Superwoman Sue Zhou: 2nd Annual Organic BBQ Feast

Get Ready for Beijing’s Countryside Summer BBQ on an Organic Farm

A woman of many culinary talents from teaching to cooking and hosting, Sue Zhou seems to do it all.

She has her hand in many different culinary projects including the yummy Yunnan restaurant by the Bell Tower Hani Gejiu, she’s hosts culinary cooking camps, and she’s got her own brand of catering for events SueZhouDoesFood. If you follow her on social media like Instagram and WeChat ID: suezhoudoesfood, you’ll start to get a sense of not only how driven and hardworking she is and how much care she puts into sourcing wholesome and quality ingredients, but also how drool-worthy and delicious all her creative fusion dishes are.

She laughs when I call her Superwoman Chef Sue Zhou, but there are not many who are so passionate and brave enough to take on a full-day BBQ feast for 100+ people all on her own.

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Southern Barbarian: A Wine & Dine Approach to Yunnan

From Shanghai to Beijing: Southern Barbarian Moves into BaoChao Hutong

Close to the Drum and Bell Tower, down the little Baochao hutong alley 宝钞胡同 just north of Mr. Shi’s Dumplings and The Orchid Boutique Hotel, Southern Barbarian is actually in the same spot that was once a different Yunnan restaurant called Hani GeJiu 哈尼个旧, a humble little hutong find with Yunnan posters plastered across the walls, decorative lights and Yunnanese decor throughout the restaurant.

Sadly, the restaurant didn’t last long as restauranteur Feng Jianwen was quick to swoop in, gut the place entirely and insert his tried and true recipe used in his first two Southern Barbarian restaurants in Shanghai.

“Restaurateur Feng is originally from the city of Mengzi in Yunnan province, a stone’s throw from Vietnam, and home of the famed ‘cross the bridge noodles’. After finishing his training as an artist in Kunming, Feng traded his painter’s palette for pleasing other people’s palates with the storied tastes of his home at Southern Barbarian.” – Time Out Beijing Review of Southern Barbarian

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Great Leap Brewing’s “Beer & Pizza for Books” for Kids

For Every Craft Beer You Drink, Hutong Pizza You Eat, RMB 15 Will be Automatically Donated To Funding Books for The Library Project 

A charitable event concept, “Beers for Books” never made donating so easy.

A simple, straight-forward concept created by the good people of Great Leap Brewing and Hutong Pizza 胡同比萨 who have joined forces to support The Library Project, a charity that donates all the components that encompass a complete library -including books, furniture, and teacher training-to rural elementary schools, orphanages and community centers in both China and Vietnam.

Just show up this Saturday, February 2nd with an appetite for beer and pizza and for every Great Leap Beer beer purchased or Hutong Pizza purchased between 4PM-10PM, RMB 15 will be donated to The Library Project’s fund towards books for an under-financed primary school in Hebei Province, China.  Every RMB 15 can buy 3 books for this rural Hebei school, which will undoubtedly spread both wisdom, joy and knowledge to these rural children.

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Mr. Shi’s 老石饺子: Delicious Gulou Hutong Dumplings

Mr. Shi’s Dumplings

Located on Baochao Hutong just across from The Orchid Boutique Hutong Hotel and Hani GeJiu 哈尼个旧 Yunnan Restaurant is Mr. Shi’s Dumplings restaurant, which is unlike the other dumpling favorite hot spots in Beijing because it totally caters to foreigners.

The menus are in English, the walls of the restaurant are covered in international flags, tables are decorated with foreign currency under the glass tabletop, and the entire restaurant was filled with pretty much 90% foreigners.  It could have just been a fluke the night I came here for dinner, but I think that Mr. Shi’s Dumplings is definitely catering to foreigners and especially to visiting tourists with a sign in the window that says “Welcome to Beijing”.

While foreigners may also pay visits to other popular dumpling destinations like Xian Lao Man 馅老满 on Andingmennei dajie and Bao Yuan Dumpling House 宝源饺子屋in Maizidian, Mr. Shi’s Dumplings restaurant was packed with almost all foreigners.

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Humble Yunnan: Hani GeJiu Restaurant 哈尼个旧南餐吧

[UPDATE: THIS VENUE HAS NOW BEEN MOVED HERE]

When it comes to Yunnan cuisine, Beijing is pretty spoiled for choice, especially in the Gulou 鼓楼 area.  From the original Dali Courtyard and the new Dali 2 to Ai Mo Town 埃蒙小镇, and Yun Er Town 云洱小镇, there’s yummy Yunnan at every corner.

And now there’s a new kid on the block – Hani GeJiu 哈尼个旧 Yunnan Restaurant, located close to the Drum and Bell Tower, down the little Baochao hutong alley 宝钞胡同just north of Mr. Shi’s Dumplings and The Orchid Boutique Hotel.

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