Beijing restaurant battlefield

Posted on by Gilbert Van Kerckhove

A long list

As a well-known food vlogger in Beijing I go around a lot and see the scene as a Beijing restaurant battlefield. Many locations open and then close. Rather few survive for a long time. There are many reasons, often the rent being increased dramatically, quality not kept up to standards, poor marketing and promotion, lack of appeal.

Beijing has seen many starting to make Belgian waffles, most went bust, except for Morel’s Restaurant that has them on the menu and Bewaffle, a small outlet close to O’Steak near Chunxiu Lu, Maison Manneke started with a lot of fanfare, they also joined Belgian embassy events. I tried it a few times but the location in SOHO Sanlitun did not have enough turnover. Sadly very few Belgians supported it. It is now a Chinese restaurant.

I liked a lot the cozy American style restaurant in Chunxiu Lu, food was good but it closed recently for reasons not clear. It is now a noodles restaurant.

Cartahge Restaurant was on Dongzhimenwai, operated by our friend Adele – he has gone through some failed restaurant, It was supposed to be North African cuisine like couscous and other. I tried it a few times. Now gone and replaced by some Pakistani restaurant.

East End was a small restaurant and delicatessen place, very nice and good food, that still stayed some time after its related restaurant Apollo next door vanished, a very nice restaurant that seemed to be doing well. We miss both Apolla and East End,

Orbit was a very nice bar restaurant in front of the Workers Stadium, with impressive decoration and wine selection. But it did not attract customers and it is now a Chongqing Hotpot restaurant “Chunying”.

Next to my home, Julong Garden, there has been an endless series of shops and restaurants in the same location. Seems it has bad karma because nothing seemed to survive for long. Last victim was a Xinjiang Restaurant, Ayisha, pretty good, no idea why it closed. It is now Jiangxi restaurant.

I could go on and on as the list of failed restaurants is endless. A restaurant like Morel’s that has been in operation for 25 years is really an exception.

Pushkin Literature Restaurant

As a last example, this Russian restaurant near Morel’s Restaurant was very popular at some point. They also had Russian staff. With COVID the Russians disappeared, Here some media articles.
Thebeijinger: Pushkin Literary Restaurant, a Throwback Hit? We’re Putin Our Money on It. Borscht, breaded pies, blinis and other Russian classics are available at the Yoolee Plaza restaurant.
CGTN:: Russian cuisine brings Russian literature to Beijin
Global Times:  Russian Alexander Pushkin restaurant gains popularity in China, but not just for food.

I visited several times: 10 June 2021, 27 January 2019, 11 February 2019, 6 March 2019. And one day it closed without much explanation.

 

 

Benelux Gala in Beijing

Posted on by Gilbert Van Kerckhove

 

A remarkable restart

The Benelux Gala in Beijing was held in Chao Hotel on 14 June 2005, officially called “A Night in the Benelux” and organized by the Benelux Chamber of Commerce North. Over 150 guests enjoyed a great evening of entertainment, food, Luxembourg wine and mingling.
Some of the VIP guests:
H.E. Bruno Angelet, Ambassador of the Kingdom of Belgium, H.E. Rol Reiland, Ambassador of the Grand Duchy of Luxembourg, Huub Buise, Minister-Counselor for Economy and Trade of the Kingdom of Netherlands, Jens Eskelund, President of the European Union Chamber of Commerce in China and Karel Eloot, President of the Benelux Chamber of Commerce in Shanghai.
Three outstanding community leaders (one from each Benelux country) were presented an award, and yes one for myself, presented by our Belgian Ambassador and the President of the Chamber – much appreciated for the honor.
An Event Recap –  A Night in the Benelux – can be viewed of this link.
Here a PDF of the Recap: 250614 250614 Benchamrecap

A new chapter

The Benelux Gala in Beijing is the second event organized by the Bencham (as we still call it), after the General Assembly that elected a new board. Members: President Antoine Bruneel, Vice Presidents Koen Naber and Pierre Mirochnikoff, Treasurer Grace Shi, and Secretary Romuald Bronchart.

See the full team in the pictures.

