Hot & Spicy Fest Presale Tickets, and Directions to the Event

原创 The Beijingers theBeijinger

Chilli heads, take heed: the moment we've all been waiting for is finally upon us. Yes, this weekend's hotly anticipated Hot & Spicy Fest will kick off Saturday, and the fiery fun will continue all the way until Sunday night.

Forty vendors with a globe-spanning range of cuisines (from Sichuan to the American Deep South, and everything in between) will be slinging their spiciest wares at this event, much to the delight of both seasoned pepper gobblers and the uninitiated. Along with the irresistible food, there'll be plenty of entertainment to get you warm under the collar - from a belly dancing performance to a Sichuan style hip-hop set.

Directions to the event

"But how do I gain access to all this unrestrained spicy fun?!" you may be asking. Well, the action is right in the center of town, at Zaha Hadid's swooping sci-fi looking Galaxy Soho structure in Chaoyangmen.

Located just a hop, skip, and a jump, Galaxy Soho is a breeze to get to whether you're coming from the north, south, east, or west (to be honest, it's pretty hard to miss).

You'll find Galaxy Soho and the Hot & Spicy Festival at the big red dot (tap image for bigger version)

If you're planning to get there by taxi, you can ask your driver to take you to 银河soho (yínhé soho) or 朝阳门桥东南角 (cháoyángmén qiáo dōngnánjiǎo, literally "the southeast corner or Chaoyangmen bridge").

Other Hot & Spicy Festival Tidbits

The event runs 11am-8pm both Saturday and Sunday.

Keep in mind that Saturday is going to be a bit windy according to forecasts (but all the delicious spicy food on offer will fortify you against those gusts). Forecasters say Sunday is going to be mild and sunny, however, making it an even better day to spend at this outdoor fest.

Finally: early bird tickets for Saturday are already sold out, though Sunday tickets are still available (RMB 20 each until Firday, Apr 13). We strongly suggest you buy a ticket in advance so as to avoid queueing to get in. If you do so, you'll also receive a free bandana to use as you please!

That being said, stragglers should never fear: plenty of tickets will also be available on site, just queue up and shell out RMB 25 at the gate.

See you at the fest, fellow spicy devotees!

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Scan to buy tickets in Chinese

Photos: the Beijinger, Apple Maps