SHI TOU MEN KAN

The vegetarian buns are famous. I ordered the bean sprouts and fennel and egg vegetarian buns. The fennel was a bit old. I also ordered small meat buns, pancakes, rice crust, and barley and red bean porridge. Personally, I think the small meat buns are the best (^^). We arrived at the restaurant a little after ten in the morning. There were no customers. The waiters wore masks. The service and environment were good.

It is in the same class as Goubuli, but this one features vegetarian buns. However, the business is obviously not as good as Goubuli, probably because of management problems. The vegetarian buns are delicious, with fermented bean curd fillings. The others tasted average.

Shitoumenkan Subao Shop was originally Zhensuyuan, which opened on Gongnan Street in the late Qing Dynasty. The owner built a threshold at the door to prevent summer rain from entering the shop, so it got the nickname "Shitoumenkan". Later, Empress Dowager Cixi bestowed the name "Shitoumenkan Subao" and established this shop name.

For more information and photos about the food in Tianjin Nanshi Food Street, please refer to my Ctrip travel notes "Every city's food and snacks have a flavor and a landscape - Strolling around Tianjin Nanshi Food Street and tasting Shitoumenkan vegetarian buns and Baiji mutton dumplings", link address: http://you.ctrip.com/travels/tianjin154/3466766.html

You must try the Shitoumenkan vegetarian buns in Tianjin! Their signature Tianjin-style vegetarian buns are the bean sprouts, dried tofu, vermicelli noodles, wood ear mushrooms, eggs, and a combination of cilantro and fermented tofu. The flavors are incredibly delicious! Many tourists who have tried them claim Shitoumenkan is the best vegetarian bun they've ever had.

As expected of a century-old restaurant, the flavor remains unchanged. The new renovations have revitalized the restaurant's charm, and the dishes embody the traditional Tianjin flavors. However, the service is overly commercialized, with paper towels, which should be free, now being charged. This negatively impacts the restaurant's image as a century-old institution.

The vegetarian buns still taste the same as before. I ate here 20 years ago and I often ate here when I came to Tianjin. They were very cheap back then. This time I dined here and tried the bean sprout vegetarian buns, which I thought tasted okay. I also ordered single gluten, stir-fried buns, sweet and sour fish fillets, and cabbage and jellyfish skin. They all tasted good. I will come again next time if I have the chance.

I'd already researched online that everyone in Tianjin eats Shitoumenkan vegetarian buns, so I went to Nanshi Street specifically to buy some. They come in eight flavors. I bought them at 10:00 AM, so they were a little cold. By the time I ate them at 12:00 PM, they were completely cold. The taste was average, probably because they were cold, but nothing spectacular. They cost 2 yuan each, and you can buy one of each flavor. I also tried the Tianjin specialty, Guobacai (rice crust dish). Honestly, I don't think most people would like it; it was terrible.