The predominant ingredient in the food here is CHILI! And, if you thought you could handle a Vindaloo curry, then try some of Chengdus spiciest food, laced with chili from top to bottom. Locals argue that chili is beneficial both in summer to help cool you down, and in winter, as a warmer. According to Chinese legend chili also has medicinal properties and helps protect against illnesses which result from wet or damp conditions.
For those unaccustomed to spicy food, Sichuan dishes can be hard to handle. Chili used correctly however, is not supposed to be overbearing, but to bring out the flavors of a dish. Once you get used to the spice, it becomes easier to enjoy Sichuan food. The most famous dishes from the region include Spicy chicken with peanut (Gong bao ji ding), and spiced tofu with chili(Ma po dou fu).
Many dishes here are served in a fish flavored (Yu xiang) sauce which is made from vinegar, ginger, sesame and soy). Hotpot is also very popular here, and there are numerous restaurants and stalls serving up spicy pots to passers-by. There are over 10 varieties of Chengdu hotpot including hotpot with boiled mutton, and hot pot with beer duck and all are pretty spicy so beware!
The best places to sample typical Sichuan cusine in Chengdu are the Chengdu Restaurant and Grandma Chens Beancurd Restaurant. See our Restaurant Index for more information about where to eat in Chengdu!
Bang Bang Chicken
(Bang bang ji) is a traditional local dish that actually originated in Leshan, and was introduced to Chengdu in 1920. To prepare this dish a flaming stick is used to reheat a cooked chicken so that the meat becomes light and flaky. The chicken is served with sesame and soy sauce. This is one of the tastiest cold dishes in Chengdu and less spicy than many others which are popular here.
Guoba Roupian
(Guoba Roupian) is a special dish unique to Chengdu. This tasty dish arrives at your table in two separate parts; a golden crust of cooked rice in one bowl and hot sauce in another. The hot sauce is immediately poured on the rice which crackles at the sensation!
Hot Pot
Hotpot is very popular in Chengdu, and is known for its spicy and hot flavor which can make the tasters tongue go numb! Hotpot once was only served up at home to the family but is now hugely popular throughout Chengdu on the street and in restaurants. 
There are numerous different flavors available including lamb and fish hot pot. This is particularly nice in the winter as the spiciness is very warming! To eat a hot pot, just grab some friends, chuck in the pot what you fancy eating and wait for it to cook!
Mapo Bean Curd
"Mapo" bean curd is perhaps one of the most typical of Chinese bean curd dishes and is hugely popular throughout the country.
The very best place to sample this spicy dish is in Grandma Chens Bean Curd restaurant. This restaurant was established in 1842 and the owner wife, Grandma Chen, who created this dish, had a very marked face.
The Chinese word for this is "Ma", and "Po" is the name given to an old woman. Since then, this dish has gained notoriety throughout the nation but maintained its original name. Soft bean curd is served with a very fiery meat sauce and this is a very spicy and hot dish, normally served coated with a thick layer of oil, minced beef and dry chilies.
Spiced chicken with peanuts
Spiced chicken with peanuts is one of the special local dishes of Chengdu. This dish , while very spicy, is popular with westerners as the taste is similar to sweet and sour. The name for this dish (Gongbao ji ding) stems from a Sichuan legend about a rich man who always asked his chef to cook this dish for visitors.
This man went on to become a top official in Sichuan (A Gongbao) hence, the dish associated with him was named this way! Another way to sample this dish is with pork meat instead of chicken.
Cold Noodles
(Jisi Liang Mien) is a traditional cold dish from Sichuan, which has become popular all over China recently, especially in the north. Noodles are first cooked and then left to cool.
They are then served with either bean sprouts and sauce, or eaten with shreds of chicken meat, pork and ham.
Fuqi Feipian
(fuqi feipian) is a cold dish unique to Sichuan that was created by an affectionate couple fifty years ago.
Literally translated, the name of the dish means "Couples Lungs" but in fact, the dish is not made from lungs but other inner parts.
The meat is stewed in soy sauce and then served with chili oil, pepper, sesame and peanut.
