My Typical Lunch This Month, Chinese Style Chinese Food. Typical Don Bei Canteen Food.

This is not exactly all the best Dalian in north eastern China has to offer but for a decent non expensive lunch during work these meals sure do the job. A restaurant like this is pretty much the same way a cafeteria looks and works in North America. They have a large selection of cooked dishes and you can choose which dishes you want to eat. So anyone can come and probably find a dish they will like.

Here we have pork meatballs, one of my favourite dishes though I have had it better at other places. Fried eggs and tomato something I can easily cook, I mean it's eggs and tomato. Vegetable fried rice which was pretty good and not something you can easily mess up. It cost 35RMB or less than $5US for everything. Quick and easy perfect for lunch hour rush.

Pork Dumplings and Hot Pumpkin Juice

Well dumplings are a classic in China. You don't have to walk far anywhere to find dumplings. On the other hand finding hot pumpkin juice isn't at all too common. The only other place I have had it was at a Korean roast duck restaurant downtown Dalian. Lot's of Koreans here so it's easy to find really good restaurants.

Another Delicious Canteen Meal

Here we have the fried rice again, the steamed rice here sucks. Also something I think translates to Winter Mellon* fried with some type of fungus called "Mu'r* which I really like as well. Winter melon isn't sweet but some how it fits in to the melon family. Kind of like a giant zucchini with a crunchier texture, it taste kind of bland by it's self but fried in spices it's up there on my favourite list.

This is pork belly and tofu. It's one of those dishes that they slow cook for hours. By far one the least healthy things I enjoy. I see other westerners pick away at the fatty bits but damn it's so good, it eat all and walk the long way home. It's salty and sweet and super tender. Nice big chunks of firm tofu was a nice touch.

Everyday it's something different. One thing about Chinese cuisine is you can eat something different everyday every meal and not eat the same thing twice for a year at least. However who does that?