Where to find the best restaurants in Beijing? If you ask Beijingers this question, most of them would tell you Sanlitun, Liangmaqiao, or Wangjing…and all of these are in the Chaoyang district. Despite great difficulties, Culture Trip has listed the top ten restaurants in the district where you can go whether you are looking for Chinese food or other cuisines.
Named after the Wu Tong (Chinese parasol tree), this restaurant that features a contemporary adaptation of Beijing cuisine indeed lets customers enjoy being in nature with its overflowing greenery and French windows that make the dining area look like a greenhouse. Of course, on top of this is the impeccable food with both its authentic Beijing flavor and a minimalist appearance.
If you are a Sichuan cuisine and seafood lover living in Beijing, then Lao Chuan Bang is a restaurant that you shouldn’t miss. The restaurant specializes in spicy Sichuan dishes like Kung Pao chicken, steamed chicken with chili sauce (Chinese people call it “saliva-inducing chicken”), and all flavors of grilled fish, a dish that originated in Chongqing. Trying to highlight its seafood speciality, the restaurant is full of famous oil paintings and mini sculptures with the human characters replaced by cats.
Chowing down on lamb skewers, gulping down beers pint after pint, all while bragging about the latest happenings in their lives – this is a typical scene in the life of native Beijing men. While you can spot skewer bars in almost every neighborhood in Beijing, few of them could grow into a chain restaurant like the Chan Zui Mao Skewers Bar. It is the place in town where you can experience the folk Beijing lifestyle while trying top-quality skewers.
Speaking of the restaurants in the Chaoyang district, it would be a shame to leave Japanese restaurants off the list, because there’s a whole street of them near the Liangmaqiao embassy area. Kokoroya is one of the most famous sushi restaurants in town, with its dishes all made from top-quality ingredients imported from Japan. What’s more, Kokoroya has a bar named Hotaru located just next door, which is perfect for those who fancy a glass of sake after dinner.
Ye Ye Bodhi is the top choice for vegans in Beijing. Drawing its name from the famous verse in Sutra, “A world is seen in a flower; a Bodhi (universe) is seen in a leaf,” the restaurant is devoted to creating vegetable dishes imbued with the spirit of great nature. The ambience at Ye Ye Bodhi makes it more like a Buddhist temple rather than a restaurant, so get ready for a meditation over delicacies.
You probably have already tried hotpot and Guangdong porridge, but have you ever tasted hot pot in a porridge before? Thanks to Zhen Zi Wei, you now have the chance to try out this novel meal combining the two seemingly completely different dishes. The two-in-one white porridge and soup for the famous Fujian dish, steamed assorted meats in a Chinese casserole pot, is a must-try, and just a quick tip: the best ingredient to put into the porridge pot is seafood.
With a menu that highlights light, healthy meals and an interior décor that emits a modern and comfy spirit, Restaurant Y has always been the go-to restaurant for foodies who fancy good food inspired by cuisines from all over the world. Don’t forget to try its signature Yellow Fever cocktail, made from sugar cane and saffron.
Yes, there’s a branch of the most famous Gulou-area restaurant in the Changyang district. This canteen that features Japanese food is especially popular among young people who favor good-looking healthy food and Japanese-style minimalist décor. Other than the must-try beef sukiyaki, the restaurant offers a set menu and coffee, which is well received among the white-collar workers nearby.
With Tao Hua (Peach Blossom) in its name, this Hunan cuisine restaurant has all kinds of dishes and wines related to the peach blossom – peach blossom bean-starch noodles, peach blossom liqueur, and peach blossom tea. Not to mention the peach blossom elements everywhere in the restaurant’s interior décor. Though Hunan dishes are known for their spiciness, the pleasant peach blossoms will surely ease the burn in your throat.
This spacecraft, no, restaurant, first opened in Germany, and its new branch in Beijing was an instant hit when it opened in 2017. SPACELAB specializes in American bistro food, but nobody comes here just for the food, as the spaceship-themed restaurant did its job exceptionally well with the silver metal tracks that make unmanned food serving possible. A good restaurant for sci-fi fans and families with little children.
