Paprika power

If your experience with Hungarian food has never gotten beyond goulash - and not very good goulash in China sometimes - head to the Minzu Hotel for a surprising feast. The Hungarian embassy, visiting chef Andras Beretvas and the hotel kitchen team hosted a gala dinner last week to launch a Hungarian Food Festival at the hotel, and the dishes will be part of the buffet spread and lunch and dinner until April 15. Not to be missed: Hortobagyi stuffed pancakes, with a rich sauce redolent with the country's favorite spice, paprika. The pancakes, filled with minced and stewed meat, were originally invented for the 1958 World's Fair in Brussels. Lively folk dancing on Fridays gives a meal a party atmosphere, and look for a special selection of Hungarian wines on the final night. The buffet is 138 yuan ($21.35) at lunch and 158 yuan at dinner. The hotel usually has a foreign and a Chinese food festival running concurrently in its restaurants; a Hunan menu is running concurrently with the Hungarian.

51 Fuxingmennei Street, Xidan, Xicheng district, Beijing. 010-6601-4466.