Can a fussy eater go to China

[Itsthelastsong]

I would love to go to China and have seen a great trip with Trailfinders for a trip to Beijing, a trip to the Great Wall of China and a panda nursery as well as a few other things. I’d love to go but I’m a fussy eater and wonder whether I’d be ok. Has anyone been that can tell me whether the food is very different from the uk and if so, are there lots of generic food places. Please excuse my ignorance. I’d rather ask for peoples’ genuine experiences than google it.

When you say fussy eater, what do you mean? Is beige fast food ok?

Do you eat rice? I'm really fussy but luckily I like fried rice so I was ok.

You'll have no issue in Beijing there's plenty of choice. But depending where you are going along the Great Wall you could be a lot more remote.

I ready somewhere that the food isn’t like what you’d get in a Chinese takeaway. I can’t eat chicken feet and suchlike. Beige fast food is fine, noodles, veg, chicken, beef, pasta etc.

I love rice.

DH has spent time working in China. TBH they eat anything, ANYTHING, DH was regularly served snake as an alternative to fish. Maybe find a genuine Chinese restaurant where the Chinese community choose to eat. It’s very different to the western ideas of Chinese food. see how you get on with genuine Chinese food in the UK to help you decide if a stay in China is a real possibility for you.

I am a very fussy eater. I’ve been to China twice. The big cities (Shanghai etc) have kfc, McDonald’s, Starbucks and all the big western chains.

i’m intolerant to quite a few things which mean I effectively eat vegan to exclude them. Buddhist temples do vegan food and are cheap. Not always used to non Chinese speaking tourists though.

in Shanghai a few restaurants were taking up the bio/organic/vegan trend.

in more remote areas depending on your level of fussy and what you eat and don’t eat it could be a problem.

yes they do eat chicken feet. Most Chinese food in China is nothing like Chinese takeaway food here.

You'll be fine then! In some of the remote places we were always served rice with a selection of dishes, but due to the language barrier I wasn't always sure what the other dishes were so in that case I just stuck to rice.

Fried rice with ham for breakfast every day! It got repetitive but I didn't starve.

In China most restaurants specialise in a particular type of Chinese food.

so like in the U.K. you have french restaurants and Italian restaurants and pizza restaurants (sub type of Italian).

restaurants could be sichuanese or Mongolian (not strictly Chinese) etc etc.

there are a whole variety of different cuisines within China. You can try some of them before you go.

sichuan for example is famously hot and spicy. There are fairly authentic restaurants in the U.K.

if you eat plain rice and plain noodles you will be fine, as the norm is dishes served with lots of rice or noodles as the base carb.

I've lived in China for 8 years, I wouldn't let it hold you back. You can get plain rice, fried rice, plain veh, noodles and fruit. If you're in major cities like Beijing and Shanghair you shouldn't have an issue.

I often go to China (Beijing) for work. In major cities you can get pretty much anything you want, and you don't have to eat the weird stuff. It's cheaper than the UK. Get a good translating app and go for it!

A friend of mine told the tour she was vegetarian. She enjoyed the food (and is quite adventurous usually) but knowing she would be provided with a meat-free option avoided anxiety about unidentified meat.

My experience travelling in China for work was that “fancy” meals were where I really struggled. Baby turtles, snake, chrysalis and so on offered with a great deal of pride. The plain rice and noodles came at the end rather than with the protein. Saying I am vegetarian works in first or second tier cities but even now is not great beneath that. But I’d say don’t let it stop you. Pack snacks and if yiu have a meal you enjoy see it as a bonus.

Tbh you’re going to be eating in tourist destinations there will be lots of beige options.