China's food culture has a long history and is extensive and profound. Its dishes have four major flavors of Shandong, Sichuan, Guangdong, and Huaiyang, and eight major cuisines including Shandong, Jiangsu, Sichuan, Guangdong, Hunan, Zhejiang, Anhui and Fujian cuisine. However, among these cuisines, Beijing cuisine is not among them. In fact, due to its special historical background, Beijing's dishes are complex and diverse, compatible with all flavors, and there are many famous dishes that are difficult to classify. I remember that it was one day in December 2007. At the invitation of his friend Fu Yijie, the reporter went to visit the "Tanyuan Official Cuisine" located deep in Beijing's Hutong. It opened the reporter's eyes and truly experienced a collection of "Beijing Cuisine", which is one of the characteristics of "Beijing Cuisine" and is full of rich dietary culture.

Tanyuan Official Vegetable Courtyard (Photo: Feng Ganyong)

There is a saying: history brings out food, culture brings down delicacies, gluttony rewards beautiful food, and cooking restores the fine food. For many years, food culture has used food activities to demonstrate the great five thousand years of Chinese history and civilization. In a small courtyard on Huguo Temple Street in Beijing, a Tanyuan official family banquet is dedicated to creating thousand-year-old Chinese official dishes. It blends the unique official culture, food customs, and architectural styles that have been accumulated in China through the past., complement each other. While carefully cooking this delicacy that integrates hundreds of rivers and unique flavors, it also deeply explores the cultural connotation behind the beautiful official dishes and re-presents them to the world.

Overlooking the courtyard (Photo: Feng Ganyong)

Speaking of the origin of Beijing's "official cuisine", Mr. Fu Yiwen, then chairman of Beijing Tanyuan, spoke eloquently with reporters like a few family treasures: "In fact, Beijing's 'official dishes' are like their names, which have official characteristics. In the past, there were many officials in Beijing, and most of the officials emphasized delicious food, and each had its own merits. Sunflower duck, braised fin, pan fish, Dongpo pork, Gong Pao diced pork, Confucius Fu Yipin pot, Li Hongzhang chowder, Zuan shark fin, Zuo cock, Song Sisao fish soup, Beijing white meat, etc., all come from the government."

Tan's official dish selection: One product of abalone

"Among the entire official dishes, Tan's cuisine is the most representative. Tan's cuisine came from Tan Zongjun's house in the Hanlin Dynasty in the late Qing Dynasty and was later introduced to the restaurant by his chef. During the late Qing Dynasty and the early Republic of China, the "Duan Family Cuisine" in the military circles, the "Ren Family Cuisine" in the banking circles, the "Wang Family Cuisine" in the financial circles, the "Zhu Family Cuisine" in the family of Zhu Qiqian, chief of the internal affairs of the Beiyang Government and Premier of the State Council, and the "Honglou Cuisine" that appeared in recent years are all official dishes. Going back to even more ancient times, the 'Confucian cuisine' after the Spring and Autumn Period and the Warring States Period, the 'Dongpo cuisine' of the Song Dynasty, and the 'Shaowei Banquet' created during the Tang Dynasty also belong to official cuisine..."

Tan's official dish selection: roasted sea cucumber with green onions

"Due to the current Chinese food market, regional characteristics are gradually fading. Although this is conducive to the exchange and innovation of food culture, it has affected the continuation of culture. It is against this background that our Tanyuan Catering Company advocates the concept of inheriting food culture of "retaining old roots and sending out new shoots" and carefully launches the 'Tanyuan Official Family Banquet'. Draw on the essence of Tan's cuisine, extract the characteristics of official culture, and combine it with modern civilization to strive to enjoy the culture of the mean and food culture while pursuing delicious delicacies..."

Corner of the small courtyard (Photo: Feng Ganyong)

I remember that year, the reporter walked into this ordinary courtyard house located on Huguosi Street in the Xicheng City of Beijing's Shichahai Reserve. It is adjacent to the former residence of Mei Lanfang. Deep in this alley with rich humanistic veins, he knocked on the door of Tan Yuanguan's family banquet. The "girl" who answered the door gently led the reporter into this peaceful and quiet courtyard, feeling that it was a special interest.

