Sanyuanli Market sits in a single-storey hall in the embassy district of Chaoyang, a short walk from Liangmaqiao. It grew up around the foreign community that lives nearby, and the result is a market that carries two inventories at once: imported groceries on one side of the aisle, and a thoroughly ordinary Beijing wet market on the other.
The imported side
Here you can find cheeses from France and Italy, jars of olives and capers, fresh basil and rocket, pasta, tinned tomatoes, good olive oil, imported coffee beans, breakfast cereals, and a wide range of sauces and spices that are difficult to buy elsewhere in the city. Restaurateurs and hotel chefs shop here, which keeps the quality high. Prices are European rather than Chinese, but for anyone self-catering in Beijing this is the place that makes it possible.
The local side
The rest of the hall is a normal neighbourhood market. Vegetables arrive before dawn and are sold by weight, with seasonal greens stacked in crates. There are tofu stalls, noodle and dumpling wrappers, a butcher, live fish tanks, and a section of dried mushrooms, beans and pickles. Vendors are used to foreign customers and will help you work out quantities. Bring a bag, because plastic ones are now charged for.
Eating on the spot
A row of small counters runs along one side of the market selling prepared food. Look for dumplings boiled to order, hand-pulled noodles, pancakes and grilled skewers, plus a few stalls doing sushi and sandwiches aimed at the lunchtime office crowd. It is cheap, fast and one of the more interesting lunches in this part of the city. Seating is minimal, so most people take their food outside.
Getting there and timing
The market is a five to ten minute walk from Liangmaqiao station on Line 10, and also reachable from Sanyuanqiao on Lines 10 and the Airport Express. It opens early and runs through the day until early evening, with the busiest period between eight and ten in the morning. It is closed for a few days around Lunar New Year. Bring cash as a backup, though mobile payment is accepted almost everywhere.
