CHENGDU, May 28 (Xinhua) -- For many international visitors, a food hunt in Chengdu, China's renowned culinary city, typically includes hot pot, Kung Pao chicken, Mapo tofu, and other tongue-numbing dishes. However, for more seasoned diners, the city's many Tibetan restaurants are a hidden gem.
At the heart of this UNESCO City of Gastronomy, it is common to see Tibetan restaurants busily receiving gourmands from China and beyond. Their recipe for success: a mixed offering of both traditional Tibetan foods and fusion dishes like Sichuan-style boiled yak slices and Tibetan-style pizzas.
A Rig owns one of such restaurants. She hailed from the Garze Tibetan Autonomous Prefecture in Sichuan Province, and started the business in Chengdu in 2000, a time when many Tibetans came to the provincial capital for job opportunities. As one of the most dynamic cities in western China, Chengdu has long attracted people from neighboring regions.
The eatery began by serving other Tibetan migrants in the city, but over time, its menu has broadened to satiate a variety of tastes.
"We sought opinions and learned new recipes from diners hailing from different regions, so that they can relish the original flavors from their hometown," said Tsenam Gemey, A Rig's daughter who also works at the eatery.
For instance, the menu was once dominated by meat-and-dairy-based sets, which were tailored to the Tibetan people's high-calorie requirements while living on cold plateaus. The A Rig family combined traditional Chinese and Western cooking techniques to introduce an assortment of stir-fried vegetables and pair them with low-salt meat dishes.
The restaurant's signature dish is stir-fried yak with flatbread. Based on a traditional mutton recipe from Tibetan herders in northwest China's Qinghai, A Rig chose yak, the Tibetan favorite and light-flavored meat, as the main ingredient, and reduced the use of strong spices for a more refreshing taste.
The family spent nearly three years perfecting the dish. Now it is one of the most popular Tibetan dishes in Chengdu, adopted by many other Tibetan restaurants here, A Rig said with pride.
Such modifications helped the restaurant win the top rank among Tibetan diners in Chengdu on Dianping, the Chinese equivalent of Yelp, making it an attraction by itself at the city's major tourist venue.
The success of A Rig's restaurant reflected the decades-long evolution of Tibetan cuisine in Chengdu. According to Chengdu's market regulation administration, the city is now home to 84 restaurants dedicated to Tibetan cuisine, with another 36 shops providing Tibetan-style sweet tea.
The rise of Tibetan restaurants in Chengdu is fueled by the large Tibetan population in the city, the growing popularity of the Tibetan culture, and the inclusiveness of the city's food culture, said Li Jin, a professor at the Center for Tibetan Studies of Sichuan University.
The "China Travel" craze and Chengdu's meteoric climb to social media stardom in the last several years have also contributed to their rapid rise to popularity.
As Chengdu received 2.38 million inbound tourists last year, a year-on-year increase of 44.3 percent, Tsenam Gemey noticed a substantial increase in international diners.
"The restaurant receives foreign diners every day, many of whom experienced the Tibetan culture from western Sichuan for the first time," she said, attributing the influx to visa-free policies and guidance apps that facilitate surging independent travels.
"Many foreign tourists find us via viral food rankings on social media, which is very different from the days when we only depended on guidebooks and tour guides," she added.
Beyond business success, A Rig is proud of how her restaurant has opened doors to a more modern world for her fellow kinsmen.
"Many of my staff came from less-developed regions, and some could hardly read or write when we opened the eatery. Now they can speak fluent Mandarin and even some English, with skills to pursue their dreams anywhere in China," she said. ■
