Beijing, the bustling and culturally rich capital of China, is famous for its diverse and mouthwatering cuisine. I believe the best way to experience its culinary depth and history is to take a local Beijing food tour, where you’ll uncover hidden gems and local family-run Hutong restaurants you would not otherwise know about!
Last month I went on an Old Beijing Dinner Tour with UnTour Food Tours, a company founded in 2010 that offers food tours in Beijing, Shanghai, Chengdu, and Hong Kong. Their intimate small-group tours provide the perfect opportunity to savor authentic cuisine alongside local people in China.
A food tour is a great idea whether you’re a first time China traveler or an expat whose been living in China for years.
For first timers, it’s a great way to be guided to restaurants where you know you’ll eat good food, try local specialties, and also learn the history and culture of the area. It will also help you gain confidence in restaurants in China even if you don’t speak any Mandarin, while also interacting with local people.
Tip: If you’re traveling to a city for the first time, I recommend you start your visit with a food tour on the first day, rather than later on your trip. You’ll pick up so many tips and tricks for navigating Chinese restaurants and ordering dishes, and also have a guide that you can ask China questions to! And then if you especially love a dish, you can eat that dish again and again while you’re still in that city.
For expats who have already been living in China like myself, it’s a chance to explore restaurants outside your routine. While I’ve lived in Beijing for over 5 years and have tried many Beijing restaurants and snacks, it’s really fun to play tourist in your own city and dive back into local flavors you haven’t tried in awhile.
Continue reading below to get all the details of my local Hutong Beijing food tour with UnTour Food Tours.
Book a food tour with UnTour Food Tours!
Old Beijing Dinner Tour in the Hutongs
The Old Beijing Dinner Tour started in the Beijing hutongs nearby Beixinqiao. This three hour food journey took us through the old local alleys to experience Beijing’s cuisine and history behind what they put on their plates. After booking, you will receive an email confirmation with instructions on exactly where to meet your guide and at what time.
This tour featured:
- 15+ Tastings at 7 total stops
- 3-hour dinner tour
- Walking (2.6 km or 1.6 miles)
To kick thing right off our guide told us: pace yourself. And that was no joke! It was so tempting to completely devour all the food at each stop, but I had to remind myself that it was a marathon not a sprint, and there was more tasty food to come.
It’s a food walking tour, so we walked from site to site around the hutongs. It’s a nice way to break up the food stops, but also people watch and see what life in the hutongs is like. Make sure you dress appropriately for the weather!
1. Beijing Hot Pot 老北京涮肉
The tour kicked off with Beijing Hot Pot 老北京涮肉. Hot pot is a collaborative meal experience where you dip raw meats and vegetables in a boiling flavored pot of broth.
When thinking of hot pot what usually comes to mind is Chengdu or Chongqing hot pot style, which features much spicier broth. Beijing hot pot however is less spicy, with a light broth flavored by mushrooms and dates. It also has a tall metal rim inside the hot pot, which allows you to control the temperature of the pot. You can open it to allow more oxygen to flow through, or close it.
The freshly cut mutton, sliced exactly 216 times, is cooked using the dip-boil method, dipping a slice of meat in for approximately 8 seconds to get the perfect boiled beef.
And then the dipping sauce – my favorite! This combination is called “Er Ba Jiang 二八酱” (literally translated as “Two Eight Sauce” or “2:8 Sauce”), and it typically consists of two parts peanut sauce and eight parts sesame paste.
The combination of peanut and sesame flavors creates a rich and nutty sauce that adds depth and complexity to various dishes. Then other ingredients like soy sauce, vinegar, garlic, and sugar are often added to enhance the flavor profile. This one also featured fermented chives and fermented tofu, which created a rich umami flavor. On top of that you mix in green chives and cilantro. YUM.
2. Leek and Egg Dumplings 韭菜鸡蛋饺子
We also had some Chinese chive and egg dumplings 韭菜鸡蛋饺子 (Jiǔcài Jīdàn Jiǎozi) with the hot pot, which honestly you can’t go wrong with! It also tastes equally good dipped in that Er Bai sauce.
3. Donkey Burger 驴肉火烧
As we wandered through the hutongs, another stop led us to a small shop selling donkey burgers. A Donkey Burger (驴肉火烧 Lǘròu Huǒshāo) is a traditional Chinese street food originating from the city of Baoding in Hebei Province, but is also popular in northern areas like Beijing. It consists of a grilled or pan-fried bun stuffed with seasoned donkey meat. It might sound a bit strange, but honestly, the texture of this flaky bread combined with the meat was just perfect!
And of course accompanying our different stops we had to have some classic Yanjing Beer 燕京啤酒 (Yànjīng Píjiǔ) and – for the daring – China’s iconic Baijiu白酒 (Báijiǔ), the rice wine liquor.
We visited several other restaurants along the way to try more dishes like:
- 炒拉面 (chao lā miàn) – Fried Pulled Noodles
- 老北京酸奶 (Běijīng Suānnǎi) – Old Beijing Yogurt
- 诺米酒品尝 (Nuòmǐ Jiǔ) – Craft Nuomi (Sticky Rice) Wine Tasting
- 煎饼 (Jiānbing) – Jiānbing
- 烤鸡翅 (Jīchì) – Specialty BBQ Chicken Wings
A Food Tour Full of Beijing Hutong Culture and History
As we walked to each stop, our guide Garth really impressed us with his passion about the Beijing food. As a Beijing expat for over a decade now, he was extremely knowledgable about Beijing’s history and food, and very friendly to chat with.
In every restaurant we walked into, the owners would greet him as “Lao pengyou” or “old friend”. There was genuine excitement and friendliness in their interactions, and in turn, with ours, creating a very warm atmosphere for the tour.
He also explained how the UnTour Food Tours guide team would constantly be checking the restaurants, looking for new places, and maintaining the quality of the food and the tour. The guides are all local to the area and genuinely enjoy eating and drinking at these restaurants themselves.
When walking between stops or sitting down at a new location Garth would tell us more about the history of Beijing hutongs and legends of the food. When stopped at a stall for Jianbing (煎饼), a popular Chinese street food that is like a savory crepe or pancake, Garth asked us: Did you know there’s a story behind the jianbing?
It’s history is rooted in the Three Kingdoms Period, when one of China’s greatest dynasties descended into chaos. According to legend, Zhuge Liang, a military commander, had to grapple with the immense task of feeding an army of soldiers who had lost their woks in battle. Liang urged his soldiers to mix water with flour, then cook the batter on their shields over an open flame. And thus, a jianbing was born!
Go on a Beijing Food Tour
I left full and satisfied, which is always the most important aspect of a food tour! I loved the pacing of the tour and how the stops ranged from small to large food quantities.
I also enjoyed the tour because they keep the groups small. You’re visiting local Beijing mom and pop shops in the hutongs that aren’t meant for giant groups – this is where local Beijingers eat! So you know you’ll get a chance to enjoy high quality and fresh food, and get to know your tour mates in a close way.
This trip included so much food, drinks and many hidden gems! To enjoy the full experience, you’ll have to book an UnTour Food Tour for yourself. 😉
Book a food tour with UnTour Food Tours!
Ready to book your own food tour? UnTour Food Tour offers a wide range of tours, from Beijing Breakfast to Shanghai Street Eats! Check out all of the UnTour Food Tours now or scan the QR code below.
Thanks so much to UnTour for inviting me on an evening food tour in Beijing!
