Good Restaurants near BNU

[Zhende ma?]

I'm happy to hear you all are having fun at BNU. Makes me feel nostalgic

Well, I know you just got there but I figure you may eventually get tired of the cafeterias, 友谊餐厅, 太平饺子, and the Japanese place so here are a few places that are a bit different I remember I liked:

Near the North gate of BNU there are a few shops and restaurants, I paticularly like the Xinjiang restaurant (the best 烤羊肉! But it's spicy). There is also really cheap bubble tea there (if the shop still exists) for like 2 or 3 kuai per drink!

If you go north on Xinjiekouwai (past Wu Mei) I remember a good hot pot restaurant I went to twice. I may be wrong but I think it was called 家宝 or something 宝. It's like a few bus stops up the street on the 22 or something.

Lots of good Korean places in Wudaokou of course. Also, the muslim cafeteria at BNU isn't half bad so try it sometime.

Of course there is Quanjude in Wanfujing for Peking duck. DON'T got during the holiday week though, it will be insane. I think they said they sold 100,000 Peking ducks over the May week holiday last year.

[adrianlondon]

Cheap bubble tea. Yumm.

As a side question - how do you ask for "normal" bubble tea, like you get in Taiwan? i.e. just a milky tea with pearls in it. Here, they always seem to ask if I want the strawberry, chocolate or vanilla one. I try to say "no" to all of them and then they just stand there, confused. I even ask for "zhen zhu nai cha" and then get offered the strawberry one again or something.

[KungFoo]

I really want to try out the Xinjiang place, I live it di er so its literally a few doors away. Your post really highlighted the good food thoughts were all having and made me pretty hungry too.

There are more Korean restuarants by the south gate Xueyuan Lu, if thats what you like. Also a lot of good Chinese places dotted around all over the place.

I love the Muslim cafeteria, really tasty, and less busy than the other cafeterias. They also take cash which is a HUGE plus. Can anyone give a thorough tutorial into how and where one might add money to the campus card please.

[adrianlondon]

I;ve found the money changing place. I'll have to do you an exchange - I'll take you to the money changing place and you take me to the Muslim canteen. Handy tip for charging money on your card ... stare at the queue, ignore it, storm straight to the front, smile politely, and thrust your cash and card at the cashier. You'll jump the queue and no-one complains. If they do, then hey - you can't understand them anyway, right?

[Yanne]

There is a counter for putting money into your card at the research students' dorm (reddish buildings next to running track/football field) along the west wall. Stand in line, hand over cash and card to the lady when it's your turn and voila. Don't know if there are other counters around campus though.

Where isthe muslim cafeteria, I can't seem to find it

[roddy]

What does everyone think of Yunmadun, the upmarket looking place next to McD's at the East Gate? I've always found the food to be a bit disappointing, but the decor is fantastic and if you can get a sofa to slouch in you can quite happily while away an evening knocking back big bottles of beer. Looks like it would be very expensive, but if you stick to the cheaper end of the menu you don't have to spend much more than you would at any average looking Chinese place.

[Jamoldo]

Roddy, its not a bad place. A little pricey for sure but the decor was fantastic and I couldn't complain about the food at all. There was some vegetarian dish that really made it for me. There was a debate about whether it was squash, yams or bananas or something, but it was brilliant. I have to admit though, the meals I treasure in China are usually those XinJiang type meals with friends and a bunch of beers, or the great 3 kuai dumplings or the 3-4 RMB Dao Xiao Mie.....

[roddy]

Where isthe muslim cafeteria, I can't seem to find it

If they're talking about the one directly east of the west gate, then it's . . . . the one directly east of the west gate.

Incidentally, the 'Hollywood' place round the corner from the muslim place, and the Chinese style fast food place (Jitian?) up the stairs at the back of Lanhui are both not good restaurants, even if they are on campus.

If you are looking for a fancier meat-on-stick experience than the usual outdoor stool, you might want to try 酷爱 - Cool Nights - it's a 串吧 type of place - ie usual kebab type stuff but with proper seating and some dishes that aren't on sticks. Come out the west gate and head south, under the rainbow arch and it's opposite the Dia supermarket a few hundred meters on. Wound up eating there 3 nights out of 6 when I had friends staying recently. The lamb can be a little variable, but I'm very partial to the 日式鸡肉串, 烤茄子，烤 - actually, anything 烤ed on a stick, really. Or perhaps I just like that one because it's close to where I live

There are a number of other places on that same bit of road.

[heifeng]

If you go north on Xinjiekouwai (past Wu Mei) I remember a good hot pot restaurant I went to twice. I may be wrong but I think it was called 家宝 or something 宝. It's like a few bus stops up the street on the 22 or something.

I think it is called 民宝, although there is an equally decent one on 3rd ring road (walking distance) but I really forgot what that one is called. It has the same type of mini huo guo pot as 民宝 instead of the large center pot.

"normal" bubble tea, like you get in Taiwan?

I usually just say 珍珠奶茶原味儿which sometimes they don't have...(plus i always have to be careful not to blurt out 波霸奶茶。。。。bad habit I guess hahaha)

there is a 东北restaurant across from 京师大厦 on xinjiekou that is ok. Then there also seems to be a ton more restaurants if you are walking towards 京师大厦 on xinjiekou and then turn left....

the 成都小吃in the alley way near that other BNU dorm across from the east gate is always crowded but pretty good (don't get confused with the nasty 成都小吃 next to the bridge).

Also in another alley near the north entrance of BNU there are some hunan style restaurants (hmmm I think they are hunan, i don' think that they have been torn down yet with everything else around the north gate...)

at BNU I DO NOT recommend 集天小吃 or that dumpling place outside the east gate.....