In Beijing Bites, we visit some of the best places to grab a quick snack that won't burn a hole in your pocket either.
Amongst China’s four major cuisines (Lu, Su, Yue and Chuan), the noodles of the country’s spacious northwest do not feature. Lacking the gold-plated elegance of its more prominent cousins, the practical cuisine from these vast, boundless plains is masculine and unconstrained, made for wandering merchants on the old Silk Road to help withstand harsh conditions.
For a taste, head to Ling Er Jiu on Xingfucun Zhonglu – itself something of a modern day Silk Road inhabited with foreign traders, bridging the gap from east to west (or Gulou to Sanlitun, at least). Its intimate interior has a tidier, cleaner style than its down-at-heel neighbors: tableware is made from pretty blue and white pottery, while cushions are livened up with decorative red and green patterns.
We order three of the small restaurant’s most popular dishes heshi bizhi youfa chemian, (贺氏秘制油泼扯面, RMB25), Qishan saozi ganbanmian (岐山臊子干拌面, RMB25) and Qishan saozimian (岐山臊子面, RMB22). Of the nine key elements to a good noodle dish – thin, chewy and smooth body; rich, watery and fresh soup; and sour, spicy and appetizing flavor – Ling Er Jiu’s meet most criteria. Our maître d’ (or rather the old ayi that stands by the cash register barking out orders) tells us all the noodles are made with wheat from Shaanxi and Shanxi to ensure authenticity. Added bonus – it’s open late and the roujiamo (肉夹馍, RMB10) little pork burgers make a great snack for hungry foreign merchants on this busy little trading (and drinking) route.
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