Nvidia CEO Jensen Huang tries Beijing noodles, recoils at fermented drink

Nvidia CEO Jensen Huang sampled traditional Beijing street food Thursday, praising a bowl of zhajiangmian noodles before visibly recoiling at his first taste of douzhi'er, a fermented soybean drink — a reaction that trended on Chinese social media platform Weibo by afternoon, according to The Korea Times.

The impromptu food tour drew crowds of onlookers and generated widespread attention online, offering a rare humanizing glimpse of one of Silicon Valley's most prominent technology executives navigating daily life in Beijing's historic hutong district.

Huang visited Fangzhuanchang Noodles at No. 69 in the Nanluoguxiang area of Beijing's eastern district, where he ordered zhajiangmian — noodles covered in thick soybean-paste sauce mixed with vegetables and meat. He ate standing at the restaurant entrance as onlookers and local media captured the moment, according to The Korea Times.

"It's so good," Huang, Nvidia's chief executive, said as he dug into the bowl.

The afternoon's second culinary experiment did not go as smoothly. Douzhi'er, a gray-green fermented soybean drink with a slightly sour profile, is a Beijing specialty that divides even longtime locals. Video of Huang's visibly negative reaction after tasting the beverage circulated widely, trending on Weibo on Friday afternoon, The Korea Times reported.

Nanluoguxiang, where the outing took place, is one of Beijing's best-preserved hutong neighborhoods. The area features a mix of traditional low-rise courtyard homes, shops and restaurants that have survived successive rounds of urban redevelopment that reshaped much of the capital. The neighborhood attracts visitors seeking a window into old Beijing's residential architecture alongside its active community of residents.

Huang's walk through Nanluoguxiang's alleyways drew steady crowds throughout the outing. The neighborhood's hutong homes have survived decades of demolition elsewhere in Beijing, making the area a living record of the capital's traditional residential fabric.