was beijing now shanghi,china

looks like my son from k-zoo,mi. will be going to work in china
for 2 or 3 months with the co. that he work for .
i dont know the town yet , but near beijing.
just checking on any rec's.

thanks
phil

Places I didn't like that much, but which have good reputations:

Kao Rou Ji, in the Houhai area. Overpriced for food that's not as good as other, more cheaply gotten street snacks. They champion Mongolian-ish bbq--I was underwhelmed. Just go to the yang rou chuar vendors on any street late at night anywhere in the city. Also, you should never pay more than a couple RMB for a chuar--thus, avoid Wangfujing Snack Street.

Quanjude Duck Restaurant. There's a few of them, now--I went to the original one, and a branch location up by Wudaokou. It's fine, too, but it's not hard to wander around and find a good duck place. I wish I could recall the place a friend of mine took me--really great, inexpensive duck with the right trappings, and the other dishes were solid, too. All I recall is that it was near the Xidan stop on the subway.

Foods to look out for: in addition to Uighur-style lamb kebabs--the yang rou chuar mentioned above--Beijing has really great baozi, and various kinds of "bing," or pancake-shaped snacks; jian bing is quite common, and is crepe-like, cheap, and filling. Another late-night drinking favorite is ma la tang--literally hot and numbing soup. In reality, it's a pan of ruby-red oil/broth with kebab sticks of various ingredients stuck inside it. Quail eggs are particularly awesome. The baozi chain Gou Bu Li isn't all that bad, and isn't a bad choice if you'd rather not eat street baozi. Also, hot pot is really good in Beijing, and absurdly cheap.

But seriously, just eat street food and in the little tiny restaurants. If you're patient and adventurous, you'll develop an iron stomach pretty quickly.

Eating street food is risky. My relatives from Taiwan won't even eat the street food in mainland China for fear of getting sick. Note: I already got really sick from eating the street food in Taiwan.

I did alright with street food in China, personally. And honestly, you're as likely to find recycled oil, or cardboard in a noodle sauce, in a fancy restaurant as a corner shack. You're likely to get the runs anyways, no matter how you watch your eating, just because it will always be different--everyone I was there with had a run-in with some stomach bug or other. Just be sure to bring some Cipro. In all honesty, though, if you want the best, most authentic Chinese food--eat what most Chinese eat, and get the street food. When in Rome...

Eating street food is risky. My relatives from Taiwan won't even eat the street food in mainland China for fear of getting sick. Note: I already got really sick from eating the street food in Taiwan.

As a student I'd estimate a good 40 - 50% of what I eat is street food, and it's never given me a problem. You just gotta use some common sense. Like if two street carts right next to each other are frying things in a vat of oil, go for the one which looks hotter. Look for a crowd around a stand and a lot of turnover.

Wheat-based dishes are what Beijing does best. MTGL gave you a good list so here's some more:

La mein - hand-pulled wheat noodles in hot broth, served with scallions, cilantro, and your choice of sliced meat; horse is my favorite. Vinegar and hot pepper paste on the tables to taste. Even at cheap, dirty places the quality of the pulled noodles is really good; they have a nice chew that dried noodles don't. 6 - 10 RMB

Liang mein - now that it's summer the vendors of cool noodles have started to come out. Just simple noodles tossed in sesame oil, sesame paste, garlic sauce, and hot sauce with shredded cucumber and carrot. A good light summer lunch. 4 RMB

Jiu cai he - "Chive box", a dough wrapper stuffed with a garlicky chive filling, wrapped up in a burrito shape and griddled on both sides until crispy. 1 -2 RMB

Shao bing - a round, leavened, baked bread similar to an English muffin in size and shape, but a little bigger. You pick the filling from a variety of steam table fillings which might include shredded potato, fried egg, duck breast, or ham. Comes with hot and hoisin sauce. 2 -3 RMB depending on filling

Uighur/Chinese food - a lot of Uighur ethnic minorities run restaurants in Beijing. You can usually spot these places by looking for Arabic lettering in the restaurant sign. The menus here are lamb-heavy and you can get some delicious hot flatbread served alongside more traditional Chinese food. 20 -30 RMB per person if he goes with a group.

