When you're fed up with special fried rice and sweet-and-sour pork, this is the place to come. The huge portions of quality German food, such as pork schnitzel and bratwurst with sauerkraut, are just amazing. This place is such a find, though a little on the pricey side. The beers are, of course, great too, and they have live music most nights.

Paulaner Brauhaus: located behind the Lufthansa Department Store and the Kempinsky Hotel.

We have eaten at the Paulaner Brauhaus chain in both Beijing and Shanghai, and find them to be very similar. You can count on the food to be plentiful AND delicious! One of our favorites is the Sampler Platter, which has several different types of meat and sausages on it. This is such a big serving that we always split one, and usually still have food left over!

This trip, in Beijing, we opted for the outdoor Friday night barbecue buffet. Although I actually prefer the Sampler Platter, it was fun checking out the buffet for a change. I certainly wasn't disappointed with what I found on the buffet!