Quan Ju De Roast Duck Restaurant

Chain restaurants are rarely places that serious food lovers tend to frequent—unless of course the restaurant is of the Spoon or Nobu variety. The Quanjude chain has no gourmet pretensions; instead it focuses its energy on producing one dish supremely well. Their ducks come from special farms and are roasted in open, wood-fired ovens, so the skin reaches the correct level of crispness. Delicious. Compared with tony hotel outlets, Quanjude restaurants are rough-and-ready, but visitors and locals come here for one reason: They offer a satisfying dish that goes down well with Chinese tea or cold Tsingtao beer—not recommended for dieters or health-food fanatics! There are several branches including this one, in an old hutong.