China's UNESCO best-preserved walled city, Ming-and-Qing-Dynasty Shanxi-Province ancient capital, Dejuyuan's Pingyao beef noodles, Tianyuankui's 27-year vinegar-egg-omelette tradition, and Shanxi-vinegar-led regional cuisine.
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Pingyao dines as China's preserved Ming-Qing Dynasty walled city. The Shanxi Province city, population 50,000, sitting on the Loess Plateau in central-northern China, has been inscribed on the UNESCO World Heritage List since 1997 as one of, if not the only, best-preserved walled cities from the Ming/Qin Dynasties. The cuisine is distinctively Shanxi: Pingyao Beef (the regional aged-and-spiced beef preparation that's the city's most-protected food signature), Shanxi Knife-Cut Noodles (the regional noodle preparation, hand-cut directly from a dough block held against the cook's body), Wantuze (the Shanxi-only buckwheat-based gel served with cold dressings), Long Potato dishes, and a deeper tradition of Shanxi vinegar, the region's signature aged condiment that flavours everything from noodles to desserts.
The dining map clusters along Ming-Qing Street, the central pedestrian thoroughfare running through the walled Old Town. The street holds the iconic restaurants: Dejuyuan (the famous Shanxi-cuisine destination known for Pingyao beef noodles), Tianyuankui (the 27-year-old breakfast-and-classic kitchen), and a dozen smaller traditional Shanxi-cuisine kitchens. The areas immediately outside the walled city hold the more contemporary Chinese restaurants and the modern fine-dining scene serving Shanxi-tourist business visitors.
Reservations are not standard culture in Pingyao, most restaurants are walk-in only, but useful at the better Ming-Qing Street kitchens during Chinese national holiday weeks (October Golden Week is the heaviest tourist period). English menus are universal at the central tourist-tier restaurants.
Pair the food with one of the local Shanxi vinegar drinks (the regional vinegar-honey cooler) or with the Shanxi rice wines (Fenjiu is the most famous), Shanxi Province has been producing aged vinegar for over three thousand years and the regional cuisine is built around this single ingredient. The proper post-dinner anchor is a walk along the Pingyao city walls, the original Ming Dynasty fortification walls remain intact and are accessible from several tower-mounted stairways. Cap the day at the Rishengchang Ticket House (the country's first private bank, established 1823 in Pingyao, now a museum).
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