Turkish Sandwiches - I don't know the real Chinese name for these but these are giant vertical spits stacked with dark meat chicken cooking in a gyro-style brazier. They'll slice a portion off the crispy outside and mix it with shredded lettuce, zucchini, and sweet sauce before stuffing it in a shao bing. 4 - 5 RMB

Above all tell him never EVER eat a hot dog in China!! I've been tricked so many times...

thanks guys , i will pass to my son.
looks like he is leaving next week

I think that the problem I had was that I ate some soupy dish. I remember that the way the street vendor was washing the dishes was questionable. If your son makes it over to Hong Kong, he should have dim sum over there.

For Peking Duck, i find the best restaurant to be Da Dong, the have a couple locations i believe..
it has modern decor and has the best Peking Duck in town

jr. is heading out on wed. to china .
the location has changed to shanghi.
he is looking forward to this experience

For Shanghai, i love Fu 1088, the best experience is to reserve a room
their smoked fish was awesome and many other dishes as well
great atmosphere, very old shanghai feel

jr. made it in to china ok, getting settled inn .
he went to the market said it was great ,all kind of live crabs, & other foods.
he is staying in yan lord town , pu dong shangi
should have some pics soon.

Shanghai food:
Xiao Nan Guo
118 Rui Jin Er LU
Shanghai, China
a few locations

my fave for Tiawanese by far is
Bellagio Restaurant
778 Huangjin Cheng Dao,
by Gubei Lu, Shanghai, China

More expensive but worth it,
Jean George (this is an awesome opportunity to eat his food reasonably priced)
Jean Georges Shanghai
No. 3 The Bund, 4th Floor,
3 Zhong Shan Dong Yi Road,
Entrance on 17 Guang Dong Road
Shanghai 200002

Laris
6F, 3 Zhongshan Dong Yi Lu, T
hree on the Bund, near Guangdong Lu

Street food here is the best deal. I lived there for three years and never got sick. The noodles for 8rmb are fabulous!

Ethnic food to eat in Shangahi are
Indian- Indian Kitchen- a few locations (i still crave that place)
American-Wagas, Element Fresh, City Deli, Blue Frog, Malone's (believe me, there are times when he is going to want this type of food)
Thai-Simply Thai
Hunan- South Beauty
Italian-DeMarco
Cantonese and Dim Sum- Bi Feng Tang Multiple locations and English menu

All he really needs is this link to get him anything he needs. They have the magazine pretty much at every Wesstern grocery store and hotel. http://www.cityweekend.com.cn/shanghai


Other things he needs to try are hot pot places, any japanese all you can eat and drink teppanyaki places, and noodle and dumpling shops.

thanks NICINCHIC,
phil jr. went to 2 of these place's & said they where great

That's great news, if I knew which neighborhood he was in I might be able to help more.

I forgot to mention that Wu Jing Tang is my absolute favorite noodle shop. English menu. They make hand pulled noodles that are craveable. Spicy chicken and beef. A few locations in Shanghai, for sure at 1111 Zhaojiabang Lu 2/F Xujiahui Metro City. There used to be one right next to the friendship Store in Hong Qiao, in front of the Sheraton Tai Ping Yang, which btw has a fabulous butcher, meats and french baked goods on the second floor,Bauernstube. And tell him not to miss a hotel Sunday brunch. My favorite was the Marriott Hong Qiao, all you can eat and drink brunch. The Four Seasons and the Westin are also known for their brunch downtown.
Also, the Cheese and Fizz in Xintandi is a cool place to visit, for some bubbly and cheese plates.

i think it is pu dong village

Ah, that's on the other side of the river near the airport. I lived in Hong Qiao.