Being Kosher in China

I just came back from my first trip to China.  Two colleagues and I visited Beijing for business, and one is an observant Jew.  So at least for a few meals, eating out was quite an experience. 

Our first night, we asked the hotel concierge for an all vegetarian restaurant and was recommended Pure Lotus.  It turns out to be a vegan restaurant started by some buddhist monks or something like that. And just to be safe, our observant Jew tried checking with the kitchen that indeed no meat, eggs, or milk were prepared there, but fortunately for us, no one spoke English.  The place was amazing, from the interior decoration to the food.  One of the interior doors of the restaurant was like something from an old palace castle, weighing a ton and requiring 2 waiters to open to allow us in.  And since no one spoke english, we had no clue the size of the dishes we ordered.  By the end of the night, we were fully stuffed, having canceled an order of rice, but somehow making sure we tried three different desserts.   

Pure Lotus.  The place is amazing.

Not all of our meals were Kosher.  Our colleague was considerate enough not to demand that of us for each meal.  Most of the meals, he joined us and either had a diet coke or fruit.  On our third night, he asked if we could once again go to Pure Lotus so that he could get a nice, cooked meal.  I was all for it.  However since that morning we had visited the Israeli embassy, the other colleague thought "Hey let's ask them what place they would recommend."  So rather than enjoy the wonders of Pure Lotus, we enjoyed the anti-wonders of Dini's Kosher Restaurant, the only Kosher restaurant in Beijing.  From the outside, it looked like a fancy banquet hall.  From the inside, it looked like a kibbutz cafeteria, from the yamakas to the long communal tables.  Now I have not had Chinese food in Israel, but I assume the Chinese dishes we had at Dini's were as Americanized or Israelized as that found in America or here.  So being in Beijing, this dining experience was quite the disappointment even though one could consider it "off the beaten track."

Dini's Kosher Restaurant.  This place is not amazing.

And one late evening, I did make it back on the beaten-track to visit Ghost Street and the row of restaurants opened all night long.  I didn't take this adventure to the extreme, by-passing the turtles that were on display on the street.  I did however point to a bunch of photos of various grilled items, only half of which I had any clue of what they were.  All but one turned out decent or edible.  The inedible one looked good, but one bite into the meat made me nauseous.  A swig of beer made me all better. 

Ghost Street.  Avoid the meat in the middle.

One last thought.  Contrary to the view I had before going, Beijing is an amazing place.  There's a great vibe to the place.  There's no doubt it's going to be the dominant power in the near future.