Zhang Xinggang, one of the owners of the grill house [Wang Wei/China.org.cn]

Humble beginnings

Armed with his new cooking skills, Zhang Xingdong returned to Beijing in August 2004 and rented a cooking space with a grill in a restaurant on a snack street just outside the west gate of Beihang University.

With a monthly rental charge of 1,200 yuan and a nightly turnover of only 100 yuan, business was not exactly profitable to begin with. "Business was really bad at the beginning," said Zhang Xinggang. "However, my brother was happy in his work, and was doing something he liked."

Then misfortune struck in October 2005, when the restaurant out of which Zhang Xingdong worked closed down. It was then that he decided to rent the whole space himself and open a grill house of his own. "To highlight his aim of running a professional barbecue restaurant, he chose the words 'research institute' when naming this restaurant."

Seized by his idea, the older Zhang proclaimed: "Let us brothers do something together again!" It was upon hearing these words that Zhang Xinggang finally took his brother's idea seriously. Initially the "research institute" only had ten tables for customers who the brothers humorously called "visiting scholars".

File photo: One of the funny slogans posted on the wall of the grill house.

The opportunity to grow and develop came in the form of the 2006 football World Cup.

In the same year, a number of houses in the snack street were pulled down by the government, according to Zhang Xinggang. "Many restaurants moved quite early, but we stayed until the end," he said. "We both like football very much, so I had been thinking about providing food and entertainment for customers long before the beginning of the World Cup."

In a further twist of fortune, the two restaurants near the "institute" moved around the time of the World Cup, so the brothers set up a big TV screen outside along with around 40 tables for patrons. The alfresco setting was perfect for summer crowds looking to relax with a combination of good grilled food, beer and football.

During World Cup month, the "research institute" was a magnet for friends to meet, eat, drink and watch.

The end of the month-long festival of football meant an end to the "research institute", at least in its existing form, with the grill house moving to a new location. Its reputation, however, travelled with it, attracting new arrivals eager to taste its delights.