The Cultural Revolution in China is definitely NOT over yet. There’s one more restaurant standing—in the outskirts of Beijing, just outside on the East side of the fifth ring road.
Kid you not. This is one place where the atmosphere is VERY revolutionary and where nationalism is instilled above yourself.
This is one place where comrades serve their customers with agility and with utmost efficiency (though twice, they ignored my request for additional chopsticks and an extra chair in our table).
This place is uniquely called, The Cultural Revolution Restaurant.
The name itself is intriguing and sounds like there’s something to offer. So, 12 of us braved the Saturday afternoon traffic in this city and went to check out this place.
I was actually not excited for the food but rather excited for the performances.
When we arrived there, we were greeted by a lady garbed in a plain ugly green army uniform with a red band on his left arm. She wore a green hat with a star in front of it. She guided us to our table and whoaaaaa….. the place was huge. It was like there’s a mass banquet going on there. It was festive.
The walls were painted with propaganda photos and slogans of the Cultural Revolution. Chairma Mao’s massive portrait used as a backdrop on stage dominated the whole space of the performance area. It looked like The Chairman itself was looking down at his comrades who were celebrating the victory of war!
The waiters and the waitresses were dressed in Red Army’s uniform—and so are the performers. They were young and did their job like a pro—in terms of how a soldier walks, talks and salutes. They move in unison when they perform in group. And yes, the ubiquitous red book (with the Chairman’s words of wisdom) can’t be missed.
Performances vary from singing to dancing and to interpretative storytelling.
There was this dramatization of the Chinese and Japanese war–which, of course, the Chinese won it.
Dances were depictions of how the peasants worked in the countryside in the name of the Party. They toiled lands and fought hard and worshipped Mao like no other.
Songs were very revolutionary and nationalistic. There was one time when all the Chinese customers stood up from their chair, waved the red banner and sang the song of courage with pride and enthusiasm.
I was blown away by this part. We were the only ones who didn’t stand, of course. It was an amazing display of Chinese pride.
Most of the customers seated were oldies (but not the senior citizen types). They might be in their 40’s and 50’s. For sure, those songs rang a bell. Or maybe, it struck a chord in their hearts.
The food is forgettable. My students warned me not to go because the food is not good. And it’s true. I didn’t eat that much really. I just a few pieces of meat and small serving of noodle. And the soup was a disaster. I only speak for myself, not for everybody.
Customers have to spend RMB700 above per table.
Just be aware that the restaurant is far. And it’s very hard to get a real taxi when going back to the city. However, there black taxis which will charge you more than you expect.