Walking into the main room (Photo: Feng Ganyong)

You will face a brick shadow wall when you enter the door. Step past the elegant moon gate and you will see the courtyard hidden by green trees. On the branches of a century-old jujube tree, there is a poor man with a mouth. In the middle of the north room is a living room, with a teahouse and a study room on both sides. There is a room upstairs for guests to rest. In the south room is a restaurant, with all available chess, card and entertainment equipment. At this time, the housekeeper was already waiting in the courtyard. During the formal greetings, it made people feel as if they were in the house of old officials from the past.

Guanjia Cuisine Restaurant (Photo: Feng Ganyong)

When you enter the room, you will find the fragrance of books, the shelves are full of antiques, the bonsai is exquisite, the calligraphy and paintings on the walls are all famous people, and the room is elegant and fragrant. There is a couplet on the doorpost of the main room: "We are loyal ministers and filial sons, and two things are reading and farming." Entering the "Ya Tang", the "housekeeper" and "maid" immediately brought fragrant tea and a few plates of tea food. The sun shone out from the panes. The simple old furniture tells distant stories. The calligraphy and paintings of famous artists on the wall add a long and ancient charm. A nostalgic atmosphere fills the surroundings. Taste the famous food and dishes and feel its exquisiteness, elegance and arrogance. Let the years of smoke draw a string of waves in the memories full of annual rings...

Small courtyard lounge (Photo: Feng Ganyong)

Fu Yiwen told reporters that every guest who comes to Tan Yuanguan's family banquet will feel relaxed and at ease here, because if you invite guests here, you are the "owner" here. There is no interference in the entire courtyard house. This is the private space for you and your friends. The "housekeeper","girl" and "clerk" in the courtyard can be called at any time. The service of the "girl" is silent and invisible. We want to let guests feel the rules and etiquette of the old official families, where the old government officials were respected and respected.

Xiaoyuan Tea Room (Photo: Feng Ganyong)

The girl served four dried fruits, four fresh fruits, and tasted "Tanyuan Yipin Tea"(guest tea). The guests took a break, waiting for someone, listening to music and sipping tea, chatting with the housekeeper, strolling in the courtyard, or watching the green trees and teasing the birds. It's a pleasure! After the guests arrived and rested, the housekeeper led the guests to the south room and lifted the curtains into the room. However, he saw the same display and layout as the north room, except that the dining and banquet facilities were all available, which was by no means comparable to restaurants and hotels.

Choice of dishes: Famous cold dishes

When the guests sit down,"Tanyuan Second Taste of Tea" follows (before eating the first hot dish, in order to better taste the delicious dishes, you need to take a sip of this tea and then taste it again). Four seasonings and six cold dishes can be served on the table by a servant girl walking around and tasting a cup of warm Tanyuan old wine. It tastes sweet and mellow. The housekeeper brought the menu he had just written and placed it on the table. The ink was very wet and the fragrance of ink lingered on his nose. In a short while, the housekeeper would narrate the history and allusions of the official dishes and the "Tanyuanguan Family Banquet". During this period, the hot dishes would be served one by one, such as "braised fin","swallow cabbage in clear soup","purple abalone in oyster sauce","grilled black ginseng","steamed chicken with straw mushrooms","white fungus stewed in soy sauce","sunflower duck","duck with firewood","pearl soup","bamboo fungus in clear soup" and other pure official dishes. Each dish is explained by the housekeeper, allowing guests to taste the long-awaited delicious dishes...

Choice of dishes: Grilled shark's fin with yellow.

The visit to the Tan Yuanguan Family Banquet deep in Beijing's Hutong allowed reporters to truly understand the profound and profound side of Beijing's food culture. Perhaps they are just a small wave in the wave of Beijing's food culture, but the specific practice of the inheritance and development of food culture they carry is undoubtedly admirable. So many years have passed, I wonder if there are still places where the Tan family's official dishes are operated? However, this rare and unique experience of understanding Beijing's food culture, which was recorded in Beijing at that time, is always unforgettable...(Photo: Feng Ganyong)