Chatang Li (Gulou)

Chatang Li is a time-honoured Beijing brand dating from 1858, during the reign of the Xianfeng Emperor. The Beijing government lists its Gulou branch at 94 Gulou East Street in Dongcheng, close to the Drum Tower, among the city's must-try time-honoured eateries. It is built around one traditional Beijing snack, chatang, and a range of sweet drinks known as teas.

Chatang, which translates as tea soup, contains neither tea nor soup. It is a sweet paste made from pre-cooked flour, usually from millet or sorghum. When you order, boiling water is poured over the flour and it is stirred into a smooth mush and eaten with a spoon. Traditionally the water was poured from a large copper kettle with a long, dragon-shaped spout, and a skilled server could make the paste thick enough for a chopstick to stand upright in it without spilling a drop. It is topped with white or brown sugar and sweet osmanthus jam.

The menu also includes almond tea, lotus root tea, water chestnut tea and beef bone marrow oil tea. Ordering a small bowl of chatang and one of the nut or root teas is a good way to compare the textures, and the portions and prices make it easy to try more than one.

This is a snack stop rather than a full restaurant, so it suits families, budget travellers and anyone exploring the Gulou area. It is a good introduction to the sweet side of old Beijing food.

Cafe Zarah, a courtyard café and bar, is on the same street at No. 46, so you can choose between traditional and modern breaks. The Beijing government does not list opening hours or a phone number for the branch, so check locally before a special trip. The Bell and Drum Towers are also the starting point of one of the Shichahai walking routes set out by the Xicheng district government, which continues over Wanning Bridge and Jinding Bridge to the Guo Shoujing Memorial, so a bowl of chatang makes a good start or finish to that walk.

If you enjoy chatang here, look for it again at Huguosi Snacks on Huguosi Street, where it is one of more than 100 traditional halal Beijing snacks, and compare the two.