Sichuan cusine
People immediately think of Sichuan food as being hot, sour, sweet, and salty; using fish sauce; or having a strange taste. Actually, these flavors were introduced only in the last 100 years, and initially were popular only in the lower strata of society. Hot pepper, an important flavoring in Sichuan cuisine, was introduced into China only 200 to 300 years ago.During the period of the  Three Kingdoms, the kingdom of Shu was located in Sichuan. According to historical research, the people in Shu liked sweet food. During the Jin Dynasty, they preferred to eat pungent food; however, pungent food at that time referred to food made with ginger, mustard, chives, or onions. As recently as 200 years ago, there were no hot dishes in Sichuan cuisine, and few were cooked with pungent and hot flavorings. Originally, its flavorings were very mild, unlike the popular dishes of today, such as pockmarked ladys bean curd and other hot dishes, Even today, some Sichuan dishes, like velvet sharks fin, braised bears paw, crisp duck roasted with camphor and tea, sea cucumber with pungent flavor, minced chicken with hollyhock, boiled pork with mashed garlic, dry - fried carp, and boiled Chinese cabbage have kept their traditional flavors.Sichuan has been known as the land of plenty since ancient times. While it does not have seafood, it produces abundant domestic animals, poultry, and freshwater fish and crayfish. Sichuan cuisine is well known for cooking fish. As a unique style of food, Sichuan cuisine was already famous more than 800 years ago during the Southern Song Dynasty when Sichuan restaurants were opened in Lin¡¯an, now called Hangzhou, its capital city.The prevailing Sichuan food consists of popular dishes eaten by common people and characterized by pungent, hot, strange, and salty flavors. Although Sichuan cuisine has only a short history, it has affected and even replaced more sumptuous dishes.The hot pepper was introduced into China from South America around the end of the 17th century. Once it came to Sichuan, it became a favored food flavoring. Sichuan has high humidity and many rainy or overcast days. Hot pepper helps reduce internal dampness, so hot pepper was used frequently in dishes, and hot dishes became the norm in Sichuan cuisine. Sichuan food has become the common food for most people in the area, especially since the dishes go well with rice. In this respect, Sichuan cuisine differs from Beijing cuisine, which was mainly for officials and nobility; Huai- Yang cuisine, which was mainly for rich, important traders; and Jiangsu - Zhejiang cuisine, which was mainly for literati. Typical, modern Sichuan dishes like twice- cooked pork with chili sauce, shredded pork with chili sauce and fish flavor, Crucian carp with thick broad - bean sauce, and boiled mat slices are common dishes eaten by every family.Sichuan food is famous for its many flavors, and almost every dish has its own unique taste. This is because many flavorings and seasonings are produced in Sichuan Province. These include soy sauce from Zhongba, cooking vinegar from baoning, special vinegar from Sanhui, fermented soy beans from Tongchuan, hot pickled mustard tubers from Fuling, chili sauce from Chongqing, thick, broad -bean sauce from Pixian, and well salt from Zigong.Sichuan pickles have an appealing smell, and are crisp, tender, salty, sour, hot, and sweet. If pickled elsewhere, even if made the same way using the same raw materials, they still would taste different. This is because the salt, which comes from wells in Zigong, has a unique flavor. In other places, sea salt is often used, which tastes slightly bitter. This example demonstrates that the flavoring materials are very important, apart from the skill of the cooks. In Sichuan food, a single flavor is rarely used, compound flavors are most common. By blending different seasonings, skilled cooks can make dozens of different sauces each with its own flavor, including creamy, salty, sweet and sour, litchi, sour with chili, hot with chili, spicy and hot, mashed garlic, distiller¡¯s grain, fish sauce with chili, ginger juice, and soy sauce. The same sauce may be used differently in different dishes. For example, the flavor of the hot with chile sauce for boiled sliced pork is different from the flavor of the hot with chile sauce for pockmarked lady¡¯s bean curd. When flavoring foods, sometimes two or more flavorings are combined, and sometimes a hot fire is used to concentrate the extract from the dish to increase the intensity of the flavor, preserve the primary taste of the dish, remove unpleasant flavors, and increase pleasant flavors. Sichuan cuisine tends to use quick frying, quick stir-frying, dry-raising, and dry-stewing. In quick -frying and quick stir -frying, the food is fried over a hot fire and stirred quickly without using another pan. For example, it takes about one minute to stir - fry liver and kidney to keep it tender, soft, delicious, and fresh.The raw materials for dry -braising are mostly fibrous foods like beef, radish, balsam, and kidney beans. These foods are cut into slivers, heated in an iron pot and stirred continuously. Flavorings are added when there is only oil left and the water has disappeared. When the dish is ready, it is dry, fragrant, crisp, and soft. Dry -stewing is similar to stewing in the Beijing cuisine, but the primary soup or extract in the dish must be condensed over a low fire before the thick broad - bean sauce or hot red pepper is added. No starch is used. When the dish is ready, it looks faddish, oily, and shiny and tastes delicious, crisp and soft. Typical dishes are dry- stewed fish and dry-stewed bamboo shoots. Sichuan cuisine also has many delicious snacks and desserts, such as Bangbang chicken, chicken with sesame paste, lantern shadow beef, husband and wife¡-pork lung slices, steamed beef, noodles with chili sauce, and rice dumplings stuffed with sesame paste. sorce:chinahand.net
Sichuan Cuisine
Sichuan cuisine has developed over the centuries. Its distinctive flavors entice people throughout China and recently in foreign countries.
