AtestamenttocitizenslivinginChina’snorthernmostprovinceHeilongjiang’scapitalcityHarbin,theMadieerHotelisatime-honoredbrandboastingalonghistoryandrichculture.ItwasestablishedbyaRussianJewnamedJosephKaisp,andwasreputedtobethelargestandmostluxurioushotelinEastAsia,regardedasAsia’s“PalaceofVersailles.”
Intheearly20thcentury,alongsidethecompletionoftheChineseEasternRailway,immigrantsfromRussia,France,ItalyandotherEuropeannationsconvergedaroundHarbin’sZhongyang(Central)Avenue.TheMadieerHotelthusbuiltitsEuropean-stylerestaurant,offeringtraditionalRussiandishes,aswellasEnglishandFrenchdelicacies,cookedfromauthenticingredientswithexoticflavors.Cafésandbarswerealsoaddedasservices.
MadieerhasstrictcriteriaintermsofEuropean-stylecookingtechniquesandtable-settingservices.Onlyifadishstrictlyfolloweditsexactingstandardswasitservedatitstables.Thecolddishesinsummerhadalwaystobekeptice-cold,whilethehotdishesinwinterhadtobeservedhotfromthefire.Allwaitersandwaitresseshadinstructionstoplacewhitetowelsunderneathplates.Recordsrecallthatalargenumberofpersonagesappreciateditsculinaryartsanddeliciousdishes,fromthelastemperorofChina,PuYi,andthe“MotherofModernChina”MadameSoongChingLingtoU.S.journalistEdgarSnow,fromPekingOperamasterMeiLanfangtothegreatliteraryfigureGuoMoruo,aswellasmasterartistXuBeihong.
Nowadays,MadieerboastsbothEuropeanandChinesestylerestaurants,thelatterbeingfamousforShandongcuisine–amajorbranchoftheeighttraditionalChineseculinaryschools.PrestigiouschefQuTongxiangoncerecordedover420dishesinhisChineseCookbook,amongwhichtheFishCasserolewasthemostfamous.
LiuRuiqiangisthe25thgeneralmanagerofMadieerRestaurant.Assoonashetookthepost,heinvited80-year-oldchefZhangLezhu,whoonceworkedattheMadieerin1952,togetherwithhistwogenerationsofapprentices,toagainpresentthelong-lostoriginal40Russiandishestoclientele.
Zhangnowtakesaone-hourbusridetoMadieereachdaytopresideovertheculinaryprocess.Borscht,orRussianPottageSoup,representsacentenaryofhistoricalcuisine,differentfromthesoupsservedinalltheotherEuropean-stylerestaurantsinHarbin,itismadethroughamoresophisticatedprocessandhasricherfragrance.
Inearly2016,Madieer’sCraftBeerHouseonthefirstfloorofitshotelopenedtothepublic.WinemakersandtopchefsareinvitedfromEuropetoofferabountyofexperienceinvintageproductionandculinaryskills.Thesettingofthebarcatchestheeye:darkgreenleatherseatsmidstwoodenpillars,rawbrickandstone.Whilesavoringfashionablecraftbeerinvariousflavors,oneindulgesinaperfectblendofthecultureofboththemodernandhistoricalMadieer.