烤肉季饭庄 Kaorouji @Shichahai, Beijing

Long ago, hubby had to travel for work, and he came to 烤肉季饭庄 Kaorouji for dinner alone. This time, there are 2 of us but eating the same amount of food, haha!

This was one of the most popular 清真 halal establishment and apparently, they started 160 years ago in 1848!

It started with a farmer whose surname was 季 who sold roast beef and mutton along 什刹海 Shichahai as a street hawker back in the days of Qing Dynasty. The meat dishes were so fragrant they attracted many praises from the people in the many big mansions along Shichahai, and began calling him 烤肉季. In those days, when it comes to roast meat in Beijing, people always say 南宛北季, with 北季 referring to 烤肉季 in Shichahai.

Hence, we definitely need to check out this place!

We came to the main outlet at 什刹海 Shichahai during dinner time (where we saw many 百年老店, aka old establishments). Despite being peak dinner hour, we only had to wait about 5 minutes before being shown to our table (I think there were 3 floors of tables available).

• 烤羊肉 Roast Mutton (RMB$108 for 500g): The roast mutton was slightly gamey, but it was not overpowering. There were some onions and other vegetables that helped balance out the meatiness. I generally tend to avoid mutton, but I enjoyed this dish very much.
• 芝麻烧饼 Sesame Cake (RMB$2 per piece): The sesame cake had a very interesting texture. It was quite dense but rather soft at the same time, and we could taste the layers. There was also a strong hint of cinnamon. Served warmed, it went well with the mutton.
• 清炒穿心莲 Andrographis Paniculata (RMB$52 for small):   The vegetables were slightly bitter, with sweetness coming from the wolfberries, and it complemented the mutton well. In fact, this dish was recommended by the waitress as it was supposed to help relieve the heatiness of the mutton. We ate this quickly, as the waitress advised that it may turn sourish when cold.

Overall, we enjoyed every item that we ordered! Do remember to drink more water after eating the mutton.