Food and Drink - as a student.

[tomovhell]

Sorry if this has already been covered 

But I was wondering what sort of costs are related to food and drink in Beijing.

I understand the canteens at University are pretty cheap (i'll be at Renda if that makes a difference) but have heard mixed reviews on their food?

In terms of cheap accessible eats what are the options and what are the costs associated? 

Thanks in advance

[ChTTay]

7 hours ago, tomovhell said:

cheap accessible eats what are the options and what are the costs associate

 

The cheapest and accessible food will be on your campus in the canteens! ?

 

Generally, the quality will just vary depending which stall/type of food you go to and personal preference. There are usually a lot of buffet style options where food is already prepared and some “make to order” ones. Through trial and error I found the stuff I liked the best. I usually did lunch in our school canteen and other meals out of it. It depends on your personal preference and finances though. Also, canteens are right there near your dorms and classes usually. It’s easier just to go there. 

 

Eating out of campus depends where you go. It can be as cheap or expensive as you like. If you go for Mexican food with craft beer you’re looking at near-western prices. Around campus Chinese food will have a similarly broad spectrum like 10rmb for a bowl of noodles or 盖饭 then if you went for a few dishes with a friend in a slightly better place you might be looking at 40-100rmb.

[LiMo]

If you're feeling lazy, and spend little time on campus like me, then you can download one of the food delivery apps like 美团 or 饿了么 and order from most local restaurants big or small. I probably spent about 40-60 RMB a day but that was breakfast lunch and dinner. If you eat most meals at the school canteen you can easily half that amount and still put on weight.

 

Edit: I was in Hangzhou so maybe Beijing is a little more expensive, but I spent a few weeks there and didn't notice much of a difference.

[Pandarow]

Food and drink costs in Beijing pretty much depends on your requirements, for students in school, like Renda, the average spending on food and drink per month should be around ￥50/day, that is ￥1,500/month($250/month). If you have special requirements, the cost may vary a lot, it may goes up to ￥3,000/month or even more.

[ChTTay]

26 minutes ago, Pandarow said:

￥50/day

 

I mean if you’re essentially eating canteen food and/or the cheapest food every day, all day. 

 

I dont know how long the OP is there for but most people quickly realise cheap food is cheap for a reason - not just because it’s a subsidised University canteen. I knew a fair few people who moved out of dorms just to start cooking healthier food for themselves. One guy I knew pretty much had a floor kitchen in his dorm room set up ?

 

 

[Pandarow]

Overall food quality in Renming University should be good since it is one of the best universities in the country and food is a big part in the campus. The big problem is its food diversity may be not big enough for foreign students. ￥50/day should be the cheapest food expense every day, ￥10 for breakfast, ￥20 for lunch and dinner. If you gonna spend even less, ￥40/day would be the bottom line. BTW: There is a street near West Gate of Renming University, you will find lots of restaurants there, some cheap, some expensive.

[ChTTay]

I was at Tsinghua. What about you? Yeah, it’s not horrific quality if you take China as a whole. The other issue a lot of western students had was 90% of things are fried in some shape or form. Can get a bit much even 2 times a day 7 days a week. It’s not just diversity as you mentioned but a lot of students had difficulty adapting to that diet and then overall health concerns. When you cook yourself you control everything that goes in it. 

 

As I mentioned, depends how long you’ll be there. I did a year and didn’t want to see another University canteen.