A spectacular show plus tasty Chinese food with a Mongolian touch is on offer by Tenggeli-Tala, one of the most popular Mongolian eateries in town. The words Tenggeli-Tala are Mongolian for "heavenly grassland".

Here, you can watch Mongolian dance, song and fashion shows, as well as get to taste some of the best specialties Inner Mongolia has to offer. The restaurant has two floors. The second floor has a spacious stage with tables set in a terrace style. At the entrance of the 2nd floor is the buffet area, where there are more than 200 dishes from which to select. There is a roast whole goat, a delicacy of the area, which is known for its vast pasture. Other foods characteristic of the region include grilled mutton skewers, braised mutton legs, as well as rolls and noodles made of oat flour with mutton or mushroom soup.

The open kitchens offer plenty of other local choices. Prepared on-the-spot are typical Beijing-style boiled mutton slices and beef giblets with sesame sauce, four jar-boiled soups, teppanyaki meats, and hand-grabbed boiled mutton.

A bain-marie station has a dozen Chinese dishes, both with meat and vegetables, while a salad station has a huge plate of green vegetables, as well as an array of sauces. There is also Japanese sushi and a dessert station.

Enjoy unlimited flow of local beer, fruit drinks, local liquor such as a Mongolian milk spirit, and red wines, as well as ice-cream.

The theater restaurant's performing troupe left the audience wowed with their theme show of Ordos Wedding. The show, which the troupe has performed on almost 3,000 nights, displays the lives of the Mongolians, with talented singers, dancers and stunt performers. There is a scene when the bride and bridegroom come into the room on a camel, which is a fantastic show of beautiful Mongolian folk clothing.

There are more choices of food for dinner than for lunch, most notably crabs and prawns. The performance at noon lasts 45 minutes, or an hour in the evening.

The restaurant's ground floor is classically decorated with metals and leather. This floor offers a la carte only but has no performances, except a fashion show from 8-8:10pm.

The restaurant is gearing up for a fancy Christmas Eve with four hours of celebration and performances from 8pm-midnight on December 24. Famous Chinese pop stars will be invited to perform, besides the usual programs. There will also be a lucky draw for a grand prize. The menu will feature spotted deer, wild goose, wild chicken and wild duck. Tickets for the front rows cost 1,388 yuan per person, and for back rows 1,688 yuan per person.

Lunch 11:30am-1:30pm, dinner 6-9pm. Performance 12:15pm, 7:30. Buffet costs 188 yuan per person at lunch, and 316 yuan per person at dinner.

Location: 500 meters to the north of the first traffic light east of Wukesongqiao, West Fourth Ring Road, Xicui Lu, Haidian District.

(China Daily December 13, 2007)