Kicking It Entrail-Style on the Trail of Joe Biden
What can be said about Joe Biden's Beijing lunch destination that hasn’t been said already? As I am only a (very) occasional reader of the NYT’s Politics section (though a frequent watcher of Saturday Night Live), I knew nothing of his gastronomic preferences. That was before Biden met Yaoji Chaogan last week. Since then, the popular stall has been pulling even bigger crowds – mostly Chinese tourists, in search of the "Biden set," a replica of the VP’s famous repast. I toddled down to Gulou to give it a shot.
After waiting 15 minutes in line, I was told the Bai Deng taocan (Biden set) was not available. The zhajiang mian (noodles with a soybean-based paste) was sold out, apparently. Saddened, I purchased baozi, cucumber salad and, upon second thoughts, a bowl of the chaogan (RMB 4/small, RMB 6/large). Chaogan (炒肝) literally translates to “stir-fried liver,” but the name is a little deceptive. What you get is a bowl of thick, quivering jelly-ish pork intestine-and-liver stew, ladled from a massive vat. This is what all the locals flock here for, and what Biden didn’t eat.
A deep sniff had me recoil a little. Chaogan, though not quite up (down?) to choudoufu standards, is definitely stinky. Dianping.com reviewers note that the ratio of liver to intestine is negatively skewed: indeed, I only found one piece of liver in my bowl, a tasty morsel of richness cooked firm. The abundance of intestine, however, was more than a little off-putting. Weirdly textured, irritatingly stinky and clinging unpleasantly on the tongue – one bite was enough.
On my journey, I met Luca, a backpacker from the south of Italy. He had no idea of the restaurant’s Biden tie, and purchased exactly what I did. While my intestinal fortitude did not quite stand up to the, er, intestines, Luca munched on happily. God bless Europeans. After lunch, however, we both agreed – unless chaogan really is your cup of tea, it's probably not worth a revisit.
Yaoji Chaogan Daily 6am-11pm. 331 Gulou Dongdajie, Dongcheng District (8401 0570) 姚记炒肝店, 东城区鼓楼东大街331号
P.S. The baozi (RMB 1) and cucumber (RMB 6) were very average. Cheap and average. My single baozi leaked moisture sluggishly, almost resentfully. Avoid.
Photos: Susan Sheng
