Afunti is Beijing's largest and best-known Uighur restaurant. The Halal Muslim cuisine ­ from China's far-flung Xinjiang Province ­ includes skewers of seasoned roasted lamb accompanied by Xinjiang salad and tasty nan bread. Arrive early to enjoy the feast before the Xinjiang musicians and dancers (including an Arabian snake dancer and bellydancer) jump out to perform at 8pm. The show is invariably followed by audience participation, which can often be better described as drunken revelry atop the tables. A fun night out, popular with tour groups.

Not many people, even in China, have heard of the Zanjia people of Anhui province, but this is an authentic restaurant featuring some of this culture's delicious "Dongbei" dishes. Try the "ma hua" (soft dough twists) with your oven-baked specialties and dumplings. The festive atmosphere is complemented by vivacious waitresses and traditional music.

This rustic location with wooden interior and Chinese lanterns hanging from the ceiling offers a chance to sample the cuisine of the Hakka people, a mountain people indigenous to China. Recommended are the "yanju xia" (shrimp skewers), "lancai sijidou" (green beans and ground pork), and the signature dish, "mizhi zhibao luyu," a secret recipe of melt-in-your-mouth boneless fish.

A chance to sample ethnic Huaiyang cuisine. The signature dish is the divine "dongpo rou" (pork in a clay pot). Also try "mizhi luyu" (deep-fried fish broiled in tin foil), or order a small pot of "dongpo rou," which is tender braised fatty pork. The more adventrous will try the "zuixia," also known as "drunken shrimp." But beware! The shrimp is served alive in a bowl of rice wine.

If you are in an adventurous mood and wouldn't mind a dish of fried snake, then sample the cuisine of the Hakka people, an ethnic minority from southern China. Located in the Houhai Lake area, this restaurant offers tasty "meicai kourou" (fatty pork with preserved vegetables), "sanbei ya" (three cups duck), and "zhuyan xia" (shrimp cooked in rock salt).