Monday, August 12, 2013

Duck de Chine 全鴨季 - (Beijing, China)

 Somehow if you walk around the back streets of Sanlitun,  you may or may not find this secluded 1949 Complex,  it took me a while to locate here.   I was told to give Duck de Chine some serious thoughts as they make a killer of a Peking Duck.   Their brick wall and timber construction oozes class in an exotic and Asiatic way but felt almost contrived.   It’s a relatively newer establishment in town and the restaurant group which owns it has several notable establishments in Beijing and Hong Kong.   Their Peking Duck is very famous out of the blue and has garnered a cult following steadily,  but surprise surprise?    The Chef here is from Hong Kong!


 

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Modernized and Exotic Beijing Hutong look -
It reminds me of restaurant Hutong in Hong Kong!

 


 

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Serious About Tea Here -
This is such a Beijing thing…  they are like Kyoto of Japan in comparison,  no wonder it is the Capital City and also considered the most Artsy and Cultural city in the whole of China..


 



 
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Whole Duck Arrives,  All for Myself -
Peking ducks in Beijing are much tinier than anywhere else in the world,  they are like eating plump young ducks.   But 1 duck for 1 person is still a bit too much I guess? 


 




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A Swirl of Sauce and Fried Garlic -
Made by the staff in front of you.  
I liked this M31 Galaxy kind of pattern !
The Tian Mian Jiang 甜麵醬 base here was very fruity and likeable.

 

 

 

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Cucumber,  Scallions and Rose Heart Radish -
All sliced or julienned neatly.   Shops in Beijing do pay utmost attention to such finer details..





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Belly Skin on Top – Other Meats at the bottom
Carve sliced really beautifully table-side, there is not a single restaurant in Hong Kong which can do ducks presented to this standard.  I instantly recognized too,  that the Peking Duck here looked darker in skin complexion compared to other lighter ducks.  The skin marination was stronger but it was so airy crunchy.   The duck meat underneath was also soft,  but like most ducks in Beijing they don’t have much duck meat flavour.   Overall this was definitely one of the best ducks I have eaten.  *But someone visited here and said the duck was served too cold,  so hope you arrive in on a lucky day!   ~  8.5/10

 

 



 
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Holy….   Duck Skin 

 

 

 

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Crepes and Sesame Buns for the Duck -
The crepe was probably the best one I have tried with a translucent look.  The sesame buns arrived really cold and grossly under-baked though.. I remembered this clearly as it was a sudden abruption to otherwise a great experience.


 

 


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Duck Meat -
One of the moister ones.   Don’t expect a lot of duck flavour though,  most Peking Ducks in Beijing I tried suffered a similar problem and they are mostly on the leaner side too.

 


 

 

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Whilst I loved the Duck here -
And waxing lyricals about the perfection level they have achieved,  for some reason the texture and the skin marinade wasn’t very normal Pekinese style to me.   I have heard mixed reviews of here but on my night of visit it was very good.  Definitely one of the top picks I would return back to – although apparently there are other very decent places too which I am yet to visit !


 

 

 

Price:   RMB 250 - 300
Ease of Access:  2/5
Food:  ♕♕♕♕ 1/2 – ♕♕♕♕♕

Address:  Gong Ti Bei Lu, Chao Yang District, Beijing (behind pacific century place)
北京朝阳区工体北路, 太平洋百货南门後面, 100027
Ph: +86 10 6501 8881

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