Though not as well-developed as China's eight major cuisines, Beijing cuisine has its own guanfu cai (imperial cuisine). Outstanding representatives of this school, Tan Jia Cai and Li Jia Cai are a must for both tourists and local expats.

Strictly speaking, Tongxuan Jiayan (Tongxuan's family feast) doesn't belong to guanfu cai, because Li Tongxuan (1917-90), born after the Qing Dynasty and the founder of the cuisine, was not an official but an entrepreneur. Li Tongxuan learned cooking skills from a cook who had served the Qing emperors and served his friends, partners and celebrities at home so often that he, together with his private chef, developed dishes of Li Tongxuan-style. Their meat dishes are much more characteristic of their style than vegetable dishes, but the family did a lot of its own pickling and used their own creations as ingredients.

Li Yunyi, son of Li Tongxuan, inherited his father's talent in cooking and intended to preserve the family tradition, so he opened Ting Liu Xuan restaurant, which serves Tongxuan Jiayan, dishes typically of Beijing. The restaurant has an a la carte menu of three set prices: 600 yuan per diner, 900 yuan per diner and 1,200 yuan per diner. Menus vary according to seasons.

Sour, sweet, bitter, hot and salty appetizers are served separately before the main course. The appetizers are all pickled vegetables or fruit made by the restaurant. A cold dish follows the appetizers, then seven hot dishes. Abalone braised with potatoes is just one of the dishes that epitomizes how special Tongxuan Jiayan is. Both diners and cooks consider abalone a very precious dish so some wonder why it should be paired with cheap and common potatoes. Go to Ting Liu Xuan, try it and you will soon understand how the common can become precious.

The restaurant has three private rooms - each can accommodate about ten diners - and a boat, which can hold six, so reservations are a must. Each meal takes about one day to prepare.

Tel: +86 10 8412 2679

Add: Liuyin Park, Jiangzhaikou, Dongcheng District

¶«³ÇÇø½¯Õ¬¿ÚÁøÒñ¹«Ô°Ë®é¿

See more about Imperial Cuisine

About Imperial Cuisine

. Tea and Its Healthy Effects . Tea Drinking in the Palace . Hot Pot Dishes in the Palace . Western Kitchen, Cixi Private Kitchen . Characteristics of Imperial Meals . Meals for Emperors . Imperial Food in the Qing Dynasty . Imperial Food in the Ming Dynasty . The History of Chinese Imperial Food . Alternative Imperial Cuisine

	For payment, trip cancellation, please refer to the Terms & Conditions
	For more information, please feel free to contact us at 1-800-865-6221 or email to us at info@chinacustomtours.com