Beijing Foodie Tour: Haiwanju Lao Beijing Zhajiang Mian

This morning Mike and I braved the bitter sub-zero temperature for our usual foodie tour!  We met up with our friends Wen-szu and Karen and headed eastwards to Haiwanju Lao Beijing Zhajiang Mian on Song Yuli Road (btwn the 3rd and 4th rings). Chi Chi recommended this place a couple of weeks ago, and said I would love the noodles.  For those of you who haven't tried zhajiang mian, it's a northern Chinese noodle dish topped with a mixture of ground pork stir-fried with a salty fermented soybean paste, otherwise known as Zhajiang or 炸酱.  Those of us who grew up eating the mian identiy it as comfort food.  Wikipedia calls it the Chinese spaghetti bolognese.  There's a Korean version too, and some say it's better than the Chinese one, but it's been awhile since I've had Korean zhajiang mian, so I can't vouch for it.

Karen and Wen-Szu smiling before digging in!

It took us awhile to find the restaurant, and we were shivering from the cold weather, but when we stepped in, we were greeted by a short man who excitedly announced our presence.  He basically stood by the entrance and shouted a couple of incomprehensible phrases whenever people walked through the door.  It was a little annoying because he was screaming every 2 minutes or so off the top of this lungs.  Nevertheless, we felt like we were in lao Beijing and getting the authentic experience as we sat side-by-side with the locals on wooden benches, ready to slurp on the infamous noodles. 

Cold but ready to eat!

We started off with a fried scallion pancake dipped in soy sauce and vinegar.  Next we had stir-fried napa cabbage cooked with Sichuan bell peppers and a vinegar-like type of sauce.  Wen-szu also ordered spare ribs, a vermicelli dish and a tomato egg drop soup.  All of the dishes were tasty, and we quickly munched away before the star of the show arrived.

Finally, the waiter brought over the zhajiang mian...ready to drool?

Here's the bowl of noodles (before we mixed the sauce in) with fresh soybeans, cucumber slices and pickled radishes

Noodles with the sauce mixed in.  Haha, this picture doesn't do the noodles much justice (looks a little nasty), but I swear, it's delicious!

The best part of the meal, as always, was the bill.  Lunch for the four of us came out to 131 RMB.  How much did we each pay in USD? $4.82.  Yup! That's why we love the foodie tour!  :)