Nanluoguxiang Route

Sweets of the hutong

The sweets of Nanluoguxiang feel like court confections set down at commoner shopfronts. Milk curd, baked from milk and rice wine, releases sweetness and a breath of wine on the spoon and sells out in summer. Pea cake, sieved from skinned peas, crumbles on the tongue with restrained sugar and suits tea. In winter, tanghulu of hawthorn in hardened sugar cracks with a clear sound. Most run from a few to a dozen-odd yuan, and the fragile ones are best eaten on the spot. Many suit choosing one at a time as you walk.

Zhajiang noodles and skewers

Between the sweets, a salty plate keeps you walking. Old Beijing zhajiang noodles top thick strands with dense bean-paste meat sauce, garnished with cucumber, sprout and shredded radish and mixed at the table. The sauce is salty, so noodles and vegetables balance it. Toward evening the charcoal of lamb skewers rises at hutong corners, and cumin and chili drift out. Skewers of alternating lean and fat are fragrant fresh off the coals. Fried starch guanchang with salted garlic water gives yet another salt. All are cheap and ordered in small amounts, the ease of this street.

How to walk this route

Start at Nanluoguxiang, where Lines 6 and 8 meet. Walk the main lane north toward the Drum Tower, turning at will into Mao'er or Yu'er Hutong along the sides. The main lane is crowded with visitors, so the side hutong are quieter and the shops easier to choose. Take cold sweets like milk curd and pea cake first, settle the stomach with mixed zhajiang noodles, then move toward lamb skewers and guanchang near evening. With much eaten on the move, be ready to carry your rubbish. Most shops run midday to night, though sweets may close once sold out. Prices and hours are a guide, so check at the door.