Quite a number of rail travellers in China somehow seem to want to avoid onboard dining, even if the food isn’t too expensive. Some still prefer to carry their own pot noodles and get hot water onboard, or at stations. Of course, in this day and age of High Speed, this is now less the case.
by David Feng
Quite a number of rail travellers in China somehow seem to want to avoid onboard dining, even if the food isn’t too expensive. Some still prefer to carry their own pot noodles and get hot water onboard, or at stations. Of course, in this day and age of High Speed, this is now less the case.
A typical menu served on highspeed trains in China
As any experienced traveller might tell you, the best food onboard China’s dining cars can be found on the slower, Classic Rail services, also known as the Green Trains. This is so because open flames can still be used onboard, albeit in a strictly-controlled environment in the kitchen. Lots of these are local favourites, including tomato and egg soup, braised pork with green peppers, and others. What makes food onboard China’s dining cars special is that, in place of soft drinks, there’s soup in its place! This was something that I, as a Swiss, had to get used to pretty quickly. Of course, there’s also rice!
The food on Chinese trains is reminiscent of takeaway food
High Speed has much more strict safety requirements, so open flames aren’t allowed at all. Food there is usually prepared, then heated immediately after purchase. There are 18 rail regions in Mainland China, and each region usually has its own prepared food. I tend to favour those from Beijing and Shanghai, including my favourite, braised pork with preserved vegetables (Meicai Kourou; 梅菜扣肉). One thing you can expect for sure onboard Chinese trains is the absence of knives or forks. This makes it a great opportunity to act local — and to dive in with your chopsticks!
