Our story begins in the northwest of China
"Murger" is probably the world's oldest sandwich or hamburger. This type of bread dates back to the Qin Dynasty (221 BC - 206 BC) and the meat to the Zhou Dynasty (1045 BC to 256 BC). Murger, or Roujiamo - literally means "meat sandwiched in bread", is a popular Chinese street food. Its origin traces back to Qin Dynasty (221 BC - 207 BC), when the famous general Baiqi needs handy food supply for his troops. With simmered, chopped-up tender meat topped into Chinese burger bread, Roujiamo is commonly considered the Chinese equivalent to the Western hamburger. Bai’s soldiers used to tie it on their waists, since it comes handy anywhere they marched. Roujiamo first gained its fame as it helped the soldiers to stay energetic and invincible. It has then become a welcomed street food among folks and remained popular for more than 2000 years.
Discover Our Signature Dishes
MURGER
Murger, or Roujiamo - literally means "meat sandwiched in bread", is a popular Chinese street food. Its origin traces back to Qin Dynasty (221 BC - 207 BC), when the famous general Baiqi needs handy food supply for his troops. With simmered, chopped-up tender meat topped into Chinese burger bread, Roujiamo is commonly considered the Chinese equivalent to the Western hamburger. Bai’s soldiers used to tie it on their waists, since it comes handy anywhere they marched. Roujiamo first gained its fame as it helped the soldiers to stay energetic and invincible. It has then become a welcomed street food among folks and remained popular for more than 2000 years.
COLD NOODLE
Steamed cold noodles are made of rice or wheat. It was said that at the time of Qin Shi Huang, the first emperor of China, there was a year of drought which hindered the harvest, as a result, villagers can't afford their tribute to the empire. As the punishment was severe, villagers, in much fear, asked a wise man for help. The wise man came up with the strategy of paying tribute with steamed cold noodles instead of rice. Steamed cold noodles were made in four steps: firstly, the villagers socked the rice overnight; then, the socked rice was grind into juice; after that, the villagers left the juice to precipitate, they then skimmed off the top coat, and steamed the juice; lastly, they added various seasonings. Emperor Qin was impressed with this novel delicacy's soft, smooth, and varied taste. As a result, he decided to reduce the taxation of that year. Since then, the cold noodles were designated as a royal tribute.
HANDMADE NOODLE
It was said that once upon a time, a penniless scholar had to go to the capital city Xianyang for the Imperial Exam. While he was starving, he saw a noodle shop, from which the noise "biang-biang" lingered. There were long, white strips of kneaded doughs on the table. The master took a dough, pulled the two ends, hit it against the table several times and threw it into a potful of boiling water. Fetching a bowl filled with bean sprouts and vegetables, the master chef poured a large spoonful of noodles topped with hot oil fried red chilly pepper. The scholar finished the noodles but he had not a penny. Strategically, he decided to ask the waiter to writer the Chinese character “Biang” for him—the sound of when the strips of doughs hitting the table. The waiter had no idea. The penniless scholar then suggested that he wrote the character in exchange for the bill. That was how the complicated character “biang” was created.
CLAY POT FOOD (ADDITIONAL 20 MINUTES)
Once upon a time, an impoverished scholar studied in the bamboo forest every day. His wife needed to walk a long way into the forest to deliver him her home-made meals, which often cold by the time she met her husband. She was saddened seeing her husband swallowing cold meals. One day, after cooking a chicken soup in a casserole, the virtuous wife took a little nap. When she woke up, she was surprised that the chicken soup in the casserole was still hot. The smart wife then stew some rice noodles in the casserole. And from then on, since the casserole kept the meal warm, the husband never had to eat cold meals again. Nowadays, people still enjoy this dish in cold weather, since a warm dish brings a warm stomach, and a warm heart.
MURGER SOUP
More than a thousand years ago, when the first emperor of Song dynasty Zhao Kuangyin was still young and poor. He often wandered through streets as a beggar. One day, an owner of a Naan stand gave him two leftover Naans. But the Naans were too dry and hard to bite. Seeing that there was a butcher shop that was cooking mutton soup, Zhao asked for a bowl of soup. He broke the dry Naans into small pieces and socked them in the soup. The dry Naan absorbed the gravy and became soft and tasty. After the "feast", Zhao was soon filled with warmth and energy. Years later, even after Zhao became the first emperor of the Song Dynasty, he couldn’t forget the mutton soup. Since then, the soup became popular among folks.