YAOXIAOSHU Vol.55: Big Pancakes at Chao Nei Market


The time I spent in Beijing passed by in a flash. I didn't feel it was fast during that period. Ten years later, many scenes still surface from time to time. An event, a person, or a food can all bring memories back to that period of time.

Chaonei Market is located on Chaonei Street within the Second Ring Road, near where I live. Back then, it was just an old alley, but now it has been transformed into the office buildings of Chaonei SOHO. At that time, I lived in one of the small courtyards. Entering the door, there is a deep path. In front of the house, there is a special tree, which is slanted.

I remember back then, I was very busy with work, the house was very small and there was no space to cook, so I basically just looked for food nearby. One time, when I was strolling to the second floor of Chaonai Market, before I could get close, a pleasant aroma wafted towards me. I left upon smelling it and found it was a pastry stand. The freshly cooked pancake has a golden crust with a hint of oil, looking multi-layered. It's crispy on the outside and tender on the inside, with countless chopped scallions on it. Every time I'm hesitating about how many to buy...

"How many young men are here?" "Come on..." Um... Half a sheet

So, during those days, I would often go to the pancake stand at Chaonai Market. Usually, I would buy half a pancake and have a bottle of beer, and that would make for a sumptuous dinner. That smell seems to be already in my memory.

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