School's in Session with the City's Best Chefs

While we plebians are righteously picking apart the city's dining industry, the real culinary kings of Beijing are busy sizing up our ability to appreciate truly innovative cuisine. "We have to educate the palette" Blu Lobster's Brian McKenna reminded me over a mind-expanding tasting menu that included such enlightening concoctions as an after-dinner mint disguised as toothpaste and a digestive aid dolled up as mouthwash.

Inaccessible though that menu might initially seem, McKenna is actually one of several culinary experts, including a few Michelin-starred ones, who are enticed by the opportunity to nurture-not neglect-the taste buds of a city undergoing development at a break-neck speed. Both McKenna and The Regent Hotel's Chef Tobias Gensheimer agree that the local crowd needs at least another five to ten years of basic gastronomic education. While taking in lunch at The Regent's Bar & Grill Restaurant, Chef Gensheimr confided in me, "Beijingers need to be able to understand and to read our menus first."

Both chefs agree there's no need to re-invent the basics. Gensheimer serves a solid steak, and McKenna utilizes a temperature-precise water bath to ensure a moist roast rib. McKenna's menu openly relies on tradition, but he's looking toward new techniques made possible by tech innovations. "This isn't molecular cuisine-I'm not toying with the basic chemical composition of food. We're not science nerds. We're only using improved techniques to make the originals we already love that much better."

Part of McKenna's efforts include rolling things out slowly: he uses only four to five ingredients per dish, utilizes local products and methods and is always willing to come out and explain what he's doing behind the scenes. "There's no need to overwhelm," he explained. "This is not a shrinking market and there's no reason to be exclusive and hard-to-understand."

All of which is good news to long-term Beijingers, as the degree of variety, and the lowest common denominator, will both continue to improve with time. Just be a responsible student and continue attending class.

Manuela Zoninsein