FINE CUISINE

Chinese cuisine is served for most of the lunches and dinners. Meals will consist of several Chinese favorites including rice, vegetables and several different variations of meat dishes. Vegetarian meals or meals or alternative meals are available upon special request. Special dinner events such as the Peking Duck banquet and Mongolian Barbeque add to the experience. All breakfasts served on the tour are American buffet style. These include standard items such as cereal, eggs, breakfast meats, fruits and bread items. If you would like, you can explore the city and try some authentic Chinese dishes.

MEAL CODE	DESCRIPTION
AB	American Breakfast including eggs, breakfast meats, cereals, fruits and juices
L	Lunch Chinese style served on lazy-susan at local restaurants
D	Dinner Consisting of lazy-susan style Chinese dishes at local restaurants or hotels
SD	Specialty Dinner consisting of local delicacies such as Peking Duck Welcome Banquet, Yangtze River Captain's Banquet and Xian's Dumpling Banquet

Peking Duck

The Peking duck is a famous duck dish from Beijing that has been prepared since the Imperial era and is now considered a national dish of China. The dish is prized for its thin, crisp skin with authentic versions of the dish serving mostly the skin and little meat, sliced in front of the diners by the cook. Duck has been roasted in China for more than 600 years since the Southern and Northern Dynasties. Variation of the roast duck was prepared for the Emperor of China in the Yuan Dynasty and became a delicacy on the imperial menu. Experience the taste of authentic Chinese cuisine.

Dumplings

Dumplings are one delicacy served as a banquet dish that can come in a variety of delectable styles that create a plentiful cultural experience. They can be steamed, boiled, fried or roasted and come with an assortment of fillings in different kinds of shapes.

Sesame Balls (Jin deu)

While Chinese bakeries sell sesame seed balls throughout the year, they are especially popular during the Chinese New Year season. These sweet, deep-fried puffs of dough coated in sesame seeds are a mainstay of dim sum houses, but at New Year's they take on special meaning. Their round shape and golden color are considered lucky, and the fact that the dough balls swell as they're fried and increase several times in size is a happy metaphor for a small venture growing and bringing back a large return. Sesame seed balls are traditionally filled with a bit of sweet red bean paste - these scrumptious Chinese pastries are the equivalent to a jelly doughnut, only lighter and fluffier.