While most laowai are probably familiar with the phenomenon of the “ant tribe,” a recent article in The Economist introduced a number of other “tribes” of stressed-out young Chinese struggling to survive in the urban jungle. Perhaps the most unusual is the “crush-crush tribe” (捏捏族), who release their frustrations by hiding in supermarket aisles and [...]
Chinese Food Posts
Gift Recycling: China’s Not-So-Underground Economy
As China celebrated the Mid-Autumn Festival this past week, countless gifts were exchanged by friends, families, and co-workers in homes and offices all across the country. In the days following the festival, many gifts changed hands once again, this time behind store counters and in narrow back alleys. These second exchanges were part of a [...]
Banned pesticides in Chinese produce — no surprise, nothing’s safe
A couple years ago I wrote about how absent trust is in day-to-day living in China. With food scare after food scare, unfortunately nothing seems to be improving.
So, it’s little surprise to read that Greenpeace is reporting, “Banned pesticides detected on vegetables in Tesco and other supermarkets in China.” The following sums up the report well:
Fast Food in China: The Men Who Would Be Colonel
Since the first Kentucky Fried Chicken opened its doors in Beijing in 1987, the chain has dominated China’s fast food market, establishing a presence that dwarfs its profile back home in the US. And so it’s not surprising that aspiring fast food entrepreneurs have been eager to hitch a ride on the Colonel’s coattails. While Chinese and Western netizens have been entertained by stories and photos of the shanzhai Apple stores and Dairy Queens that have sprouted in the past few months, the phenomenon of imitation KFCs has been a part of the Chinese cityscape for decades. And while most are little more than local curiosities, several of these Kentucky Fried knockoffs have risen to become major players in their own right in the country’s fast food scene.
Fast Food in China: Beyond the Golden Arches
For many in China, “fast food” means McDonalds and KFC. To the average laowai, a visit to the nearest burger joint (or a phone call to the bicycle delivery man) is a periodic necessity for those craving a reminder of life back home and a break from their usual Chinese diet of rice and noodles. Even many Chinese consider fast food to be a uniquely foreign –- or specifically American –- phenomenon.
But Western fast food restaurants in China have long been outnumbered by native competitors. For decades, these Chinese chains were mostly small-scale operations limited to a particular city or province. But in recent years, a persistent handful have begun to extend their reach across the country and establish themselves as national, or at least regional, brand names. A diverse group, their menus range from American fast food staples to regional Chinese specialties, and some imaginative creations that don’t quite fit any category. Here’s a guide to five popular and fast-growing Chinese chains you’ll likely come across (if you haven’t already)
Fact or Fiction VII: The Veggie-Veggie Shakes
Welcome back one and all to the June edition of Fact or Fiction. Those of you who read any or all of the last six will know, every edition I will have a guest and we will discuss a few of the big issues in China of the day. Every answer will have a “Fact” or a “Fiction” and some justification to go along with it.
My guest today is Fred Dintenfass (aka @freddint aka fed-a-rama-lama-ding-dong) arrived in Beijing in 2006. Since then he’s been busy studying, editing, DJing, and eating all manner of things on sticks. Fred is the mastermind behind the world’s 4,375,463th most popular website — 10tonfunk. An infrequently updated repository of bad puns and worse product ideas. Despite being a vegetarian he is, as his Chinese friends and random strangers like to point out, overweight, and possibly pregnant.
Today, my esteemed guest and I are going to be talking about something near and dear to both of us, food. More specifically we are going to be talking about our diets. See we are both vegetarians living in the very omnivorous Middle Kingdom, and are going to talk about some of the issues that we face. So join us for Fact or Fiction 7: The Veggie-Veggie-Shakes.
Ethical Vegetarianism
I tried being a vegetarian once, my first year of university. I was 18 and realized with delight that for the first time, my culinary options weren’t bound to whatever my parents came up with for dinner. I could stop eating meat, and nobody could stop me! Besides, I thought vegetarianism would help me lose [...]
Why I Cook — In China
I have a confession to make. For the first four and a half years I lived in China, I did almost no cooking. Sure, I owned all the necessary equipment- I made sure of that. I wanted people to think I cooked, but didn’t really want to actually do it. Going out to eat seemed so much easier. After all, it was cheap, tasty, and sociable. As a single man, the process of buying ingredients, preparing a meal, and eating it in solitude seemed unrewarding. Plus, then I’d have to wash the dishes. Who wants to spend their evenings doing that?
I suppose had I arrived in China a little later in life, I’d have known how to cook. Over the years the friends with whom I used to scarf burritos and pizzas during our university days gradually learned how to prepare their own meals. They had little choice; in the West, young people with meager salaries simply cannot afford to eat in restaurants all the time.
VERY Literal Chinese – and my gummy worms
I absolutely love the simplicity and practicality of the Chinese language. This means that I can read medical journals in Chinese that I can’t even understand in English. Chinese pretty much puts complicated vocabulary into layman’s terms. For example the Coccyx is the 尾臀骨 [wěi tún gǔ] or the “tail butt bone,” and Hepatopathy is [...]
Hungry in China
People always worry able how they’ll be able to survive in China without being able to speak the language. Simple tasks like ordering food can be a challenge, especially in areas with few foreigners. This shouldn’t be discouraging though. You may get a little hungry, you may order some unexpected things, but you will survive [...]
