Café de la Poste
$$ | Dongcheng District
Although good, the French food at this cozy bistro seems beside the point: people come for the nighttime revelry. The bar doesn't close till the last person leaves (even if it's 5 am)!
4 Best Restaurants in Beijing, China
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Since imperial times, Beijing has drawn citizens from all corners of China, and the country's economic boom has only accelerated the culinary diversity of the capital. These days, diners can find food from the myriad cuisines of far-flung regions of China, as well as just about every kind of international food.
Highlights include rare fungi and flowers from Yunnan, chili-strewn Hunan cooking from Mao’s home province, Tibetan yak and tsampa (barley flour), mutton kebabs and grilled flatbreads from Xinjiang, numbingly spicy Sichuan cuisine, and chewy noodles from Shaanxi. And then there are ethnic foods from all over, with some—notably Italian, Japanese and Korean—in abundance.
You can spend as little as $5 per person for a decent meal or $100 and up on a lavish banquet. The variety of venues is also part of the fun, with five-star hotel dining rooms, holes-in-the-wall, and refurbished courtyard houses all represented. Reservations are always a good idea, especially for higher-end places, so ask your hotel to book you a table.
Beijingers tend to eat dinner around 6 pm, and many local restaurants will have closed their kitchens by 9 pm, though places that stay open until the wee hours aren’t hard to find. Tipping is not the custom although some larger, international restaurants will add a 15% service charge to the bill, as do five-star hotel restaurants. Be aware before you go out that small and medium venues only take cash payments or local bank cards; more established restaurants usually accept credit cards.
Yanjing, the local beer, together with the ubiquitous Tsingtao, is available everywhere in Beijing. A growing number of imported beer brands have entered the market, and Beijing has a burgeoning craft beer scene of its own. And now many Chinese restaurants now have extensive wine menus.
Comptoirs de France Bakery
$ | Chaoyang
Part of a small chain of contemporary French-managed patisseries, this is Beijing's go-to spot for Gallic confections. Goodies here include flaky croissants, sandwiches in crunchy house-made baguettes, and savory croquettes and quiches.
Jaan
$$$$ | Dongcheng District
If you're looking for old-world elegance, this is the place. You'll be transported back to the 1920s, complete with antique piano, graceful French windows and a wooden dance floor on which Mao Zedong took a turn during the building's brief tenure as the Communist Party's HQ (the Great Hall of the People was still being built). French-influenced dishes include steaks, soups, black cod, and foie gras. The wine list is staggeringly long and befits a place that's been around since 1917.
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There Will Be Bread
$ | Chaoyang
This patisserie takes its name from a Lenin speech and its aesthetic from Melbourne's contemporary coffee scene. Although the selection of pastries is limited, each freshly baked item is sure to hit the spot.
