Daily 6am-1am.