San Yang Cai’s name refers to three Chongqing specialties – dry-braised eels, loach with pickled mustard greens, and spiced frog stew – belonging to the jianghu cai (江湖菜) branch of Sichuan cuisine. Jianghu cai is characterized by three main traits – it’s folksy, rustic and eclectic. Spicier fare prevails at San Yang Cai, but the cooks display a talent for balancing flavors and creating quality dishes. The ingredients and seasonings are all imported from Chongqing, with vegetable oil (菜籽油) brought in from Sichuan.

Legend has it that spicy lazi ji (辣子鸡) was the very first dish in the jianghu cai canon. The dry-braised eels (干烧鳝鱼 RMB 88) served at San Yang Cai are prepared using a similar approach to lazi ji, but the chicken is replaced by eel slices and pork belly chunks. Both these dishes support the theory that to identify jianghu cai from other Sichuan dishes, you simply check the quantity of chilli – the more chillis there are, the more likely it is that you’re eating jianghu cai. Buried in a mountain of dried red Chongqing chillis, the eel slices need to be hunted as if they were treasure, pork belly cubes appearing now and then as a bonus treat. First dry-stirred, then pan-fried, the eel is slightly scorched on the surface, tasting less hot than it looks.

The loach (口福胖泥鳅 RMB 68) and frogs (水煮美蛙 RMB 78) are both immersed in an ocean of spicy vegetable oil. It’s futile to attempt to deconstruct the sophisticated, spicy and fragrant flavors, and boring to worry about whether the chillis are fresh, dried or pickled, because the soul of these dishes is in the texture. Tender at the bone, the soft loach demands some intricate tongue maneuvers of the diner, while the snow-white frog meat has a delightful elasticity.

Aside from the “big three” signatures, the cowpea, lotus root and bitter melon salad (招牌素三样 RMB 19) is a vegetarian echo of the restaurant’s name. For those whose taste buds are vulnerable to chilli-burn, try the super soft and slightly numbing black chicken cold cuts (鲜椒浸乌鸡 RMB 38), melt-in-the-mouth soy-braised pork belly (张飞扣肉 RMB 38) and fresh pea shoot stewed in pea soup (豆汤豌豆苗 RMB 38).

Sporting a décor that is both trendy and classical, the spacious, two-floor dining area can host about 500 customers and features seven private rooms, with attentive service. The owner also has another two restaurants: rabbit-head restaurant Shuangliu Laoma Tutou and Thai restaurant Laburnum. The head chef of San Yang Cai revealed that the owner plans to open eight restaurants in total, all distinct from each other. We’re already looking forward to the remaining five.

San Yang Cai 三样菜
Daily 11am-11pm. North Gate of Workers' Stadium (beside Latte), 8 Gongti Beilu, Chaoyang District (6552 3499, 6552 6499)
朝阳区工体北路8号工人体育场北门