Yuxiang Kitchen 渝乡人家

The first Yuxiang Renjia, established in 1998, is still going strong despite the establishment of new Sichuanese competitors all over town. What we like about Yuxiang Renjia is that it has maintained the traditional dishes, unlike many of the newer restaurants that have followed a nouveau approach that often than results in a culinary fiasco. The black-and-white photos of traditional houses, river towns in the south, and strings of dried red chillis and garlic hanging on the wall, are enough to entice your appetite. The waitresses wearing simple Chinese blouses, with a white flower print on blue, and with red trim on the sleeves and collars, are peasantly charming. The Wangfujing branch is a lot larger, and many of its window seats overlook the busy shopping street. The restaurant is decorated in a contemporary design with a Chinese touch; its corridor is adorned with black-and-white sketches of traditional houses in silver frames. Their lazi ji (辣子鸡) is reliably good, and the paojiao chao jiza (泡椒炒鸡杂), pickled chillis stir-fried with chicken scraps, is satisfying.