Sichuan cuisine is famous for piquancy, but its flavoring is complex as well as hot. Typical dishes include the following:
Ma Pos Bean Curd (Bean curd with mince and chili oil): one of the most influential flavors of Sichuan cuisine, served in every Sichuan restaurant. Chen Ma Pos Bean Curd Restaurant at No. 197, West Yulong Street serves the most delicious and local one. For hundreds of years, Ma Pos Bean Curd has been popular among people all over China, even throughout the world.
Gong Bao Ji Ding (Spicy diced chicken with peanuts): a specialty of Sichuan cuisine, diced chicken, hot pepper and peanuts.
Yu Xiang Rou Si (Fish Flavored Shredded Pork): fish-flavored dish in the unique style of Sichuan cuisine. Ingredients include shredded pork, agarics, bamboo shoot and carrot. The delicious dish has no fish but has the flavor of fish.
Hui Guo Rou Pian (Twice Cooked Spicy Pork Slices): A traditional Sichuan dish. The tasty pork slices are fried crisp without greasiness.
Famous Sichuan Restaurants:
Piaoxue Sichuan Cuisine Restaurant: No. 10, Qintai Road
Shizilou Restaurant: No. 55, Shuanglin Road
Baguo Biyi: No. 20, Fourth Section, Renmin South Road
Hotpot
When people think of Chengdu, they immediately think of hotpot. Introduced from Chongqing, Chengdu hotpot has its own style ranging from simple spicy to moderate, three or four kinds of spices, as well as fish head hotpot, medical herbs hotpot, etc.
Huangcheng Laoma Restaurant: an old-fashioned hot pot restaurant, regarded as No. 1 among Chengdu hotpot restaurants. It is situated at No. 20, Qintai Road, Qingyang District, Chengu. A worthy representative of Sichuan culture and diet, Huangcheng Laoma offers hotpot, plus stunning entertainment -- a Changing Face opera performance/shadow play.
Shizilou Restaurant: another old-fashioned hotpot restaurant, offers hotpots with half spicy and half light soup. It has several branches in Chengdu, one located at No. 2, Wannianchang Road, Chenghua District.
Tanyutou Restaurant: near Qingyang Palace at No. 227, Qingyang Zhengjie, Qingyang District, branches all over the country. Its delicious specialty, fish head, differs from that of other restaurants.
Snacks
Hidden in the streets and lanes of Chengdu, snack bars still send out savory flavors.
The most renowned snacks include:
Fu Qi Fei Pian (Braised Cow Lungs): Actually beef, heart and tongue take the place of lungs. This tasty dish is made with particular condiments using a delicate process.
Specializing in this dish, Jingcheng Yuan Restaurant is located at No. 23, Zongfu Road, center of Chengdu.
Chuan Chuan Xiang: also called Ma La Tang, vegetables, sausages, shrimps and anything edible can be threaded onto a bamboo stick and cooked in the hot pot.
Lai Tang Yuan (Lais Glutinous Rice Ball): the nutritious glutinous rice ball made by Lai (Surname of the maker) is soft and sweet.
With more branches than McDonalds, Lai Tang Yuan is easy to find in Chengdu.
Long Chao Shou (Long Wonton): with thin skin and tender stuffing, the savory snack is popular among locals and tourists. There are several branches in Chengdu:
Chunxi Road Branch: No. 8, South Section of Chunxi Road, Jinjiang District
Huanhua Branch: No. 9-3, Huahua North Road, Qingyang District
Zhixin Branch: No. 1-14, Zhixin North Street, Wuhou District
Western Food Restaurants:
There are dozens of KFC restaurants in Chengdu, including:
Zongfu Restaurant: Floor 2, No 21-27, Zongfu Road
Renmin Road Restaurant: Renmin Shopping Mall, Chengdu
Chunxi Restaurant: Chunxi Mension, No.1-21, Da Kejia Lane
Tens of McDonalds Restaurants, including Chunxi Restaurant: Wangfujing Shopping Mall, Chengdu
Several Pizza Hut Restaurants:
Yanshikou Restaurant: No. 9, Lihua Street, Chengdu (floor 1, Hualian Shopping Mall)
Zufu Restaurant: No. 6, Zongfu Road (Ziwei Hotel)
Kehua Restaurant: No. 9, Kehua Middle Road
Entertainment in Chengdu
The main form of entertainment in Chengdu is Chinese traditional opera. The city is home to Sichuans leading opera troupe, famous throughout the country and this is a great place to see some authentic Chinese art on stage.
