"I'll Have What Elon Musk is Having": 5 of Beijing's Top Celebrity-Drawing Restaurants

Mark Zuckerberg must be fuming. After years of the Facebook founder pandering to China in hopes of accessing its massive market, it seems fellow tech titan Elon Musk only needed to tuck into some hotpot in Beijing to be offered a green card by Premier Li Keqiang. That, along with selling electric cars that could rid the Chinese capital of its smog, of course.

Musk was spotted at none other than Beixinqiao-adjacent Qimen Shuanrou (奇门涮肉坊 簋街店) with a social media clip shows him deftly chop stick-ing morsels of boiled lamb and veggies alongside (ex?) girlfriend Grimes (the two were thought to have split up after one of Musk's many poorly thought-out Twitter sprees).

It’s by no means Beijing's first restaurant celebrity sighting. Below we’ve rounded up some of our favorite such instances in recent years.

In March 2017 Samuel L. Jackson – on a press junket for the fantasy flick Kong: Skull Island – left Beijing foodies swooning after posting Instagram snaps of Da Dong Roast Duck's duck liver (which he called “dope”) and kung pow chicken (which inspired him to caption that photo “POW!” in all caps).

One year before his Avengers co-star tucked into Da Dong’s high-end Beijing cuisine, Mark Ruffalo arrived in the capital and had a far more casual bite to eat. The affable leading man loaded up on enough protein to portray the Incredible Hulk without any CGI by dropping into to the Sanlitun branch of chuan’r chain Pingwa Sanbao (平娃三宝).

Like Musk and many other Beijing tourists, former Vice President Joe Biden ventured to Gulou to try some authentic Chinese grub. But instead of hotpot, he chose humble mom-and-pop restaurant Yao's Chao Gan. As one food writer pointed out shortly after Biden’s headline-making visit: “When he went in, it was just a small eatery known for its pig intestines. When he left, it was the famous restaurant where Biden had slurped down black bean sauce noodles – and everyone wanted a bite.” In fact, orders for the black bean sauce noodles that Biden tried quadrupled after his visit.

READ: Kicking It Entrail-Style on the Trail of Joe Biden

Although Mike Tyson didn’t go for the local flavors during his Beijing jaunt, the heavyweight’s dining choices were no less memorable. A fan of Moroccan cuisine, he stopped by Ritan park-adjacent Caravan bistro and bar and liked its North African eats so much that he had the restaurant cater the set of his film China Salesman. Owner Badr Benjalloun recalls how it was a “Nice injection of funds,” although hard-earned, explaining: “Hard part is catering when he’s shooting outside Beijing. We have to send food for an army to the studio two hours away.”

So what did Iron Mike order at Caravan? Three lamb shanks, two chicken tajines, and no carbs. The latter shouldn’t come as any surprise. Just look at that pic of the musclebound champ!

A number of famous faces have graced the VIP dining room of high-end restaurant Opera Bombana over the years, notably. Most notably perhaps was Matt Damon, who paid a visit during breaks from filming The Great Wall whenever he was craving Italian. Then chef Marino D’Antonio recalls how he was a “very down to earth guy” who ordered spaghetti alla chitarra and veal Milanese.

Prefer to stay at home in this freezing cold weather? Here's how to make Hot Pot at home

Photos: Next Shark, My Drivers, Samuel L. Jackson's Instagram, Ecns, China Daily, courtesy of Badr Benjalloun, Marino D’Antonio (via WeChat)