A drink was held in Beijing East Hotel on 26 May where Antoine and Pierre were interviewed.

 

The Gala

See a selection of the many pictures of the Benelux Gala in Beijing, with Belgian beers, special juice and handicraft boxes from the sponsors.

I invited my two video girls to shoot some video and pictures.
The quiz used some of my food videos.
Also pictured are Didier Denayer, AWEX, Audrey Fouillard, Proviseure Lycée Français, Rotarians Didier, Tom and Magnus. And many others…
A short personal souvenir video: Beijing Bencham Ball
On 14 June 2025 great Benelux Chamber of Commerce Ball in Beijing Chao Hotel.

 

Yves Leterme in Beijing

Posted on by Gilbert Van Kerckhove

 

Promoting Belgium

On 13 June 2025 I had the honor to have dinner with Yves Leterme in Beijing. He is the former Prime Minister from Belgium.
The dinner was organized for a group of diverse Chinese business people, to promote Belgium as a potential location to invest and as a trade partner. It is important a country as Belgium maintains contact with the Chinese business world. Event was organized by the Alliance of Enterprises Leadership (AEL).

The dinner was organized in this high-end restaurant: Baijiada Yuan (白家大院), not very far from Beijing University. See here a review of the restaurant.
Their website does not work anymore: www.baijiadayuan.cn.
This was once the home of Prince Li in the Qing Dynasty (清太祖努尔哈赤儿子礼亲王).

250613 Leterme.mov

Short video on Douyin done by a participant

My friend Lydia arranged my participation and helped for the translation of my short speech.
Besides the special Beijing dishes we had a dance and music performance. We also tasted a special Chinese liquor (“baijiu”).
Mr. Leterme has made several trips to China. His tour includes other cities such as Wuhan, Xian, Chengdu, Zhoukou (Henan) and the Jiangsu Week of Grand Canal Culture.
He also has dined in Morel’s Restaurant at the time of the Beijing 2008 Olympics, his picture is on the wall with former ambassador Bernard Pierre and Renaat Morel.
I had a chance to chat with Mr. Leterme and introduce my “China Story”.

About Mr. Leterme

Yves Leterme is a Belgian politician, a leader of the Christian Democratic and Flemish party (CD&V). He was the prime minister of Belgium from March 2008 to December 2008, and later from November 2009 to December 2011.
Leterme has also served as minister of Foreign Affairs, deputy prime minister and minister of Budget, Institutional Reforms, Transport and the North Sea in the Belgian federal government. He is a former minister-president of Flanders and Flemish minister of Agriculture and Fisheries. Despite his French name, Leterme is Flemish. He is fluent in Dutch, French and English.
Yves Leterme was born on 6 October 1960 in the city of Wervik in the province of West Flanders. He is half-Walloon, and grew up fluently bilingual. He studied law at the Catholic University of Leuven where he received a LL.B. degree (Bachelor of Laws) in 1981 and then studied at Ghent University where he obtained a BSc degree in Political Science (1983), a LL.M. degree (Master of Laws) (1984), and a MPA degree (Master of Public Administration) in 1985.
Yves Leterme was born on 6 October 1960 in the city of Wervik in the province of West Flanders. He is half-Walloon, and grew up fluently bilingual. He studied law at the Catholic University of Leuven where he received a LL.B. degree in 1981 and then studied at Ghent University where he obtained a BSc degree in Political Science (1983), a LL.M. degree (1984), and a MPA degree in 1985.
In 2019, Leterme became co-chairman of the board of directors of the Chinese investment fund ToJoy. The appointment was criticized by international relations professor Jonathan Holslag, citing the close relations between ToJoy and the Chinese political establishment. (Note: Jonathan Holslag is well-known to be strongly anti-China…)

Source: Wikipedia

 

 

Old China Hands Lunch 6 June

Posted on by Gilbert Van Kerckhove

After the Dragon Boat Festival

The Old China Hands Lunch 6 June had a turnout of 25, with many members unable to attend due to travel and workload. As usual lively conversation.

