It was Jasmine's first time trying Shandong cuisine — but one dish unexpectedly reminded her of home, thousands of miles away in Malaysia.

Jasmine Leong, a Malaysian student, and Zou Chang, a local from Shandong, sat down together at Feng Ze Yuan's flagship restaurant in Beijing's Zhushikou. For Zou, it was a taste of home; for Jasmine, a delicious surprise.

The cuisine brought out the best in every ingredient — from the humblest vegetable to the finest seafood — through masterful heat control and layered seasoning.

As the foremost of China's eight great culinary traditions, Shandong cuisine treats cooking as an art. And at Feng Ze Yuan, a time-honored brand founded in 1930, that art is alive and well — connecting the flavors of the past with the diners of today.