Last Orders: Morgan O'Hara, General Manager, The Hutong

“Last Orders” is a regular magazine column in which we ask noteworthy Beijingers to imagine their final meal before leaving the city for good.

The venue
I am an avid supporter of hole in the wall restaurants. To get my last meal started, I would bring my closest friends to Xinxin Xiangcai Guan (新新湘菜馆) near Dongzhimen.

The starters
I’d order a bevy of their ganguo (干锅). The spicier, the better. My business partner and friend Mark Thirlwall would be commenting on how amazing the food is, though he says that every time he eats well at a hole in the wall. Laughs all around, tastebuds tingling, and it’s onto the mains.

The mains
My lovely wife Ling loves fish, and we all love the Great Wall. To continue my last meal, we’d hop onto a creaky Jinbei and speed outside of the ring roads, past Huairou, past Mutianyu, on to Jiankou and to a local villager’s home. Slices of fresh trout – grilled, steamed, fried – and wild vegetable side dishes, with the Wall winding majestically in the backdrop.

The desserts
I have a sweet tooth and would like to go out with a bang – or rather, slip into a sugar-induced daze – so that I won’t be too sentimental to be leaving the city I love. For my last Beijing desserts, Kristen Lum from LumDimSum would lead our group to a place I haven’t yet been, but always wanted to try: the Pastry Library at S.T.A.Y. at the Shangri-La. My first selection: their meringue dessert with fresh raspberries and mint. And then we would peruse the Library’s acclaimed assortment that I’ve heard so much about, which isn’t Chinese, but is unique to Beijing.

The sendoff
To wrap things up, we’d take a bike ride downtown, sans the Respro masks. The air would be clean, the winds blowing, the stars shining, a full moon glowing over our nighttime chatter. My last hurrah in the Chinese capital!

Photo: Sui

This article originally appeared on page 38 of the March issue of the Beijinger.