See the menu, most dishes in the pictures:

  • ham salad andalouse OR puff pastry with chicken curry Indian style OR fresh daily soup
  • veal sausage with curry sauce served with salad and Belgian fries OR sliced roast beef with gravy served with cauliflower and pan fried potatoes OR pan-fried snapper Meunière served with daily vegetables and boiled potatoes
  • daily desert

Next lunch Friday 4 July.

Renaat Morel, the Chef

Morel’s Restaurant and Café has become a real institution in Beijing, the only real Belgian restaurant and with a solid track record of 25 years.
My first visit to the restaurant was in February 2000, just after returning to Beijing after nearly five years in Shanghai.

Renaat is an incredible story teller with an impressive memory. But writing is not his strong point, so I help him time to time to play secretary and to record bits and pieces of his past.
Renaat has an imposing career and I still record new facts about his memorable adventures as a top chef.
See here my latest update: Renaat Chef
Before landing in China, Renaat worked in major five-star hotels in France, Belgium, Switzerland and Holland such as:

  • Hôtel Hermitage Monte-Carlo – Monaco
  • Hotel Barrière Le Majestic Cannes and Sporting Club of Cannes
  • InterContinental Carlton Cannes – Cannes
  • Le Cap Estel – Eze Bord de Mer (between Nice and Monaco)

He served an impressive list of famous people, see the PDF.
On top of his 3 Michelin Stars he accumulated an endless list of titles and awards and he has been interviewed by many Chinese and foreign media.
Before setting up his restaurant in Beijing Renaat was executive chef in Beijing Air Catering Company, Crown Plaza Xiamen Seascape, Henan Zhongzhou Crown Plaza Hotel and Beijing Kunlun Hotel.

Honduras and Belgian embassies events

Posted on by Gilbert Van Kerckhove

Honduras Embassy event

There is a common link between the Honduras and Belgian embassies events: a Belgian Princess.
Thanks to Ms. Leyla I attended the reception in the Intercontinental hotel Sanlitun.
The theme: “The night of the Feathered Serpent: Celebrating Friendship. In the Year of the Wooden Snake, we commemorate the Second Anniversary of Diplomatic Relations between Honduras and China, inspired by the Feathered Serpent-a symbol of wisdom and renewal in Mayan culture, bridging our histories and traditions.”
Guest of Honor: Honduran Minister of Tourism, Ms. Yadira Esther Gómez.
Impressive performance of the national hymns and interesting presentation of Mayan legacy.

Ambassador Salvador Moncada, who is married to the Belgian Princess Esmeralda (Marie-Esméralda – Lady Moncada)), who could not attend.
Princess Marie-Esméralda is the youngest child of the late Leopold III of Belgium and his second wife, Lilian Baels, Princess of Réthy. She is a journalist, author, documentary-maker, environmental activist and a campaigner for the rights of women and indigenous people.
Sir Salvador Moncada is a Honduran-British pharmacologist who was supposed to receive the Nobel Prize, did not get it and was instead decorated by Queen Elizabeth II.
See here more details about the Princess in Dutch and English: 231018 Esmeralda
Also happy to meet HE Paulette Bethel Ambassador of the Commonwealth of The Bahamas and HE Martin Mpana ambassador Cameron

Trio Zadig in Beijing

Belgian Trio Zadig performed in the Belgian Embassy in Beijing on 22 May 2025. Watch here a short video of their performance.
This concert marks the kick-off of the exciting event series, “A Sense of Europe”, with a focus on a Steinway Grand Piano currently residing at the Embassy. (on loan from Peter Ritzen).
Miclen LaiPang, the violinist, Marc Girard Garcia, the cellist and Guillaume Vincent on the piano captured the essence of Mendelssohn and Piazzolla.
The Trio brought exceptional instruments with them: a “Charles Castleman” Antonio Stradivarius c. 1707 violin (on generous loan by the esteemed Belgian academic institution Queen Elisabeth Music Chapel) as well as an Andrea Guarneri c. 1675 cello, both accompanied by the embassy’s Steinway Grand Piano Model B.

The performance was really top level and impressive. We were served drinks and a buffet.
I finally met Princess Esmeralda with her husband HE Sir Salvador Moncada, ambassador of Honduras.