Healthy eating, the Chinese way

Located within the Ovation Qixiu (Seven Cultivation) Hotel in the Langfang Development Zone that lies between Beijing and Tianjin, Jiaming Tea House sports a minimalist decor that evokes a sense of calm within the sprawling 100,000-square-meter space where it promotes holistic wellness. Here, each dish has a poetic name that reflects the establishment's dietary philosophy which is modeled after theories in TCM.

Each table is also assigned a special waitress, or so-called nutritionist, who explains to diners the health benefits each dish has. According to our waitress, dishes on the special bailu menu, such as eggplant and the braised sweet-and-sour ribbon fish, help customers fend off common health problems caused by the dry autumn air, such as itchy skin, cough, sore throats and colds.

She explains that the eggplant, which is wrapped with a Chinese herb called polygonatum, or huangjing in Chinese, helps to reduce swelling, dissipate stasis, expel wind and promote energy circulation. Meanwhile, ribbon fish helps to enrich the yin, warm the stomach, as well as nourish the qi and blood.

"At Jiaming Tea House, the way we design a dish is similar to how a TCM doctor would write a prescription for herbs," explains Wu. "The concept behind crafting the dishes is based on a guiding principle in TCM called jun chen zuo shi."