The main difference between Sichuan Opera and Beijing Opera lies in the fact that the themes of the former are more provincial and related to everyday life than their Beijing counterparts. All the opera here is performed in Sichuanese, a special rhythmic dialect and the costumes and face paints are colorful and impressive.
Currently the best place to see Sichuan style opera is in the Chengdu Theater on Minzhong Lu and the Jin Jiang Theater on Huaxingzheng Lu.
Along with the influx of investment and the inevitable cranes and skyscrapers that are modernizing Chengdu, a fairly lively bar and cafe scene has emerged, helped by the fact that this is a stop off point for many travelers en route to Tibet.
There are a few good bars around the Traffic Hotel serving good beer (the local brew is Blue Sword which goes down very well with spicy food!) and also doing western style food. Pauls Place is currently pick of the bunch.
These are good places to meet other travelers and swap stories, to exchange some books or to use the internet. After dark, many of the bars in Chengdu get quite lively, staying open until the small hours of the morning. If you are after something a bit more hardcore, try the Huigui Reunion Bar on Yihuan Lu. This place is filled with cool city kids shaking their heads to the techno music blaring out.
There are thousands of Tea houses dotted about the city which are nice places to soak up some local atmosphere. If its something more active you seek, try the stadium on Renmin Zhong Lu where the Chengdu teams often have matches.
Hemp House
7:00pm - 3:00am
Dong Men Da Qiao
The laidback, liberal atmosphere at Hemp House makes it a great destination to relax with friends. Two floors are filled with cushy couches, arcade games, and a pool table. The music is an enjoyable mix of reggae, modern and progressive rock, and new wave. China’s most popular beer, Tsingtao (Qingdao), is available for Y10 (560 ml). A full bar is also affordable with mixed drinks ranging from Y15-20. Chat up the bartender, A Qiao, if she is not too busy. Her English is fair, but most importantly she is a free-spirit, always smiles, and wants everyone to enjoy themselves. On weekends there is often live music.
Directions: Hemp House is less than 2 kilometers east of Tianfu Square, located at the intersection of Tianxianqiao and Dongdajie. If you take a taxi or ask someone for directions, just say or write down "Dong Men Da Qiao". The bar is on the south side of Dongdajie. Go up 2 flights of escalators and Hemp House is on the 3rd floor.
Carols Too(卡罗)
Closes when the patrons go home
No. 11, Section 4, South Renmin Road ( 人民南路四段11号 )
(028) 85222439
Formerly Carols on the River, Carols Too has opened at a new location on Renmin Nanlu in the heart of the bar district in Chengdus southern end. A quiet Mexican restaurant by day, Carols really picks up at night, especially on the weekends, with a crowd that runs the gamut of Chengdu residents. Chinese students and businessmen, foreign travelers, teachers, and expats are all found drinking and dancing the night away at Carols. The music is almost entirely Western, featuring mostly mainstream pop and hip-hop. There is a sizable dance floor complimented by two floors of seating as well as plenty of outdoor tables. Large bottles of Carlsberg cost Y15 and draught pints cost Y20.
How to get there: Carols Too is right on Renmin NanLu, Chengdus main thoroughfare, across from a strip of tiny bars. It is on the east side of the street, located between the sports arena and the American Consulate road.
Shamrock Bar & Restaurant
Foreigners in Chinas big cities are presented with two options: seek the comforts of Western food, drink, music, and company in expensive establishments, OR explore the mysterious, inexplicable, and never-ending variety that is Chinese culture. Those who frequent Shamrock choose the former.
Blaring Western pop music and a mix of foreigners adorn this supposedly "Irish pub". The only aspect reminiscient of a true Irish pub is the draught Guiness, sold at a staggering 60 RMB/pint. Yes, 60 RMB, likely more than the 7.50$ or 6 euros one pays at your local Irish pub back home. Chinese beers are cheaper at Y10-30. Upon my last visit, the bar "conveniently" ran out of Chinese beers by 11:30, forcing me to choose from an expensive, albeit impressive range of imports. Entrees range from Y25-120. They include a range of salads, sandwiches, burgers, pizzas, and uncreative international dishes.
Fridays are dance parties. Saturdays feature live bands.
Directions: Renmin Nanlu Si Duan, no. 15. The bar is on the east side of Renmin Nanlu, a few blocks south of the first ring road. |
