WHEN people say the Chinese will eat just about any living creature, they?re not exaggerating. And anyone who doubts or challenges this need only to stroll down the famous Wangfujing food street in Beijing to find out why.

The tempting smell of food barbecued, fried, and steamed will make any visitor or traveler linger around Wangfujing for the night after a tiring afternoon of shopping. But a word of advice to the uninitiated: don?t just be guided by the aromas. Look around, because the food lined up on Wangfujing is not your usual fare of street delicacies.

Located on the east side of Donghuamen Street, the area from the intersection of Wangfujing Daijie has been designated as a tourist spot. The exotic food items are considered edible and clean by Chinese standards. The stalls conform to health and sanitary requirements with vendors in red and white uniforms. They can converse in simple English, enough to take one?s orders. The vendors usually shout their stall?s ?specialties? to catch people?s curiosity and attention. There are over 100 food varieties that can be found all over China and sold in more than 60 stalls along Wangfujing Street, so competition among vendors is really tough. The stalls are set up at 3 pm and close at around midnight.

On a recent trip to Beijing, my companion and I set aside an evening for Wangfujing, purposely to try this famous food strip after a fully-packed afternoon of shopping in the area. As the hawkers began to switch on their bright red lanterns, we first cruised the food stalls to get a glimpse of the exotic offerings.

We gawked at an array of menu items that a lot of people, mostly foreigners, have been shrieking and raving about: scorpions, grasshoppers, sparrows, centipedes, snakes, sea horses, star fish, crickets and other critters you mostly saw only in picture books back in grade school. These exotic delicacies are skewered and barbecued and can be seasoned according to your tastes. There are also animal innards ? gizzards, livers, and intestines ? as well as lamb and cow testicles pretending to be ?fish balls.?

For the not-so-adventurous folk, there?s always the ?normal? fare: chicken, pork, beef, lamb, duck, and squid. There are also all-time Chinese favorites like dumplings, xiao long bao, and other dim sum. For the health conscious, the food stalls also offer different versions of lumpia or vegetable rolls, which can be paired with stir-fried noodles, steamed buns, pineapple rice or fried pancakes.

After this feast for the eyes, we realized that we did not have the stomach for the exotic dishes after all, so we decided to stick to the ordinary fare of chicken gizzards and lamb meat ? barbecued, with a hint of spice from the mixture of chili and cumin powder drizzled on the meat. We sampled the freshly steamed xiao long bao (miniature siopao) and savored the juicy meat inside that melted in our mouths as we took a bite. The lumpia was deliciously pan-fried with its crisp skin and did not need any other sauce or seasoning.

We decided to be adventurous for desert, and went for the colorful candied fruit sticks like strawberries, kiwis, cherries, and sancha (local plums). Unfortunately, the candied fruits were not as delicious as they appeared. The sticky syrup stuck to our teeth, making it difficult to chew. Still, after a meal of barbecued, steamed, and fried dishes, the sweet flavors neutralized the spicy and salty taste that lingered in our mouth.

If you?re visiting the area, it is advisable to bring along a friend who can speak Mandarin and who can ask the vendors about the dishes. Or, failing that, you can just point to the food you want. The stalls usually have signboards (in Chinese) stating the items and prices. However, the food items are pricier than in other streets or markets as this is frequented by tourists. Prices range from RMB5 (P35) to RMB20 (P140). The prices are normally fixed so there is little room for haggling.

Indeed, Wangfujing is more than just a shopping haven for travelers. It offers a unique experience for people who want to go on a different kind of gastronomic adventure. You might even want to imagine yourself as a contestant on ?Fear Factor? as you challenge yourself to tackle the exotic fare. So leave those inhibitions behind and reach for that seasoned and skewered snake. ?