WhyTravel

Celebrating a double bat mitzvah at the Great Wall

We ate REALLY well in Beijing. From the moment we arrived, we ate and drank our way around the city. In every photograph from the trip, we are eating or drinking: savoring a glass of wine at an outdoor cafe, slurping from a punchbowl of soup at a neighborhood noodle house, making a second (or third) trip to a buffet, or trying to find more room for yet another course at the bar mitzvah (above).

As a vegetarian, I had no problem eating anywhere, whether the restaurant was elegant or casual. Everyone seemed to understand the request.

There were many memorable food experiences. I’ll share just two of them.

A standout among standout meals was delivered by the vegan-only Pure Lotus. We arrived on a bright sunny, afternoon and immediately removed our sunglasses. The place is dark, mysterious, and moody. It was decorated with crystal chandeliers, porcelain buddhas, filmy fabric panels, Victorian lamps. Screens lined the walls with black and white lotus flowers and petals floating across them.

We were a large group with only two vegans, but no one missed out on anything and everyone was delighted. Our efficient team of servers brought course after course and removed empty dishes promptly. They started with tropical juices, moved through artfully-presented salads and appetizers, main courses. Among the main courses was a vegan version of Peking Duck. The meat eaters had ordered it multiple times before, so I was glad to sample that.

We were so full we declined the desserts. Pure Lotus was pure heaven, but of the high-end (expensive) type. I went back the following night with one of my cousins and we ordered only the dessert course:-) (Note: if you are flying to Beijing specifically for this restaurant, and I recommend you do, do some research first. Happy Cow, a vegetarian/vegan website for recommendations worldwide, lists Pure Lotus as closed. There are some reviews on the larger search engines that get confusing, but there seems to be some cross attribution between a Pure Lotus and a Pure Lotus Vegetarian.)

 

Another experience to consider — and this applies to many places — is a cooking class. Again, it was easy to find a vegetarian option for this in Beijing. There were a number of companies offering cooking classes in the Beijing’s old-style neighborhoods, called “hutong”. One way to experience a hutong from the inside is through a cooking class.

Ancient gate marking the entrance to the hutong where our cooking class was held

There were five students for class: three in my party and a young European couple. We stood around a table in one room for instruction. We chopped vegetables and mixed our sauces before moving to the kitchen.

Our lovely hostess warming our woks. She had white rice already going in a rice cooker.

Tofu prepared three ways!

We ate the results, with tea, in the small courtyard outside.

The landscape of old Beijing is rapidly disappearing as the authorities destroy these old neighborhoods, dating back to the 13th century, to make way for modern architecture. Reports say 90% of hutongs have disappeared over the past 20 years. Countless families have been forcibly displaced, along with their way of life and social structures. It’s quite sad.