Catch of the day

Updated: 2008-04-05 07:30

(China Daily)

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Named after the Fuchunjiang River in Hangzhou of Zhejiang, the Beijing Fuchunjiang Restaurant (北京富春江) is one of the oldest eateries in the capital offering such cuisine. It is known for offering good taste at reasonable prices, making it a regular hangout for lovers of Jiangsu and Zhejiang foods.

Catch of the day

The restaurant is hidden within a residential area at the Asian Games Village. The inside is reminiscent of architectural styles of restaurants in Hangzhou, a famous Chinese sightseeing resort dubbed "heaven on earth" by the Chinese people. The furniture, wood columns, and staircases are all made with original timber that have an appropriately aged look. The ground floor resembles a traditional eatery in Hangzhou, with its wooden structure, and a roof of gray brick and tiles.

Jiangsu and Zhejiang cuisine is considered milder in taste than foods in North and Northwest China. The dishes are never very spicy, or salty. But that doesn't prevent the foods from being tasty and fragrant. The cuisine is famous for its use of fresh ingredients, and sweet and sour tastes.

For starters, one can try some famous cold dishes, such as hand-peeled bamboo shoot (手剥笋), pork ear jelly (猪耳冻), and white-chopped chicken (白切鸡). For soups, try their fish head soup (鱼头汤) that is served with a big fish, or the duck soup casserole (老鸭煲), both of which come in rather big helpings. For main courses, there is dry-braised sea bass (干煸鲈鱼), Ningbo braised vegetable (宁波烤菜), quick-fried shrimp (油爆虾), braised and steamed fatty pork with dried preserved cabbage served in a jar (梅干菜扣肉) and boiled bean curd slices (大煮干丝). The deep-fried smelly beancurd served with chili sauce (臭豆腐) is also a favorite with any patrons. For staples, there is the typically Hangzhou steamed rice in soup (汤泡饭). Warmed yellow rice wine is a must.

Expect to spend 50 yuan on average. Menu is in both Chinese and English, with color illustrations. Service can best be described as shout-till- they-come.

Story and photo by Ye Jun

11am-2pm, 5-9:30pm. Residential area next to Tianghe Liangzi Foot Massage, Bldg 3, Anhuili Erqu, Huizhong Lu, Asian Games Village, Chaoyang District. 6498-6699. 朝阳区亚运村慧忠路安惠里二区三号楼天河良子足疗边上的入口进去

(China Daily 04/05/2008 page7)