Legation Quarter (前門23號）, located at 23 Qian Men Dong Da Jie, has been named among the most luxurious dining/entertainment places in Beijing. It is a complex of five buildings that house restaurants, exhibitions and art galleries. Some of the world’s finest dining establishments run by renowned chefs can be found here.
Under the current economic situation, however, prices at the restaurants have come down. The posh Spanish restaurant “Sadler”, for instance, now offers a business lunch for RMB160.
The reason I introduce “Legion Quarter” is not because of its chic streak, but because of its historical value.
The Quarter is very centrally and advantageously located at the south eastern corner of Tiananmen Square. The first US Embassy in China was located here (since 1903). After 1949, the founding of People’s Republic of China, the Quarter was converted for other purposes, including becoming the home of Dalai Lama and the office of Foreign Affairs Ministry. It was also here that former US Secretary of State Henry Kissinger met former China Premier Zhou Enlai during his secret visit to China in 1971.
For more info, check out its website here.
Btw, this upmarket dining/entertainment place was opened only last year, before the Beijing Olympic Games.
