True to Its Roots, Huaiyang Dream Provides Tasty Jiangsu Cuisine in an Elegant Atmosphere

November is like a Pandora's box of endless events, festivals, and gatherings. Dining out is always a great chance to celebrate with your loved ones and close friends, especially as the nasty Beijing winter sets in and we look for warm, cozy spaces in which to wan'r. Huaiyang Dream in the recently opened COFCO Plaza might be a great fit for us all.

As one of the Four Great Traditions (sìdà càixì, 四大菜系) in Chinese cuisine (the other three being Cantonese, Shangdong, and Sichuan cuisine), Huaiyang cuisine is derived from the cooking style found near the Huai and Yangtze rivers in Jiangsu province. Typically on the sweeter side and using various fish as its base meat, Huaiyang cuisine also includes many of the street-eat dishes that we love, such as xiaolongbao, noodles, red braised pork belly, and smoked fish.

Huaiyang Dream's Chinese name, 游园京梦 (yóuyuán jīngmèng), comes from a famous song in Kunqu Opera, "The Peony Pavilion," which was first performed in the 16th century, and tells the story of a romantic dream between the young girl protagonist and an imagined scholar after she falls asleep in her garden. Likewise, this little restaurant is far too pretty to exist in a shopping mall, with a dreamy glass sculpture of long Kunqu Opera-style sleeves “floating” in the air. Here, in the first floor of the COFCO Plaza, Huaiyang Dream couldn’t look more traditional – the wooden chairs, celadon tablewares, bamboo, and rock gardens in the restaurant all harken back the famous gardens of Jiangsu, with each table separated by half-transparent screens to provide more privacy.

The menu includes various traditional and classic Huiyang dishes: yellow croaker with glutinous rice cake (RMB 188), boiled shredded dried bean curd in chicken broth (RMB 58), and braised pork feet and pork intestine with garlic (RMB 68/128), as well as braised vegetables, smoked fish (RMB 48), and sweet and sour ribs. People say Huaiying cuisine requires diners to be adept at cutting, and the tofu and matsutake soup (RMB 48) was proof of such – a block of soft, white tofu was cut into a chrysanthemum shape, each petal floating and blooming in the light hay-colored broth. Its preparation requires a lot of effort, patience, and skill.

The braised crab (RMB 98) was served with a performance: the wait staff brings you a plate covered with a thin hemisphere of ice, which you then break with your spoon to unveil a single, beautiful crab. The crab from Gaoyou Lake had abundant meat, and a strong alcoholic flavor and slight sweetness from being soaked in ten-year aged Shaoxing yellow wine.  

We also enjoyed the red-braised pork belly, which could be ordered by the pot (RMB 88), or in a single serving (RMB 18). You could see the five layers of pork belly, beautiful fat, and lean pork, all glazed in beautiful brown, served with white turnip cooked to tenderness and sautéed in the spicy, meaty flavor.   

If you are looking for staple foods, there are also several noodles to try, including classic noodles with scallion oil (RMB 15) as well as pan-fried buns or xiaolongbao (RMB 24 for six pieces). The glutinous rice balls (RMB 28) offered a little surprise, with cold glutinous rice wine burst inside your mouth after a small nibble, and surrounded by cucumber and mango, providing sweet and sour flavors.

Delicious? Check. Nice Atmosphere? Check. Great service? Check. We also learned to never doubt the consuming capacity of nearby workers, the place was totally packed during a workday lunch rush. It seems these gold collars would rather sit down and spoil themselves with these delicacies than grab-and-go with a fast food meal. This is also a great option for when you pick up your friends from the Beijing Railway Station, to indulge your guests without paying an arm and a leg.  

Huaiyang Dream
Daily 11am-2pm, 5-9pm. 1/F, Tower C, COFCO Plaza, 8 Jianguomennei Dajie, Dongcheng District (6528 5579)
淮扬府•游园京梦：东城区建国门内大街8号中粮广场C座一层

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Photos: Tracy Wang