Kou Fu Ju Restaurant, Beijing

This deceptively nondescript restaurant, around the corner from Silk Alley, serves tasty, hearty and reasonably priced dishes from the Hunan Province, home of Mao Zedong. Wooden blinds line the walls, lending the place the rustic atmosphere of a genuine Hunanese village. A wall-board (in Chinese only) advertises the local specials, such as rice noodles, either fried or in soup, with a variety of flavorings. These are excellent value at around CNY7. Other dishes include fish strips cooked and served in bamboo(CNY35), and hong shao rou, reputed to have been Mao's favorite. An English version of the menu is available.