Houhai No.16

By Duncan Trevor-Wilson (bestfoodinchina.net)
Updated: 2009-01-14 13:55

Ever wondered what visiting VIP’s might get served when they come to Beijing and stay in the state guest house? Hou Hai Number 16 is as close as you'll get.

Even with a map finding this Restaurant can be a challenge, lost and hungry in the maze of dark twisting lanes of a Hutong in the middle of winter is not so fun, so you can imagine how important it is to book ahead and arrange a guide lead you from the main street deep into the quiet back streets where you’ll find big set of big red doors. Stepping inside the traditional courtyard you can feel its rich history dating back nearly 300 years since the mid 18th century, including the original trees in the courtyard. The 3 private dining rooms that now make Houhai No.16 were formerly used by Nobel families for rest, study and meeting important people, Unfortunately or fortunately depending on how you see it the interiors are brand new and much of the authentic ambiance of the exterior has been lost on the interior. The Menu is entirely in Chinese so each dish came out as a complete surprise to me….but what a nice surprise it was. Small dishes appeared quickly, simple yet delicious. The Red wine poached Pear was crisp and refreshing, and the hand stripped Bamboo shoots had a sweet fragrance like juicy edible fine tea sticks. More small plates arrived with Sichuan sausage and Slices of Pork tripe Stuffed with meat, normally I’m not a fan of animal lips and butts minced into sausage and served cold but this was made with love and premium ingredients that you could taste. I had a good feeling this was going to be a great meal prepared by a master chef, this hunch was confirmed when the chef himself appeared at the door with what can only be described as a work of art! Intricately carved from various vegetables, though sadly not for eating, I’m told it symbolizes long life, request it for a birthday guaranteed to impress.

Previous page 1 2 Next Page

Previous page 1 2 Next Page