The menu of Jia He Yu Xian Restaurant (嘉魚河鮮) looks like a fish encyclopedia, with nearly 30 different species.

The restaurant was born after Li Peng visited a friend in Sichuan province's Yibin city, where they fished on the Yangtze River for three days. The Beijinger was so impressed by the experience, and by the tasty fish, that when he returned to Beijing, he opened this restaurant, specializing in serving fresh, high-quality fish in a hot pot.

Besides catfish, there are swordfish, pipe carp, shovel-jaw fish, and many more, which are sent daily by car from Yibin, to guarantee freshness. Li says the fish from the upper and middle reaches of the Yangtze are not just tasty, but also low on fat, high on protein and minerals.

A tasting of Yangtze pipe carp, roundnose catfish, and tadpole fish, proved they were super tender and fresh. They can be dry braised, but the best cooking method is to boil them in a hot pot. In addition to the spicy base soup, and healthy white herb soup, the fresh, sour tomato base soup is a must-try.

Besides fish there are typical Sichuan dishes. For appetizers, try sweet and sour cherry radish (櫻桃蘿卜), bacon and preserved meat platter (腌臘拼盤). For the main course there is spicy diced chicken with chili (辣子雞), sauted shredded beef with fresh ginger (仔姜牛肉片), and double cooked pork (回鍋肉). There are plenty of vegetables, dandan noodles, and dim sum. After one finishes the fish, there are beef, mutton and vegetables to use for the hot pot.

Restaurant decor is middle to upper level. Waitresses manage boiling times and divide food among guests. If one orders fish, then average spending will not be less than 200 yuan per person. The restaurant has plenty of private rooms, and is good for treating business partners over high quality Yangtze River fish.

10 am-10 pm. East gate of Huatengyuan Residential Area, Suite 101, 1/F, Bldg 9, 54th Residential Area, Southern East Third Ring Road, Chaoyang district. 010-8779-5955. 朝陽(yáng)區(qū)東三環(huán)南路54院9號(hào)樓1層101華騰園東門外