Story highlights
HIgh-end Peking duck restaurant Dadong has opened a burger joint in Beijing
Restaurant also serves Chinese-Western dishes
Love roasted Peking duck? We’ve got the burger for you.
While McDonald’s and KFC continue to introduce Chinese-style burgers to appeal to local tastes, high-end Peking duck restaurant DaDong has opened is own fast food joint in Beijing, China.
DaDong Duck Burger’s star attraction is, of course, the duck burger.
It features a slice of crispy Peking duck skin and juicy lean meat nestled in a bun and topped with slices of onion, tomato, cucumber, lettuce and the all-important plum sauce.
It might seem like a strange combination but is surprisingly tasty – and popular. Staff say they dish out about 300 duck burgers each day. Together with a glass of soda – or hot honey pomelo tea – and fries, the duck burger combo costs 31 yuan ($4.70).
DaDong, one of Beijing’s top Peking duck restaurants, opened the fast food joint last October, hoping to appeal to the mass market.
Han Yang, the restaurant’s manager, told CNN that all the chefs working at the venue are from its upscale sister restaurant. The ducks, roasting techniques and recipes are also the same, according to Han.
Located in the city’s CBD area, the fast food restaurant, which features minimalist decor, has attracted steady streams of consumers working in office buildings nearby. This success has led to expansion plans in Beijing, Shanghai and Guangzhou.
Local Beijing resident Cindy Zhan, who went to the restaurant for lunch to try the burger, says it surprised her.
“It was much tastier than I had thought,” Zhan says. “I was afraid that a duck burger would be too greasy. But it was not with the special sauce. Definitely different than conventional burgers.”
Zhan says she was particularly happy the restaurant also offers a quality salad. Besides its signature duck burgers, DaDong Burger’s menu includes a variety of fusion dishes.
For instance the reformed Zhajiangmian, topped with minced port, uses spaghetti instead of the traditionally made Beijing-style handmade noodles.
Chinese-style burgers
Chinese may argue that burgers aren’t just a Western thing given they’ve been around the country for hundreds of years.
The best-known Chinese-style burger perhaps is Roujiamo – shredded braised meat stuffed in baked leavened bread. Originally a specialty from Shaanxi province, it’s popular nationwide.
If you’re feeling adventurous, there’s the donkey meat burger.
A hot, crispy pastry encloses cold marinated donkey meat – considered divine for many in northern China. DaDong plays it safe, serving a spicy braised sub quite similar to the donkey meat burger except it’s stuffed with pork.
DaDong Duck Burger: 1 Floor, Club 19, Building 19, Huamao Apartment, 89 Jianguo Lu, Chaoyang district, Beijing, +86 10 6530 7200