What kind of food is included on the hikes?
Water and snacks are included in the price, and on some hikes we take you for a meal at a countryside restaurant as well.
We provide water and snacks on every hike, unless we specifically mention that it’s a no-frills type trip.
Water—we provide bottled water for you to drink during the hike. We encourage you to help us cut down on waste by bringing your own water in a reusable container.
Snacks—we provide a banana and a Snickers bar for you to eat as a snack. (Or breakfast … hopefully not your breakfast!)
After the hike, there’s usually more food: either a meal at a countryside restaurant, or the famous Beijing Hikers picnic. The hike inclusions will make note of whether it’s a meal or picnic.
Restaurant meals
We have a little network of favourite countryside restaurants, and the post-hike meals at these restaurants give you a taste of country-style Chinese cooking—sometimes quite different to the food you get in city restaurants.
We eat family-style, with a big mix of dishes served to share.
The dishes vary by restaurant and season, and there’s typically something for the adventurous (e.g. the mysterious ‘wild herbs’ dishes) plus some classics (shredded potato, Kung Pao Chicken).
Vegetarian options are included. If you let us know about your dietary preferences in advance we will request some extras for you. Vegan options are not plentiful, but you’re welcome to give it a try. Contact us for advice.
A typical meal might include:
- Kung Pao Chicken
- Fried shredded potato
- Fried zucchini
- Fried tomatoes with eggs
- Fried celery with pork
- Boiled potato and beef stew
- Hong shao eggplant
- Cucumber and garlic with vinegar
- ‘Wild herbs’ salad
- Rice or flatbread
- Cold beer, soft drinks, and green tea
The Beijing Hikers picnic
For some of the hikes we have a picnic at the end—maybe because there’s no good restaurant in the area, or maybe because we just feel like a picnic would be more fun.
For the picnics, we set up our little picnic table and serve:
- Nuts and raisins (sometimes almonds, sometimes cashews, sometimes peanuts)
- Taco chips with salsa
- Potato chips
- Cookies
- Coffee, green tea
- Beer, soft drinks